Sussex Timeline | Sussex Castles | Richard Bird

1095 The Crusades

Sat, 21 Jan 2012 08:07:48 -0500

Origin of the Crusades
The crusades were a series of loosely allied military campaigns from eleventh to sixteenth centuries conducted by Christian forces trying to contain the Muslim conquest of the near east, in particular so that Christian pilgrims would retain access to Palestine and Jerusalem. At the council of Clermont in 1095, Pope Urban II called for Christians in western europe to take of up arms against the Muslims. Crusading was a combination of military service and pilgrimage and such service in the name of God could provide a crusader a path to salvation.

Crusader Crosses
The term "crusade" is a modern rather than a medieval term and was derived from the latin crucesignati, meaning those signed by the cross. Crusaders typically stitched a small fabric cross on the breast of their tunics. In order to protect their souls from the dangers of the trip to the holy land, it was not unusual for crusaders to scratch a cross on the wall of a church. The down stroke of the cross was drawn prior to the crusaders departure, with the cross to be completed on the crusaders return. A number of these crosses may be seen in Sussex churches, especially at ports where the crusaders departed England. Some examples of crusader may be seen at St Nicholas, Pevensey and St Mary De Haura, New Shoreham.

Sussex Crusaders
The third crusade is more often thought of as the English crusade with the English forces under the command of King Richard I. Knights and men at arms from Sussex did serve under Richard I, however some of the Sussex Norman lords did participate in the earlier crusades. Philip of Bellême, son of Roger of Montgomery, the Lord of Arundel and Edith de Warenne, daughter of William de Warenne of Lewes accompanied her husband Gerard de Gournay on the first crusade. Prior to joining the second crusade William de Warenne II gave land to the priory of St Pancras in Lewes for the protection of his and his families souls.

1415 The Battle of Agincourt

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 21:20:40 -0500

Pre-curser
The first Plantagenet king of England, Henry II had established a large empire that encompassed England, Wales and large parts of France. Over time, much of this land had been won back back by the French. In 1415, the major French dukedoms of Burgundy and Armagnac were squabbling over the French Royal succession. King Henry V felt he had a legitimate claim to the throne of France himself, via his great-grandfather, Edward II's, marriage to Isabelle, daughter of King Philipe IV of France. Henry wanted to restore Henry II's empire, reclaiming the lands in felt were rightfully his.

Sussex Participation
In 1415, Henry V assembled an expedition to invade France. The principle lords from Sussex in Henry's army were Thomas, Earl of Arundel, Lord Camoys, Lord Maltravers, Sir Thomas West and Sir Roger Fienes. Between them they brought 165 men at arms and 493 archers. It should be noted that Arundel's contingent would have included some Welsh archers from his marcher estates, although there would likely have been Sussex men serving under other Lords also. This is quite a significant contribution from one county, especially given that the men of the Sussex Cinque Ports would have been charged with helping to outfit Henry's fleet of 1500 ships.

1399 Abdication of Richard II

Sun, 02 Oct 2011 18:19:15 -0400

Ten year old Richard II succeeded succeeded Edward III as King. While in his minority England was governed by a council from which Richard's uncles were excluded. The council was not popular with the the people, levying three poll taxes to fund a number of unsuccessful military campaigns overseas. Heavy handed collection of poll taxes led to the Peasants Revolt in 1381.

Richard surrounded himself with friends in his council, rewarding them with titles and land often at the expense of other barons. This, of course, did not endear Richard to the barons. In 1386 after particularly large tax Richard imposed to pay the cost of preparations for an anticipated French invasion, the barons refused to pay and de-facto took control of the government. With the power now in the barons hands they sentenced many of Richard's advisers and friends to death.

