Lewes

For other uses, seeLewes (disambiguation).

Lewes(/ˈluːɪs/) is thecounty townofEast Sussex,England.The town is the administrative centre of the widerdistrict of the same name.It lies on theRiver Ouseat the point where the river cuts through theSouth Downs.

Lewes
Lewes viewed fromLewes Castle
Coat of arms of Lewes
Lewes Location withinEast Sussex
Area	11.4 km2(4.4 sq mi)
Population	17,297 (Parish-2011)
•Density	1,420/km2(3,700/sq mi)
Demonym	Lewesian
OS grid reference	TQ420104
•London	71 km (44 mi)N
Civil parish	Lewes
District	Lewes
Shire county	East Sussex
Region	South East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	LEWES
Postcode district	BN7
Dialling code	01273
Police	Sussex
Fire	East Sussex
Ambulance	South East Coast
UK Parliament	Lewes
Website	lewes-tc.gov.uk

A traditional market town and centre of communications, in 1264 it was the site of theBattle of Lewes.The town's landmarks includeLewes Castle,Lewes Priory,Bull House (the former home ofThomas Paine),Southover Grangeand public gardens, and a 16th-century timber-framedWealden hall houseknown asAnne of Cleves House.Other notable features of the area include theGlyndebournefestival, theLewes Bonfirecelebrations and theLewes Pound.

Etymology

The place-name "Lewes" is first attested in anAnglo-Saxon chartercirca 961 AD, where it appears asLæwe.It appears asLewesin theDomesday Bookof 1086.The addition of the <-s> suffix seems to have been part of a broader trend ofAnglo-Normanscribes pluralising Anglo-Saxon place-names (a famous example being their rendering ofLundenasLondres,hence the modernFrenchname forLondon).

The traditional derivation ofLæwe,first posited by the Tudor antiquarianLaurence Nowell,derives it from theOld Englishwordhlæw,meaning "hill" or "barrow",presumably referring to School Hill (on which the historic centre of Lewes stands) or to one of the five ancient burial mounds, all now levelled, in the vicinity ofSt John sub Castro.

However, this etymology has been challenged by the Swedish philologist Rune Forsberg on the grounds that the loss of the initial⟨h⟩inhlæwwould be unlikelyphonologicallyin this context. He suggested that the nameLæweinstead derives from the rare Old English wordlǣw( "wound, incision" ), and reflects the fact that from the top of School Hill Lewes overlooks the narrow, steep-sided "gash" where the River Ouse cuts through the line of the South Downs.This theory was endorsed in 2011 byA Dictionary of British Place Names.

A third possibility has been advanced byRichard Coates,who has argued thatLæwederives fromlexowia,an Old English word meaning "hillside, slope" (of which there is no shortage in the Lewes area). This unusual word was borrowed into Old English fromOld Welsh,theModern Welshspelling beingllechwedd.

History

Pre-Saxon

The immense strategic value of the site, which is able to command traffic between theChannelcoast and the Sussex interior, was recognised as early as theIron Age,when a hill-fort was built onMount Caburn,the steep-sided hill that overlooks the Ouse (and the modern town of Lewes) from the east.

During theRomanperiod, there was an aristocraticvillaatBeddingham,at the foot of Mount Caburn, and there have been several finds of Roman coins and pottery sherds in Lewes itself. The Victorian historianThomas Walker Horsfieldtherefore reckoned that there must have been a Roman settlement on the site, and he identified it with the otherwise unlocatable town ofMutuantonis.Another antiquarian, John Elliot, even suggested that central Lewes's distinctive network oftwittenswas based on the layout of aRoman legionary fortress;however modern historians are rather more cautious about the possibility of a Roman Lewes, as there is as yet no archaeological evidence for a built-up area dating back to the Roman period.

Anglo-Saxon and Anglo-Norman

The earliest phase ofAnglo-Saxonsettlement in Sussex was concentrated between the Rivers Ouse andCuckmere,and Anglo-Saxon finds begin to appear in Lewes from the sixth century.The town of Lewes was probably founded around this time, and it may have been one of the most important settlements in theKingdom of Sussex,along withChichesterandHastings,though the evidence for this early period is very sketchy.

Arms of thede Warenne family

By the ninth century, the Kingdom of Sussex had been annexed to theKingdom of Wessex,and in 838Ecgberht, King of Wessexdonated the estate of Malling, on the opposite side of the Ouse from Lewes, to theArchbishop of Canterbury.As a result, the Parish of Malling became a 'peculiar', which means that the parish was directly subject to the Archbishop of Canterbury rather than theBishop of Chichesterlike every other parish in Sussex. Malling would retain this anomalous status until as late as 1845.

Information about Lewes becomes much more plentiful from the reign ofAlfred the Greatonward, as it was one of the towns which he fortified as part of the network ofburhshe established in response to theViking raids.The peace and stability brought by Alfred and his successors evidently stimulated economic activity in the area, for in the late Anglo-Saxon period Lewes seems to have been a thriving boom town – during the reign of Alfred's grandsonÆthelstanit was assigned two royalmoneyers,more than any othermintin Sussex, and according to Domesday Book it generated £26 of revenue forthe Crownin 1065, almost twice the amount of any other town in the county.

After theNorman Conquest,William the Conquerorrewarded his retainerWilliam de Warenneby making himEarl of Surreyand granting him theRape of Lewes,a strip of land stretching along the Ouse valley from the coast to the Surrey boundary. De Warenne constructedLewes Castlewithin the walls of the Saxonburh,while his wifeGundredafounded thePriory of St Pancras,aCluniacmonastic house, in about 1081.

Battle of Lewes

Main article:Battle of Lewes

During theSecond Barons' War,King Henry IIIwas ambushed at Lewes by a force of rebel barons led bySimon de Montfort.Henry marched out to fight de Montfort, leading to a pitched battle on the hills above the town (roughly in the area of modern Landport Bottom). The king's sonPrince Edward,commanding the right wing of the royal army, succeeded in driving off some of the baronial forces, but he got carried away with the pursuit, which took him as far asOffham.In Edward's absence the remainder of the royal army was attacked by de Montfort andGilbert de Clareand decisively defeated. The king's brotherRichard of Cornwallwas captured, and the king himself was forced to sign theMise of Lewes,a document which does not survive but was probably aimed at forcing Henry to uphold theProvisions of Oxford.Despite this uncertainty about its consequences, the battle is often seen as an important milestone in the development of English democracy.

Late Mediaeval and Early Modern

Arms of theFitzalan family

Thede Warenne familydied out withEarl Johnin 1347, whereupon lordship of theRape of Lewespassed to his sororal nephewRichard Fitzalan, 4th Earl of Arundel.Fitzalan preferred to reside atArundel Castlerather than at Lewes, and the town therefore lost the prestige and economic advantages associated with being the seat of an important magnate. This was only the beginning of a series of misfortunes that struck Lewes, for in 1348 theBlack Deatharrived in England and later on in the century theHundred Years Warled to a series of French andCastilianraids on Sussex,which badly disrupted trade. On one occasion in 1377 thePriorofSt Pancras,John de Charlieu, was abducted by the raiders and held to ransom. Furthermore, after the main branch of the Fitzalan family died out in 1439, the Rape of Lewes was subsequently partitioned between the three sororal nephews of thelast earl,namelyJohn Mowbray, 3rd Duke of Norfolk,Edward Neville, 3rd Baron Bergavenny,and Edmund Lenthall. As a result of this dismemberment the district became even more neglected by its lords, although feudal politics was starting to become less important anyway due to the centralising reforms of theYorkistandTudorkings.

TheEnglish Reformationwas begun by one of these Tudor monarchs,Henry VIII,and as part of this process themonasteries of England were dissolved;Lewes Priorywas consequently demolished in 1538 and its property seized by the Crown. Henry's daughterMary Ireversed the religious policy of England, and during the resultingMarian Persecutionsof 1555–1557, Lewes was the site of the execution of seventeenProtestantmartyrs,most of them actually from theWealdrather than Lewes itself, who were burned at the stake in front of the Star Inn (now the site ofLewes Town Hall). Commemoration of the martyrs is one of the main purposes ofLewes Bonfire,and a stone memorial to the martyrs was unveiled onCliffe Hillin 1901.

Lewesian politics was dominated by a stronglyPuritanfaction in the reign ofCharles I,and during theEnglish Civil Warit was one of the most importantParliamentarianstrongholds in Sussex. As such it became the target of aroyalistattack in December 1642, but the royalist army was intercepted and defeated at theBattle of Muster Greenby Parliamentarian forces commanded byHerbert Morley,one of the twoMembers of Parliament(MPs) for Lewes.

Lewes recovered relatively quickly after the Civil War, and prospered during the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. It had always been one of the principal market towns of Sussex, as well as an important port, and by the end of theGeorgian erait also had well-developed textiles, iron, brewing, and shipbuilding industries.

Modern

The severe winter of 1836–7 led to a large build-up of snow on Cliffe Hill, whose sheer western face directly overlooks the town. On Tuesday 27 December 1836 thissnow cornicecollapsed, and the resultingLewes avalanchewas the deadliest ever recorded in Britain. The avalanche struck the cottages on Boulters Row (now part of South Street), burying fifteen people, of whom eight died. Apubin South Street is namedThe Snowdropin memory of the event.

In 1846, the town became a railway junction, with lines constructed from the north, south and east to two railway stations. The development ofNewhavenended Lewes's period as a major port.During theCrimean War,some 300 Finns who had served in the Russian army during theÅland Warand been captured atBomarsundwere imprisoned in the naval prison at Lewes.Lewes became aboroughin 1881. Lewes Town Hall opened in 1893 in premises converted from the former Star Inn and in 1913 Council Offices were added in Arts-and-Crafts style.

Lewes Victoria Hospitalopened in 1909 in its current premises, as Victoria Hospital and Infirmary, having previously been on School Hill where it opened as the Lewes Dispensary and Infirmary in 1855.

In October 2000, the town suffered majorfloodingduring an intense period of severe weather throughout the United Kingdom. The commercial centre of the town and many residential areas were devastated. In a government report into the nationwide flooding, Lewes was officially noted the most severely affected location.As a result of the devastation, the Lewes Flood Action group formed, to press for better flood protection measures.

Governance and politics

Lewes Town Hall

Local government

There are three tiers of local government covering Lewes, atparish(town),districtandcountylevel: Lewes Town Council,Lewes District CouncilandEast Sussex County Council.The town council is based atLewes Town Hallon the High Street.The county council has its headquarters atCounty Hallon St Anne's Crescent in the town, which is also used by Lewes District Council as its meeting place.

Lewes was anancient borough,although the structure of its early government is obscure. For much of the Middle Ages the town was run by a closed aristocratic organisation known as the "Fellowship of the Twelve", which was gradually eclipsed by a body known as the jury in the seventeenth century, presided over by a constable. The limitations of the town's administration were recognised in 1806 when separateimprovement commissionerswere established to pave, light and repair the streets and provide awatch.When local government in towns was reformed across the country in the 1830s, Lewes was one of the boroughsleft unreformed,and so it continued to be run by its jury and improvement commissioners. The situation was finally regularised in 1881 when the town was made amunicipal borough.The town was then run by a corporate body formally called the "mayor, aldermen and burgesses of the borough of Lewes", informally known as the corporation or town council. The last constable became the first mayor.

In 1890, the town council acquired the former Star Inn at 189 High Street, parts of which date back to the fourteenth century, and the adjoining corn exchange. The buildings were converted and extended to become the town hall, including a new frontage to High Street, which was completed in 1893.The municipal borough of Lewes was abolished in 1974 when the larger Lewes District was established.Asuccessor parishwas created covering the area of the former borough, with the parish council taking the name Lewes Town Council.

Following the 2023 election the composition of the town council was:

Party		Councillors
	Green	12
	Liberal Democrats	5
	Labour	1
Total		18

The next election is due in 2027.

Since 2010, the town has been included within theSouth Downs National Park.The National Park Authority has therefore taken over some functions from the local councils, notably relating totown planning.

There are also a number of local political groups without council representation. Thefar-leftgroupLewes Maoist Actionhas operated in the town since 2013, frequently handing out leaflets at the train station and running a cake stall at weekends outsideLewes Castle.In 2020, the group claims to have infiltrated the council and Harvey's brewery, although they have never contested a local or parliamentary election.