0230 The Saxon Shore Forts

Sat, 10 Sep 2011 12:35:22 -0400

In the early third century, the Saxons, Jutes and Angles were beginning to encroach on the roman empire. In an attempt to hold back these germanic raiders, the Romans built a series of coastal defenses around the south and east of Britain and the northern coast of Gaul. On the south coast of Britain, the western most of these forts was Porcester in Hampshire, moving east to Pevensey in Sussex and Lympne in Kent. The chain of forts continued around the coast of Britain, as far north as Brancaster in Norfolk. In total, nine major forts were built and garrisoned. The full list of forts, with the Roman name in parenthesis, is given below:

Portchester, Hampshire (Portus Adurni)
Pevensey, East Sussex (Anderitum)
Lympne, Kent (Portus Lemanis)
Dover, Kent (Dubris)
Richborough, Kent (Rutupiae)
Reculver, Kent (Regulbium)
Bradwell-on-Sea, Essex (Othona)
Burgh Castle, Norfolk (Gariannonum)
Brancaster, Norfolk (Branodunum)

Work on the forts begun around the year 230. Recent dendrochronological dating of wooden foundation piles at Pevensey have dated construction of the fort to around the year 290. The wall of the roman fort at Pevensey encloses an area of approximately 18 acres with gates on the west, north and east of the castle. The southern side of the fort would have faced the sea. There is, unfortunately, little remaining evidence to to show how the space inside the fort was used.

Pevensey was garrisoned by Numerus Abulcorum, a roman auxiliary unit from Spain. The size of the unit was between 200 and 400 men. It is interesting to note that the later Norman castle built inside the Roman fort was much smaller in size and was garrisoned by only 30 men.

0043 Arrival of the Romans in Sussex

Sat, 10 Sep 2011 12:34:58 -0400

Arrival of the Romans
The first appearance of the Romans in Sussex was around AD 43, when Fishbourne appears to have been used as a supply depot and Chichester (Noviomagus Reginorum) used to garrison troops during the Roman invasion of Britain. By the middle of the first century, the occupying Romans were farming the Sussex countryside. The majority of farms were small farmsteads, but some farms were on a larger scale and had grander buildings to match. These were known as villas.

Roman Villas
Villas were often built over many years and in stages, with a wing being built at a time. The villas often featured luxurious features such mosaic tile floors, under floor heating (hypocaust) and bathhouses. There are numerous villa sites in Sussex, including Pulborough, Westhampnett, Arundel, Angerming, Brighton, Southwick Eastbourne and Barcombe. Most villa sites are now just the remains of foundations at, or below ground level, but Bignor Roman villa and Fishbourne Roman palace, both have beautiful preserved mosaics and are are open to the public.

1209 King John seizes Knepp Castle

Thu, 01 Sep 2011 20:38:46 -0400

King John was no stranger to Knepp Castle, having visited twice in 1206. In 1208, after Matilda de Broase had refused to offer her sons as hostages to John, the King seized all the de Broase property. John made further visits to Knepp and during the barons rebellion, Queen Isabella stayed for eleven days. John eventually restored Knepp to the de Braose family in 1215. With William de Braose, his wife and son now dead, the castle passed to William de Braose' uncle, Giles de Braose, the Bishop of Hereford.

While he held Knepp, John placed the castle under the Stewardship of Roeland Bloet. The forest around Knepp was rich in game and John frequently allowed friends an supporters to hunt in the forest. There remain a number of letters from the King to his steward at Knepp with directions as to the size of the hunting party to accommodate and the type and quantity of game they should be allowed to take. The directions were frequently very precise, detailing the numbers of horses, hounds, keepers and other servants that should be accommodated. The cost of the hunting parties was paid by the exchequer.

1348 The Black Death

Sun, 28 Aug 2011 09:30:16 -0400

Outbreak and Spread
The Black Death or Bubonic Plague as it also known, is an often fatal pandemic disease that is believed to have originated in asia, swept across europe and eventually to England. In the summer of 1348, the first deaths in England were recorded. The earliest, closest reported cases to Sussex were in Southampton in the neighboring county of Hampshire. The disease was carried by the fleas on the rats that frequently infested ships holds. While the disease did spread overland from Southampton, it undoubtably also entered Sussex directly via its ports, such as Bosham, Rye and Winchelsea.

Symptoms and Mortality
The symptoms of the disease are a high fever, muscle cramps and seizures, followed by the development of painful lymph gland swellings known as buboes. These were commonly found in the groin and sometimes in the armpits or neck, usually at the site of the initial infection. In the current day, bubonic plague can be successfully treated with antibiotics, but in the fourteenth century, before the discovery of antibiotics, death resulted in 50% to 90% of cases.