Constituency

Lewes gives its name to theLewes parliamentary constituency.The constituency was held by the Conservatives from the 1870s until 1997, when it was won by Liberal DemocratNorman Baker.He held the seat for 18 years until defeated in 2015 by ConservativeMaria Caulfield,who retained her seat in the 2017 and 2019 general elections. As of July 2024, Liberal DemocratJames MacClearyis the MP.

Geography

You can see Lewes lying like a box of toys under a great amphitheatre of chalk hills... on the whole it is set down better than any town I have seen in England.

— William Morris(1834–1896)

Panoramic view of Lewes

Lewes is situated on theGreenwichorPrime Meridian,in a gap in theSouth Downs,cut through by theRiver Ouse,and near its confluence with the Winterbourne Stream. It is approximately seven miles north ofNewhaven,and an equal distance north-east ofBrighton.

The South Downs rise above the river on both banks. The High Street, and earliest settlement, occupies the west bank, climbing steeply up from the bridge taking its ancient route along the ridge; the summit on that side, 2.5 miles (4.0 km) distant is known as Mount Harry. On the east bank there is a largechalkcliff,Cliffe Hillthat can be seen for many miles, part of the group of hills includingMount Caburn,Malling Down (where there are a few houses in a wooded area on the hillside, in a development known as Cuilfail) and Golf Hill (home to the Lewes Golf Club). The two banks of the river are joined by Willey's Bridge (a footbridge), the Phoenix Causeway (a recent concrete road bridge, named after the old Phoenix Ironworks) and Cliffe Bridge (an 18th-century replacement of themediaevalcrossing, widened in the 1930s and now semi-pedestrianised).

The High Street runs from Eastgate to West-Out, forming the spine of the ancient town. Cliffe Hill gives its name to the one-time village of Cliffe, now part of the town. The southern part of the town, Southover, came into being as a village adjacent to the Priory, south of the Winterbourne Stream. At the north of the town's original wall boundary is the St John's or Pells area, home to several 19th-century streets and the Pells Pond. ThePells Pool,built in 1860, is the oldest freshwaterlidoin England. The Phoenix Industrial Estate lies along the west bank of the river and contains a number of light industrial and creative industry uses, as well as car parks and a fire station. A potential regeneration project (formerly "The North Street Quarter", renamed "The Phoenix Project" by the Lewes-based eco-development company Human Nature which took on ownership of the land in December 2020) for the area would be the largest in Lewes since the South Malling residential area was developed in the 1950s and 1960s and in the South Downs since it became a National Park.

Malling lies to the east of the river and had 18th- and 19th-century houses and two notable breweries. Road engineering and local planning policy in the 1970s cleared many older buildings here to allow the flow of traffic; the main road route east from the town now goes along Little East Street, across the Phoenix Bridge and through the Cuilfail Tunnel to join the A27.

The town boundaries were enlarged twice (from the original town walls), in 1881 and 1934. They now include the more modern housing estates of Wallands, South Malling (the west part of which is a previously separate village with a church dedicated to St Michael), Nevill, Lansdown and Cranedown on the Kingston Road.

Countryside walks can be taken starting from several points in Lewes.One can walk onMount Caburnto the village ofGlyndestarting in Cliffe, traverse theLewes Brooks(anRSPBreserve) from Southover, walk toKingston near Lewesalso from Southover, head up Landport Bottom to Mount Harry andBlack Capalong the edge of the old Lewes Racecourse, or wander up along the Ouse toHamsey Placefrom the Pells. TheSouth Downs Waycrosses the Ouse just south of Lewes at Southease and hikers often stop off at the town. A new route reaching the town at theRailway Land– the Egrets Way – initially conceived in 2011 by the Ouse Valley Cycle Network, has been designed as a network of walking and cycling paths linking Lewes and Newhaven with the villages in between.

Natural sites

ThreeSites of Special Scientific Interestlie within the parish:Lewes Downs,Lewes BrooksandSoutherham Works Pit.Lewes Downs is a site ofbiologicalinterest, an isolated area of the South Downs.Lewes Brooks, also of biological importance, is part of the floodplain of theRiver Ouse,providing a habitat for many invertebrates such as water beetles and snails.Southerham Works Pit is ofgeologicalinterest, a disusedchalkpit displaying a wide variety of fossilised fish remains.The Railway Land nature reserve is on the east side of the town next to the Ouse, and contains an area of woodland and marshes, which now includes the Heart of Reeds, a sculpted reed bed designed by local land artistChris Drury.The Winterbourne stream, a tributary of the Ouse, flows through it. This stream flows most winters and dries up in the summer, hence its name. It continues through Lewes going through the Grange Gardens and often travelling underground. The Heart of Reeds is one of the sites inEast SussexandKenthome to themarsh frog,an introduced species. It is popular with pond-dippers and walkers. A centre for the study of environmental change is due to be built at the entrance to the nature reserve.

On 21 August 1864, Lewes experienced anearthquakemeasuring 3.1 on theRichter magnitude scale.

Climate

Climate in this area has mild differences between highs and lows, and there is adequate rainfall year-round. TheKöppen Climate Classificationsubtype for this climate is "Cfb"(Marine West Coast Climate/Oceanic climate).

Climate data for Lewes, UK
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	8 (46)	8 (46)	9 (48)	11 (52)	15 (59)	17 (63)	19 (66)	20 (68)	18 (64)	14 (57)	11 (52)	8 (46)	9 (48)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	5 (41)	4 (39)	6 (43)	7 (45)	10 (50)	12 (54)	15 (59)	15 (59)	13 (55)	10 (50)	7 (45)	5 (41)	9 (48)
Average precipitation days	12	10	9	7	7	6	8	8	9	10	11	11	900
Source: Weatherbase

Religious buildings

See also:List of places of worship in Lewes District

Church of England

• St Michael's is located at the top of the High Street and like St Peter's in nearbySoutheaseit has a round tower (with a shingled spire). Its length runs along the street rather than away from it and the cemetery is separated from the High Street by stone walls with iron railings on top. Next to it is a building which is used upstairs as aSunday school.
• Further west is St Anne's,a quiet church surrounded by its graveyard, which gives its name to the street it is on.
• St John sub Castro(Latinfor St John-under-the-Castle) is the northernmost church in the old town. The surrounding town quarter is called St John's. The church's boundaries are actually protected on one side by the Town Walls, although originally St John's was a smallSaxonbuilding. It was destroyed in the 19th century but the main door was kept and used as an east door for the large new church, built in 1839 by George Cheesemaninflintandbrick.In the graveyard there is amemorial to the Finnish prisonerskept in the old naval prison in the 19th century. St John's Church Hall is a couple of streets away in Talbot Terrace.
• In Cliffe there is St Thomas à Becket's, where theOrthodoxCommunity also worship.
• In Southover, St John the Baptist's is located on Southover High Street. The nave incorporates thehospitiumof thePriory of St Pancras.Neighbouring it is Church End and down the road at St James Streetcul-de-sac,the Church Hall. In its grounds is the Southover War Memorial, which is distinct from the mainLewes War Memorial.
• St. Michael,South Malling,dates from 1628.

Deconsecrated

• All Saints' is next to the site of aPrioryofGrey Friars(Franciscanfriars) the only relic of which is an archway at the end of the church boundary wall, which is on the line of the town wall. The medieval tower survives, abutting a later brick nave byAmon Wilds(1806)and 19th-century Gothic-style chancel. This church is now deconsecrated and serves as a community arts space, managed by the Town Council.

Roman Catholic

TheRoman Catholicchurch is dedicated toSt. Pancrasin memory of the Priory and is a red-brick building over the street from St Anne's.

Non-conformist

• Lewes Friends Meeting House(finished 1784) is a Quaker meeting house next to the former All Saints' Church (now an arts centre) on Friar's Walk.
• TheJireh Chapel,off Malling Street, is a Grade I listed building,being a rare survivor of its type dating from 1805. It now houses theLewes Free Presbyterian Church.
• Westgate Chapel is a 16th-century building located built on the original 13th century town wall foundations and a yard at the top of the High Street (Grade 2* listed). So called because of its position at the old West Gate of the town wall, the Chapel was in use during the 17th century and became a licensed place of worship named as Westgate Meeting on 5 November 1700 and recorded as Independent. Its liberal stance allowed it to become aUnitarianled church by 1820 (when the congregation ofSouthover General Baptist Chapelre-joined) It is now an Independent chapel.
• Eastgate Chapel is a very different building; a neo-Norman design of 1843 in dark flint, it originally had a pepper-pot dome but this was removed in favour of a traditional spire in case traffic vibrations below made it fall off. A modern extension has been added to the church.
• Christ Church, a modern (1953) building, serves a united congregation ofUnited Reformed ChurchandMethodistworshippers.
• Southover General Baptist Chapelwas built in Eastport Lane in 1741. The congregation's views moved towards Unitarianism, and in the 19th century they re-joined Westgate Chapel having earlier split from there. The building has been a house since 1972, but had various religious and secular uses before that.

Demography

In 2001 the service industries were by far the biggest employers in Lewes: over 60% of the population working in that sector. A little over 10% are employed in manufacturing, mostly in the smaller industrial units.

The town is a net daytime exporter of employees with a significant community working in London and Brighton whilst it draws in employees of the numerous local government and public service functions on which its local economy is strongly dependent.

An important part of the town's economy is based on tourism,because of the town's many historic attractions and its location.

As referenced in the governance section, the town is also where three tiers of local government have their headquarters, and the head office ofSussex Policeis also in Lewes.

Lewes Bonfire

Procession of the martyrs' crosses, as part of Lewes'Bonfire Nightcelebrations

Main article:Lewes Bonfire

The town's most important annual event is theLewes Bonfirecelebrations on 5 November,Guy Fawkes Night.In Lewes this event not only marks the date of the uncovering of theGunpowder Plotin 1605, but also commemorates the memory of the seventeenLewes Martyrs,Protestantsburnt at the stakefor their faith during theMarian Persecutions.The celebrations, which controversially involve burning an effigy ofPope Paul V,who was pope during the Gunpowder Plot, are the largest and most famousBonfire Nightcelebrations in the country.

Economy

Harveys Breweryin the centre of Lewes

The Lewes Chamber of Commerce represents the traders and businesses of the town.The town has been identified as unusually diversified with numerous specialist, independent retailers, counter to national trends toward 'chain' retailers and large corporate retail outlets.

Lewes Farmers' Market, one of the first in the UK, was started in the 1990s by Common Cause Co-operative Ltdand is a popular re-invention of Lewes as a market town. The Farmers' Market takes place in pedestrianised Cliffe High Street on the first and third Saturdays of every month, with local food producers coming to sell their wares under covered market stalls. A weekly food market in the Lewes Market Tower was established in July 2010 by Transition Town Lewes to allow traders to sell local produce. Occasionally French traders from thetwin townofBloisattend, vending on Cliffe Bridge.

From 1794 beers, wines and spirits were distributed from Lewes under theHarveysname, and the town is today the site ofHarvey & Son's brewery celebrated as one of the finest ale producers in England.

In September 2008, Lewes launched its own currency, theLewes Pound,in an effort to increase trade within the town.One Lewes Pound is equal to £1. Like the similarlocal currencyinTotnes,the initiative is part of theTransition Townsmovement. The Lewes Pound and theTransition Townsmovement have received criticism for a failure to address the needs of the wider Lewes population, especially lower socio-economic groups.Such local currency initiatives have been more widely criticised in light of limited success stimulating new spending in local economies and as an unrealistic strategy to reduce carbon emissions.The Lewes Pound can be exchanged for the same amount ofpounds sterlingin several shops in Lewes and can be spent in a wide range of local businesses. Many of the notes were sold oneBayat a higher amount. Early numbers and sequenced notes fetched very high prices from foreign collectors.

Landmarks

Lewes Castle

The town is the location of several significant historic buildings, includingLewes Castle,the remains ofLewes Priory,Bull House (the former home ofThomas Paine),Southover Grangeand public gardens, and a 16th-century timber-framedWealden hall houseknown asAnne of Cleves Housebecause it was given to her as part of her divorce settlement fromHenry VIII,though she never lived there. Anne of Cleves House and the castle are owned and maintained by theSussex Archaeological Society(whose headquarters are in Lewes). The Round House, a secluded formerwindmillin Pipe Passage, was owned by the writerVirginia Woolf.