1337 The Hundred Years War

Sun, 21 Aug 2011 11:36:59 -0400

1337 - 1429 Summary
This page is not intended to provide a complete history of the war, but just to some of the major events in the war and those events which touched Sussex. The Hundred Years war was a series of wars and battles with intervals of peace. The war was fought between the England and France and lasted for approximately one hundred years. There were three major phases to the war:

1337–1360 Edwardian War (Edward III)
1369–1389 Caroline War (Edward III, Richard II)
1415–1429 Lancastrian War (Henry V, Henry VI)

Origin of the war
In 1152 with is marriage to Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry II of England ruled over substantial areas of France, including Normandy, Aquitaine, Maine, Anjou, Touraine, Poitou, and Gascony. Much of this land was won back for France by Capetian King Philip II from King John of England.

In With the death of Charles IV of France, the Capetian first born male lined ended. Edward III, the king of England claimed he was the heir to France through his mother Isabella, who was the sole surviving heir of Philip IV. Edward was opposed by Philip VI of Valois who was descended from Philip IV brother.

1067 Origin of the Sussex "Rapes"

Sun, 21 Aug 2011 11:05:31 -0400

After the norman conquest the country of Sussex was divided into five districts or “rapes”. The rapes divided Sussex north to south, each providing King William I with a vital corridor to the English channel and to Normandy. Each rape was held by a trusted supporter. William granted the rapes to:

Earl Roger de Montgomery (Arundel)
William de Broase (Bramber)
William de Warrene (Lewes)
Robert, Count de Mortain, (Pevensey)
William, Count of Eu (Hastings)

There were initially five rapes, but the rape of Arundel was later split in two creating an additional rape, the rape of Chichester.

There is some debate as to the origin of the term rape in this context. One theory is that it was derived from the Icelandic term Hrepp, a unit of land division or from the Saxon word rap, meaning rope. However, there doesn’t appear to much evidence to show use of either term in Saxon times. For example, the Charters of Selsey record Sussex land transactions from 673 to 988, but none of them mention the term “rape”.

1386 The French Invasion of England

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 11:34:17 -0400

French Preparations
In 1386 the French make preparations to invade England. The invasion was funded through the imposition of high taxes, with some nobles taxed for up to a quarter of their wealth. Much of the invasion expense was consumed in the extravagant outfitting of the fleet. Artists were in short supply as French nobles competed to decorate their ships with coats of arms, silken banners and gilded masts. Copious amounts of food are provisioned including salted meats, oats, salt, onions, wine-vinegar, biscuits, flour, fats, garlic, peas, beans, olives, barley, wine and barrels of beaten egg-yolks.

The fleet was assembled in Sluys, Flanders where Dutch mercenaries were hired for the fighting. In his chronicle, Froissart reports that the French were so confident of their preparations that they considered the English already crushed, with the men as good as dead and the women their slaves.

1381 The Peasants Revolt

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 11:31:44 -0400

Sussex in common with Kent, Essex and Bedford had a large proportion of the population held in serfage. Serfs were obliged to provide free labor to the lord of the manor in exchange for a small land holding of their own. They had few legal rights and often had to pay the lord to allow their daughters to marry.

John Ball was a preacher from Kent who preached all property should be held in common. He, together with Wat Tyler and Jack Straw rallied the peasants into a revolt against King Richard II. Many men from the Sussex Weald joined the rebellion.

At the rebellions peak, up to 60,000 peasants marched on London. Richard initially tried granting letters of freedom from serf-age, but this was not enough for the leaders of the rebellion. Richard then ordered all the peasants to leave London by the next morning or be declared traitors and sentenced to death. This was enough for most of the peasants who returned to their villages.

1350 The Battle of Winchelsea

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 11:28:48 -0400

29 August 1350
The battle of Winchelsea took place at sea, just off the Sussex coast near Winchelsea and Rye. Animosity had been growing for many years between the English and Spanish with regard Spanish piracy against English ships and King Edward III was looking for an opportunity to punish the Spanish.

Edward had learnt that a Spanish fleet was re-equipping in Sluys, Flanders and would be sailing back down the English channel to Spain. This provided Edward his opportunity and he travelled down to Rye to meet with his fleet. His Queen, Philippa of Hainault, accompanied him to Rye, but stayed at the Greyfriars monastery in Winchelsea when Edward put to sea.

On August 29 the fleets met and joined battle. The Spanish had a strong wind and could have outrun the English, but were eager to engage, confident of an easy victory. The battle was hard fought all day, but the failing light saw the English as victors. The Spanish had lost 14 ships from their fleet of 40, with their remaining ships put to flight. The victorious English returned to Winchelsea and Rye. The Queen was greatly relieved to hear of their victory, especially given the large size of the Spanish fleet.

1283 Winchelsea New Town

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 10:41:17 -0400

King Edward I needed to protect his ability to muster his naval forces and Winchelsea, along with the other Cinque Ports was a key provider of ships and men. When the old Winchelsea was being lost to the sea, founding a new town of Winchelsea on higher ground was a logical step for Edward to maintain the capabilities his navy.

The town itself is laid out in a grid and many of the street exist today as they were laid out in the thirteenth century. The map below shows how the town was laid out in 1292. The original map showing the streets and land plots was created by W McLean Homan in 1949 using the rent roll of 1292. I have superimposed the modern streets, shown in red and which can be walked today. The town is accessible via the A259 which runs north/south on the west side of town. The town was originally surrounded by water and marsh, but is now landlocked. The river Brede has silted up and with the retreat of the sea, much of the marsh is now pasture.

1264 The Battle of Lewes

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 10:29:23 -0400

Precursor: The Treaty of Oxford
In June of 1258, King Henry III called a parliament in Oxford to resolve differences between the king and the barons. The barons argued that the King was bound allow the rights granted to the people of England through the Magna Carta. The kings preferred to retain royal authority in all matters, but reluctantly swore an oath to uphold the liberties described in the Magna Carta.

1264, The Battle of Lewes
By 1263, the king had rescinded his oath and returned to his old autocratic ways. Simon deMontfort, Earl of Leicester raised and army to fight the king. The forces met on the northwest outskirts of Lewes.

The king had the larger army and amongst his commanders were Prince Edward, later Edward I and John de Warrene, Earl of Surrey and lord of Lewes Castle. Initially in the battle, Prince Edward routed one flank of the barons army, but pursued his foes too far from the battlefield. Without the support of Edward’s cavalry, de Montfort was able to defeat the kings forces and capture the king and his brother. The monks of Lewes priory cared for many of the wounded and recorded that at least 2,700 men died in the battle.

In a negotiated truce, the king agreed to the barons demands and recognized the rights granted earlier by King John. In return, the king, his brother and son are released by the barons.

1215 The Barons Rebel against King John

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 09:44:03 -0400

The Barons Rebellion and Sussex
In 1215, unhappy with King John’s greed, cruelty and his unwillingness to abide by the terms of the magna carta, the English barons rebelled and invited Prince Louis of France to come and be king of England. Louis met with little initial resistance quickly moved through Kent. In Sussex he was joined by William de Warrene, Earl of Lewes and William d'Aubigny, Earl ofArundel.

However, There was some resistance in Sussex and a squire, William Cassingham, raised a militia numbering several hundred men. Armed with longbows, they retreated to forest of the weald and continued to resist the French until the French were eventually forced from England.

In 1216 King John died after gorging himself on peaches and new cider while sick with a fever. With John’s death and some skillful political maneuvering by William Marshall, Henry III’s regent, support for the rebellion faded. And after defeats in Dover and Sandwich, Prince Louis decided to return to France.

While trying to leave England, Louis was ambushed near Lewes and pursued through the weald by William Cassingham. Louis made for Rye only to find the town held for king Henry. Louis then tried for Winchelsea. The townspeople of Winchelsea, aware that Louis was coming, abandoned their town, taking or destroying most of the food. There was some wheat in Winchelsea, but Louis' men did not have the means to turn the wheat into bread, there was no meat in the town and they had no means to catch fish.