The steep and cobbled Keere Street is home to many historic buildings, including atimber framedantiquarian bookshop. The gardens of the buildings on the east side of the street border the old Town Walls. ThePrince Regentonce drove hiscarriagedown the street, and a sign at the bottom commemorates this event.

The Fifteenth Century Bookshop, on the corner of High Street and Keere Street

The ancient street pattern survives extensively as do a high proportion of the medieval building plots and oak framed houses, albeit often masked with later facades. The 18th-century frontages are notable and include several, like Bartholomew House at the Castle Gate, that are clad inmathematical tileswhich mimic fine brick construction. Numerous streets of 18th- and 19th-century cottages have survived cycles ofslum clearanceas models of attractive town housing.

At the highest point of the old town thePortland stoneandCoade stonefacade of theCrown Court(1808–12, byJohn Johnson), the brick Market Tower and floridLewes War Memorialmark the historic centre, although trade has tended to concentrate on the lower land in modern times. At the lowest part of the town, by the river,Harvey & Son's Brewery, 'The Cathedral of Lewes' is an unspoilt 19th-century tower brewery and is the only one of the town's five original major breweries still in use. NearbyFitzroy Houseis aGeorge Gilbert Scottdesigned building, constructed as a library in memory of Lewes MPHenry FitzRoyin 1862 and now a private residence.The railway station is the other important monument of the industrial era.

Bull House:Thomas Paine's home

Southover Grangeis agrade II*listedTudor manor house built in 1572 withCaen limestonetaken from the ruins ofLewes Priory.The house and its gardens were bought by Lewes District Council and opened to the public in 1945. The house is now owned byEast Sussex County Council,and it is currently being refurbished into a wedding venue, registry office and community facility. The east wing is leased to an art shop and the Window café (open in spring and summer). The Grange gardens are divided by the Winterbourne stream and contain formal bedding displays, a wildflower area, a knot garden and some notable trees, including a largeMagnolia grandiflora,amulberry treedating perhaps to the 17th century and atulip treeplanted byQueen Elizabeth II.The gardens are open to the public during daylight hours all year round.

Keere Street

Pelham House dates back to the 16th century and features architecture of all subsequent eras and a private landscaped garden facing the Downs. It now serves as an independent hotel. The Shelleys, also now a hotel, is likewise of some antiquity with a private garden and family associations withPercy Shelley.

The centre of Lewes is notable for a consistently high calibre of regional vernacular architecture and variety of historic construction materials and techniques. A comprehensive survey of all historical plaques was conducted in 2013 by a local civic society, the Friends of Lewes.

A distinctive feature of the centre of Lewes is the network of alleyways or 'twittens' which run north–south on either side of the High Street and date back to Anglo-Saxon times. According to the Dictionary of the Sussex dialect and collection of provincialisms in use in the county of Sussex published in Lewes in 1875. "Twitten is a narrow path between two walls or hedges, especially on hills. For example, small passageways leading between two buildings to courtyards, streets, or open areas behind". Some twittens (e.g. Broomans Lane, Church Twitten, Green Lane, Paine's Twitten) remain flint-wall-lined pedestrian thoroughfares, others (e.g. Watergate Lane, St Andrew's Lane and renamed Station Street (formerly St Mary's Lane)) are now narrow usually one-way roads. The most notable of all Lewes' twittens is Keere Street. A weekly Sunday morning run up and down all the twittens on the south side of the High Street – the so-called Twitten Run – has operated in the town since November 2015.

Public sculpture

Historic

WithEric Gill's move to Ditchling, the artistic community there gave rise to other sculptors in the Lewes district such as his nephewJohn SkeltonandJoseph Cribb.Skelton's studio inStreathas continued as an educational and artist's workshop since his death in 1999.Eric GillandJacob Epsteinconceiveda great scheme for doing some colossal figures togetheraround 1910 for a modern Stonehenge on 6 acres of land at Asheham House,Beddingham,south-east of Lewes.William Rothensteinagreed to buy the lease but the scheme failed.

Edward Perry Warrenfirst saw Lewes House in 1889 and with his partner John Marshall they were prodigious collectors of fine antique sculpture there.Eric Gillwas introduced to Warren byRoger Fryand the stone carving Ecstasy purchased, which is now in theTate Gallerycollection.William Rothensteinsuggested that Warren might like to acquireRodin's new sculptureThe Kissand after several visits, in 1904 the LewesKissarrived at Lewes House. In 1906 Rodin requested that Warren lendThe Kissto an important exhibition in Regent Street, London. This made it famous in Britain for the first time.The Kisswas returned to the stables at Lewes House, where it remained until 1914 until offered to Lewes Town Council. It was placed in the Town Hall, at the South End of the Assembly Room on 2 December 1914. Early in 1915,The Kisswas wrapped in canvas and marked off with a guard rail. The Town Council returned the statue, saying only that the room did 'not lend itself to such a noble piece of statuary.' On 26 February 1917,The Kisswas once more taken to the stable block where it was to remain until Warren's death in 1928. After a short period on loan to Cheltenham,The Kisswas purchased in 1953 by public subscription and is now one of the Tate's most popular attractions.

It returned on loan to Lewes in 1999 for the exhibitionRodin in Lewes.

Present day

The Helmet(1964), byEnzo Plazzotta,stands in the grounds of Lewes Priory.TheCuilfail Spiral(1983) byPeter Randall-Pagesits on the roundabout at the north end of the Cuilfail Tunnel; made of 7 pieces of Portland limestone. TheMagnus Inscription(c. 1200) sits in the East wall of St John Sub Castro on the Junction of Abinger Place and Lancaster Street.TheJanus Head(1997) byJohn SkeltonandLewes Group(2010) byJon Edgarsit in Southover Grange Gardens.Sculpture to Thomas PainebyMarcus Cornishcommissioned as a private donation was unveiled in July 2010 outside the new Lewes Library in Styles Field.