1211 Death of Matilda de Braose

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 09:39:51 -0400

In 1208, King John always on the lookout to increase his wealth, had devised a new money making scheme. His plan was to impose huge taxes on the barons for their land holdings, to blind the clergy and to confiscate all church property. In a rare moment of retrospection, John became concerned that the barons and the pope might not see the merit of this scheme. To ensure the full loyalty of his barons, John ordered them to provide him with hostages.

Matilda de Braose answered the kings messengers that she would not give her sons as hostage to the king, reasonably pointing out that the king had a habit of murdering people, including his own nephew, Arthur. The king, enraged that a woman should have made such a reply immediately confiscated all the de Braose property, including Bramber and Knepp castles and ordered the family captured.

1155 Battle Abbey Charter

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 09:30:15 -0400

William I granted the abbey a rough circle of land surrounding the abbey, known as a leuga. Starting due east and following a clockwise direction the abbey’s land was bounded by Bathurst, Hedgland, Crowhurst, Catsfield, Puchehole, Westbece, Bodeham, Whatlington and back to Bathurst. Many of these villages still exist today. In addition to the leuga, William also granted other valuable manors to the abbey including Alciston in Sussex and Wye in Kent.

The town of Battle was planned and built next to the abbey. Dwellings, some with workshops, were built for the craftsmen, tradesmen and farmers and who would support the abbey. Each tenant paid rent to the abbey, commonly of 7d or 8p a year, plus some donated labor. Such tenancies was known as messuages. Amongst the tenants in the town of Battle were a cordwainer, cobblers, leather-workers, weavers, a goldsmith, millers, bakers, cooks, brewers, herdsmen, plowmen, reed-cutters, carpenters, gardeners and even a bell-caster.

1155 The Confederation of Cinque Ports

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 09:04:12 -0400

Origin of the Cinque Ports
Shipping was the primary means of transport and warfare through much of British history. Fleets of Ships were maintained by the kings and major earls and used for raiding, expansion of their territories and infighting between each other. The ships were frequently provided by the coastal ports of britain. During the reign of Henry II, Henry recognized the need for a reliable fleet and in a charter of 1155 granted rights to the “Confederation of Cinque Ports” in exchange for the service of supplying ships and crews. The term "Cinque Ports" comes from cinque, the French word for five - there were originally five cinque ports.

Charter of Liberties
The cinque ports were granted certain liberties through royal charter. The earliest known charter dates from 1155. The ports were allowed a level of self government, including permission to hold courts and enforce punishment, up to and including execution. They were exempt from royal tax and tolls and allowed to raise their own revenue through tolls, possession of lost good unclaimed for a year or thrown overboard.

1135 The King, the Queen and the Empress

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 08:54:35 -0400

26 December 1135 - Stephen Takes the Throne
Despite swearing an oath to King Henry I that he would support Empress Matilda's succession to the throne of England, Stephen took the throne of himself. He had the support of English barons, who weren't keen on the idea of being ruled by a woman. While barons of this period were well known for their strong sense of ethics and justice, it may just be possible that some of them were influenced by the land and money Stephen had offered them in exchange for their support.

King Stephen lacked the leadership, judgment and sternness of character required of a king in the middle-ages. He quickly lost control and the country descended into 20 years of wars and lawlessness, known as the anarchy.

1106 The Battle of Tinchebrai

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 08:51:14 -0400

28 September 1106, King Henry I defeats Robert, Duke of Normandy
Robert Curthose, Duke of Normandy, was always disappointed to be away on the first crusade when William II had mysteriously died in the New Forest, allowing his younger brother Henry to seize the throne of England.

In a subtle subtle political maneuver Duke Robert demanded that King Henry give England to Robert. Negotiations took place at Northampton, but broke down after King Henry declined Duke Roberts modest request. An angry Duke Robert returned to Normandy, where he was pursued by King Henry.

Duke Robert was supported by William, Count of Mortain (Pevensey) and Robert de Bellême (Arundel). The battle was fought at Tinchebrai in 1106 with King Henry the clear victor. Duke Robert and the Count of Mortain were captured, imprisoned and forfeit all their lands. The cowardly Robert de Bellême fled the battle when it appeared he might have to fight. William d'Aubigny, a later earl of Arundel, fought with distinction for Henry.