Transport

Lewes railway station,looking east. South Downs in the distance

Lewes, from its inception, has been an important transport hub.Its site as a bridging point was probably originally a ford: today the main routes avoid the town centre. TheA27 trunk roadtaking traffic along the south coast betweenEastbourneandSouthamptonpasses to the south of the town. TheA26fromMaidstoneto Newhaven; and theA275(the London road) both come in from the north. TheBrighton & Hovebus company and Compass Travel serve the town.The bus stationwas closed for a while but reopened in late 2008.

Lewes railway stationwas originally the junction for six routes. The town still enjoys hourly fast trains from London. The two erstwhile rural rail routes to the north, linking toEast GrinsteadandUckfieldrespectively, are both now closed, but theEast Coastway Line,connecting Brighton with Eastbourne andHastings,and the branch toSeafordremain.

TheVanguard Way,along-distance footpathfrom London to Newhaven, passes through countryside east of the town. TheSouth Downs Wayalso passes close to Lewes, crossing the Ouse atSouthease,some four miles south of the town. TheGreenwich Meridian Trail,a long-distance path that follows theGreenwich Meridianfrom Peacehaven in East Sussex to Sand le Mere in East Yorkshire passes through the middle of the town. A festival celebrating and encouraging walking and cycling, the Lewes Hike and Bike Festival, was created in 2012 but only ran for three years.The Eastbourne and Lewes Walking Festival was created in 2018 to promote walking in the local urban and rural South Downs area.

Education

Primary schools

There are many primary schools including:

• Morley House (Lewes Old Grammar School's junior department)
• St Pancras School (Permanently Closed)
• South Malling School
• Southover School
• Wallands Community Primary and Nursery School
• Western Road School

Western Road and Southover School, despite being separate schools, are housed in linked buildings. The original Southover buildings are of red brick in the Queen Anne style, dating back to the early 20th century. The additions to it now forming the Western Road buildings date from after 1945. The two schools share a field. Pells Primary School closed in 2017.The alternative independent primary school, Lewes New School, closed in 2018.

Secondary schools

There are two secondary schools in the town and one nearby:

• Lewes Old Grammar School,an independent school which also has a sixth form.
• Priory School,specialising in the arts, languages and science.
• Kings Academy Ringmer,about three and a half miles from Lewes town centre, in a village called Ringmer, is a school for ages 11 to 16.

Further education

East Sussex College,formerly Sussex Downs College, has one of its campuses in Lewes, and provides a range of courses including A Levels, GCSEs,Functional SkillsandAccess coursesand vocational qualifications such as NVQs and BTECs.

Culture

Classical music

Located four miles (6.4 km) outside of Lewes isGlyndebourneopera house. Founded in 1934, the venue draws large audiences for its Summer Festival and has attracted a host of international talent throughout its history. Lewes Operatic Society (founded 1911)and New Sussex Operaare also based in the town of Lewes.

A number of other local classical music series operate in the town, including theNicholas YongeSociety;and the baroque and early classical Workshop Series.The Musicians of All Saints is a Lewes-based chamber orchestra founded in 1987 who perform both new works and standard repertoire.A new annual music series, the Lewes Chamber Music Festival,was created in summer 2012. The Lewes Festival of Song was created in 2015and the Lewes BaroqueFest in 2019.Other local music groups include the Lewes Concert Orchestrafounded in 1993; and theLewes, Glynde & Beddingham Brass Band,founded in 1922.

The East Sussex Bach choiris based in Lewes, as well as a number of other active amateur choirs, including Pro Musica Chamber Choir,the Everyman Ensemble,the Paddock Singers,Lewes Voxand East Sussex Community Choir.

Orlando Gough's operaThe Finnish Prisoneris set in Lewes, telling the story of the Finnishprisoners of warheld in Lewes after the Crimean War.

Museums and galleries

The principal town museum is Barbican House Museum atLewes Castle,which hosts the Lewes Town Modelas well as four galleries of Sussex archaeology.Anne of Cleves Househas various collections relating to the history of Lewes. There are several independent art galleries in the town including the Star Brewery Galleryin a former brewery in Market Street; the artist-run Chalk Galleryin North Street and occasional art exhibitions at the Town Hall. Other galleries are listed in Gallery Guide Lewes and Art Map Lewes.

Theatre and cinema

Lewes Little Theatre was created in 1939 and is based in dedicated premises on Lancaster Street. It puts on half a dozen or more productions each year. Supporters of the creation of the Theatre includeJohn Maynard Keynes.

An independent three-screen cinema, the Lewes Depot, opened in May 2017 in a multimillion-pound redevelopment of a former Harvey's brewery depot close to Lewes station.The architects wereBurrell Foley Fischerand the work was given a Friends of Lewes award, and highly commended in the South Downs National Park design awards.The Lewes Film Club, which also produces short movies (including the recent adaptation ofGeorge Orwell'sAnimal Farm), and Film at All Saints' (the Film Club in collaboration with Lewes Town Council), show films based in the All Saints' Centre, a former church.

Several scenes in the 1962 filmJigsaw,which was loosely based on theHillary Waughnovel 'Sleep Long, My Love' and the real-lifeBrighton trunk murders,were set and filmed in Lewes.

Popular music and clubs

Local dance schools and clubs include Lewes Dance Club,East Sussex Dance and ballet groups. Starfish Youth Musicis based at Priory School and the young bands who take part regularly perform in local venues such as the Paddock and the All Saints' Centre.

Popular music gigs take place at a number of venues and pubs across the town including the Lewes Con Club, the Snowdrop Inn, the Volunteer pub, the Lewes Arms, the John Harvey Tavern, the Pelham Arms, and the Lansdown. The Elephant and Castle hosts the Saturday Folk Club. Union Music Store based in Lewes has become a centre for modern folk, country and Americana, both promoting and hosting live gigs, and recording and producing local musicians. A monthly comedy club based at the Con Club was created in 2010. A new organisation to support local music and musicians, Lewes Ripple, was created in 2018 and as well as online platforms is looking to create live concerts in 2021.

A regular local music festival, Lewes Live (previously Rock in the Bog), takes place in the summer.The town of Lewes was also the UK location for the Mumford and Sons' Gentlemen of the Road tour stopover in 2013.A large jazz festival,Love Supreme Festivalwas founded in 2013 at nearbyGlynde Place.Other local festivals include the Brainchild Festival, based just north of Lewes in the grounds ofBentley Wildfowl and Motor Museum

Art, photography, and festivals

Annual arts events include ArtWaveand the children's Patina Moving on Parade.An annual Lewes Guitar Festival which started in 1999 has not operated since the late 2000s. The annual Charleston Festival is hosted at nearbyCharleston Farmhousenear the village ofFirlesome 6 miles east of Lewes.

An annual festival of light – Lewes Light – was created in 2015 during the UNESCO Year of Light and has run since then as an annual art installation and environmental awareness project.

The Reeves Studio, which is thought to be the oldest continuously operated photographic studio in the world, has been running from the same premises in Lewes since 1855.

Debate

Lewes has been influenced by its close proximity to theUniversity of Sussexand Brighton University in terms of significant numbers of academics and students living in the town.

TheHeadstrong Clubwhose notable members includeThomas Painewas relaunched in 1987and continues to operate. A branch of the popularSkeptics in the Pubmovement was created in 2011 in Lewes, based at the Elephant and Castle.

Literature and history

The Lewes Literary Society (until 2015 the Monday Literary Society)was founded in Lewes in 1948 by authorsBarbara Willardand Frances Howell, chaired byLeonard Woolffrom 1954 to 1969, and currently by the poetsJohn AgardandGrace Nichols,who live in the town. The Needlewriters is a co-operative of poets and writers which hosts a quarterly evening of poetry and prose at the Needlemakers Cafe, showcasing writers from across Sussex and Kent.The poetry imprint Frogmore Press, founded in Folkestone in 1983, moved to Lewes in 2010.Lewes Live Literature (LLL) was founded 1995 as a promoter of art and literature events, with an autumn festival which ran 2001–2007 bringing together spoken word with performance, music, film and visual art. Since 2007, LLL has concentrated on live literature production work.

Lewes History Group was founded in 2009 and supports an active programme of talks, information and research into the history of the town and surrounding areas.The Lewes Speakers Festival was created in the mid-2010s and brings a range of national speakers to the town each year, on a range of political, literary and historical topics.

Local pub culture

Lewes is home to a number of small craft breweries, alongside the renownedHarvey & Son's brewery in the heart of Lewes. Lewes also has a strong tradition of distinctive local pub games, includingtoad in the hole(a local pub leagueand international competitionare held in the town), Dwyle Flunking(the local spelling ofDwile flonking), and the World Pea Throwing Championships.

Lewes in literature

With a number of authors having lived in or near Lewes, it features, explicitly or disguised, in a number of books.

Possibly the earliest substantial reference in fiction is inThe Wanderer: Or, Female Difficulties,an 1814 novel byFanny Burney,in which the heroine spends time in Lewes and Brighton.

Eve Garnettlived in Lewes and herThe Family from One End Streetseries of children's stories are set in 'Otwell-on-the-Ouse'. Matthew de Abaitua's dystopian novelIf Thenis set in a fictionalised Lewes. There are strong parallels with Lewes in the setting of Cliffe House which appears in a story calledBloody Baudelaire,byR. B. Russell.

The CollectorbyJohn Fowlesis set near Lewes with the characters visiting the town, and the Roy Grace crime series byPeter James (writer)based in Brighton has scenes set in Sussex Police HQ based in Lewes. Graham Greene's first novelThe Man Withinhas scenes set in Lewes at the Lewes assizes.

Three novels byWilliam Nicholson (writer)–The Secret Intensity of Everyday Life,All the Hopeful LoversandGolden Hour– are based in Lewes and surrounding villages.Three Round TowersandRetributionby Beverley Elphick are set in and around Lewes at the end of the 18th century.

Julian Fanewrote a fictionalised version of his experience moving from London to Lewes in the novelHope Cottage,which is set in a fictional district of Lewes named "Eastover."

Other writers to have set works of fiction in Lewes includeAndrew Soutar,Judith Glover, and primatologistAlison Jollywho wrote a series of books for children.

The personal diaries of Lewes-based writerAlice Dudeneywho wrote popular fiction in the first half of the 20th century were published in 1998 asA Lewes Diary: 1916–1944describing her life in Lewes withHenry Dudeneybefore and during the interwar years.

Lewes also features in a range of works of other non-fiction, but notable examples would includeTo The RiverbyOlivia Laingwhich follows her walk along the River Ouse andThe Old WaysbyRobert Macfarlane (writer)features walks on the South Downs close to Lewes.

In 2015, American writer Joseph Cannizzo Jr. published a collection of poetry about Lewes entitledWhen in Lewes,(ISBN1517222680) following a brief stay in the town.

Media

TheSussex Expressnewspaper (formally theSussex Express and County Herald) was established in 1837 in Lewes as theSussex Agricultural Expressand merged with the Sussex County Herald in 1938.Now headquartered in Horsham, it serves Lewes and much of East Sussex. It has four editions and includes extensive coverage of the local sports scene. It is part of theJohnston Pressnetwork of newspapers.

Viva Leweswas founded as a weekly web magazine in January 2006 and also as a monthly print handbook in October 2006 covering events and activities in and around the Lewes area. It ceased publication in 2020.

In December 2018 a monthly lifestyle publication Town & County Magazine was launched, with coverage of local life, history, and culture, and celebrity interviews, across Lewes district as well as Alfriston & Ditchling.

Local television news programmes areBBC South East TodayandITV News Meridian(East).

The town's local radio stations areBBC Radio Sussex,Heart South,Seahaven FMandMore Radio Mid-Sussex.

Lewes has its ownRSLradio station, Rocket FM,which broadcasts via FM and the Internet for three weeks in October/November each year, covering the Bonfire period.

Operating since 2012 Radio Lewes is a web based podcasting CIC. Membership based it was created by the Oyster Project Charity (holders of Queen's Award for Voluntary Service)Radio LewesArchived11 October 2018 at theWayback Machine

In November 2012,EElaunched a series of advertisements promoting its 4G mobile service. All of the adverts, which featured actorKevin Bacon,were filmed in Lewes.

Sport

In 1694, accounts ofSir John Pelhamrecord 2s 6d paid for a wager concerning acricketmatch at Lewes, one of the sport's earliest references.

Lewes Priory Cricket Clubis based at the Stanley Turner Ground, Kingston Road. The club were Sussex League champions in 1986 and 1990 and Division 2 winners in 1999, 2006 and 2008. The club has active senior, junior and social sections

Lewes Rugby Football Club, founded in 1930, runs several rugby teams at various competitive levels, including the senior men's sides, the women's, girls' and junior teams. Lewes RFC's home turf is the Stanley Turner Ground, Kingston Road.

Lewes Hockey Club, based at Southdown Sports Club on Cockshut Road, was founded in 1903 and is one of the oldest and largest hockey clubs in Sussex.

The localfootballteam isLewes FCThe club was founded in 1885 and play atthe Dripping Pan.In July 2017, the club became the first in the world to introduce equal pay to the men's and women's teams.The Lewes FC Women's team were appointed to the second tier of the Women's Super League in May 2018.

The town is also home to Lewes Bridge View which has adult teams competing in theMid Sussex Football LeagueandLewes and District Sunday League.In 2016 Lewes Bridge View Juniors joined in partnership with Lewes FC to form Lewes FC Juniors – running Under 8s to Under 16s, with boys and girls teams.

Lewes Athletic Club caters for junior and senior athletes. The club trains at the all-weather 400m track at the end of Mountfield Road, and other locations in the area. Lewes Swimming Club was reconstituted in 1975 by Commonwealth gold medal-winning swimmerChristine Parfect (née Gosden)and others. The club has 300+ members and organises swimming sessions at Lewes, Ringmer, Newlands School, Newhaven and Seaford Head pools during term-time. Lewes WanderersCycling Clubwas reconstituted in 1950. The club organises regulartime trialsthroughout the summer.

Lewes Tennis/Hockey Club (Southdown Sports Club) has 16 tennis courts, four squash courts, two netball courts and a floodlit astro/hockey pitch. Lewes Bowls Club situated behind the Mount on Mountfield Road was founded in 1922. It is affiliated to Bowls England and members play in the Meridian League and the Brighton League, as well as in informal games for pleasure. Between April and September members play on a flat lawn green with six rinks and inside the clubhouse on short mat for the winter season. Lewes Golf Club is set on downland above Cliffe Hill on the east-side of Lewes, where the sport has been played since 1896.

The Moyleman, an off-road marathon event over the hills around Lewes, starting and finishing in the town, was created in 2014 and first run in 2015.

Lewes Racecourse,located immediately to the west of the town on the slopes of the Downs, operated for 200 years until it closed in 1964. Racehorse training continued at Lewes until 2020 when the area's last trainer, Suzy Smith, moved her base from Lewes toAngmering.Race days are held at nearbyPlumpton Racecourse.

There are a number of Service Clubs in Lewes, including Lewes Lions Club which is a member ofLions Clubs International.The club runs various events including the Christmas Concert in December each year with the LGB Brass and the annual 'International 'Toad-in-the-Hole' Competition' and holds street collections to raise funds so as to assist people and organisations in and around Lewes.Since the 1960s, the Lewes Rotary Club has hosted its distinctive annual skittles tournament in the gardens ofSouthover Grangein June each year.

Notable people

Main article:List of people from Lewes, East Sussex

Among the many notable former residents of Lewes isThomas Paine(1737–1809), who was employed as anexcise officerin the town for a time from 1768 to 1774 when he emigrated to the American colonies. The Paine association sits at the centre of a radical tradition that is represented today by writers working in the town.

The sciences and natural enquiry are represented byGideon Mantellwho is credited with the first discovery and identification of fossilised dinosaur (iguanodon) teeth. Lewes doctorRichard Russellpopularised the resort ofBrighton.Thomas Frewen,who practised in Lewes, was one of the earliest doctors to adopt the practice ofinoculationagainst smallpox.

Lewes is the birthplace of 16th-century madrigalistNicholas Yonge.In the 1960s it was home toCharlie Wattsof theRolling Stones,as it is now to other musicians, includingHerbie Flowers,Arthur BrownandTim Rice-OxleyfromKeane.

Daisy Ashfordlived from 1889 to 1896 at Southdown House, 44 St Anne's Crescent, where she wroteThe Young Visiters.Edward Perry Warren,an eccentric American collector, lived in Lewes House. In 1919Virginia Woolfbriefly owned – but never lived in – the Round House, a windmill in Pipe Passage, before moving to her final home,Monk's HouseinRodmell.DiaristJohn Evelynspent his boyhood at Southover Grange.

John Maynard Smith(1920–2004), evolutionary biologist and population geneticist, died in Lewes.

Crime

The town is the police and judicial centre for all ofSussexand is home toSussex Police,East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service,Lewes Crown CourtandHMP Lewes.

The fact that Lewes has aCrown Court,and aprison,is reflected by the fact that many notorious people have been connected with the town. During the 1916Easter Risingin Ireland several prominent figures involved in it were in Lewes Prison, includingÉamon de Valera(1882–1975);Thomas Ashe(1885–1917);Frank Lawless(1871–1922); andHarry Boland(1887–1922). Others have includedGeorge Witton(1874–1942) involved in shooting prisoners during theBoer War.

Lewesassizessaw many important trials. In 1949serial killerJohn George Haighwas sentenced to death. In 1956 suspected serial killerJohn Bodkin Adamshad his committal hearing in Lewes before being sent to theOld Bailey,London for trial. He was subsequently tried and convicted in Lewes in 1957 forfraud,lying oncremationforms and obstructing a police search. An early case was that ofPercy Lefroy Mapleton(1860–1881) hanged for murder and the subject of the first composite picture on awanted poster.

Crime rates in Lewes(per 1000 population) 2005–2006

	Locally	Nationally
Robbery	0.17	1.85
Theft of a motor vehicle	1.67	4.04
Theft from a motor vehicle	4.59	9.56
Sexual offences	0.83	1.17
Violence against a person	16.75	19.97
Burglary	2.99	5.67

Twin towns

• Waldshut-Tiengen,Germany
• Blois,France

Lewes has beentwinnedwith Waldshut-Tiengen since 1974 and with Blois since 1963, although informal links between these two towns began in 1947.

See also

• Lewes Speed Trials
• TheMise of Lewes,a peace treaty from 1264
• The Song of Lewes,a Latin poem about theBattle of Lewes

External links

• Lewestravel guide from Wikivoyage
• Lewes
• Lewes District Council