Hastings

This article is about the town in England. For other uses, seeHastings (disambiguation).

Hastings Borough of Hastings
Townandborough
Hastings
View of Hastings Old Town from the East Hill
Coat of arms
Borough of Hastings shown within East Sussex
Coordinates:50.85°N 0.57°E/50.85; 0.57
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Constituent country	England
Region	South East England
Historic county	Sussex
Ceremonial county	East Sussex
Status	Non-metropolitan district
Government
•MP	Helena DollimoreMP (Labour Co-op)
• Mayor	Margarita O'Callaghan
• Borough Council	Julia Hilton, Leader (Green)
• County Council	Keith Glazier, Leader (Conservative)
Area
• Total	11.47 sq mi (29.72 km2)
• Rank	301st(of 296)
Population (2018)
• Total	92,855
• Rank	261st(of 296)
• Density	9,000/sq mi (3,300/km2)
Ethnicity(2021)
•Ethnic groups	List 91.4%White 2.9%Mixed 2.8%Asian 1.5%other 1.4%Black
Religion(2021)
•Religion	List 51.4%no religion 37.8%Christianity 6.6% not stated 1.9%Islam 0.9%other 0.6%Buddhism 0.5%Hinduism 0.2%Judaism 0.1%Sikhism
Time zone	UTC0(GMT)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+1(BST)
Postcodes	TN34–35
Area code	01424
Website	Hastings Borough Councilatwww.hastings.gov.uk

Hastings(/ˈheɪstɪŋz/HAY-stings) is a seaside town andboroughin East Sussex on the south coast of England, 24 mi (39 km) east ofLewesand 53 mi (85 km) south east of London. The town gives its name to theBattle of Hastings,which took place 8 mi (13 km) to the north-west atSenlac Hillin 1066. It later became one of the medievalCinque Ports.In the 19th century, it was a popularseaside resort,as the railway allowed tourists and visitors to reach the town. Today, Hastings, is a popular seaside resort and is still a fishing port with the UK's largest beach-based fishing fleet. Its estimated population was 91,100 in 2021.

History

Early history

Hastings- Boats making the Shore in a Breeze,byJohn James Chalon,1819

The first mention of Hastings is found in the late 8th century in the formHastingas.This is derived from the Old English tribal nameHæstingas,meaning 'the constituency (followers) of Hæsta'.Symeon of Durhamrecords the victory ofOffain 771 over theHestingorum gens,that is, "the people of the Hastings tribe."Hastingleighin Kent was named after that tribe. The place nameHæstingaceasteris found in theAnglo-Saxon Chronicleentry for 1050,and may be an alternative name for Hastings. However, the absence of any archaeological remains of or documentary evidence for a Roman fort at Hastings suggest thatHæstingaceastermay refer to a different settlement, most likely that based on the Roman remains atPevensey.

Evidence of prehistoric settlements have been found at the town site: flint arrowheads andBronze Ageartefacts have been found.Iron Ageforts have been excavated on both the East and West Hills. This suggests that the inhabitants moved early to the safety of the valley in between the forts. The settlement was already based on the port when theRomansarrived in Britain for the first time in 55 BC. At this time, they began toexploit the iron(Wealden rocks provide a plentiful supply of the ore), and shipped it out by boat. Iron was worked locally atBeauport Park,to the north of the town. It employed up to one thousand men and is considered to have been the third-largest mine in theRoman Empire.There was also a possible iron-working site near Blacklands Church in the town – the old name of 'Ponbay Bridge' for a bridge that used to exist in the area is a corruption of 'Pond Bay' as suggested by Thomas Ross (Mayor of Hastings and author of an 1835 guide book).

With the departure of the Romans, the town suffered setbacks. The Beauport site was abandoned, and the town suffered from problems from nature and man-made attacks. The Sussex coast has always suffered from occasional violent storms; with the additional hazard oflongshore drift(the eastward movement of shingle along the coast), the coastline has frequently changed. The original Roman port is probably now under the sea.

Bulverhythewas probably a harbour used by Danish invaders, which suggests that-hytheorhithemeans a port or small haven.

Kingdom of Haestingas

From the 6th century AD until 771, the people of the area around modern-day Hastings, identified the territory as that of theHaestingastribe and a kingdom separate from the surrounding kingdoms ofSuth Saxe( "South Saxons", i.e. Sussex) andKent.It worked to retain its separate cultural identity until the 11th century.The kingdom was probably a sub-kingdom, the object of a disputed overlordship by the two powerful neighbouring kingdoms: when KingWihtredof Kent settled a dispute with KingIneof Sussex & Wessex in 694, it is probable that he ceded the overlordship of Haestingas to Ine as part of the treaty.

In 771 KingOffaof Mercia invaded Southern England, and over the next decade gradually seized control of Sussex and Kent.Symeon of Durhamrecords a battle fought at an unidentified location near Hastings in 771, at which Offa defeated the Haestingastribe,effectively ending its existence as a separate kingdom. By 790, Offa controlled Hastings effectively enough to confirm grants of land in Hastings to theAbbeyof St Denis, in Paris.But, theAnglo-Saxon Chroniclefor 1011 relates that Vikings overran "all Kent, Sussex, Surrey and Haestingas", indicating the town was still considered a separate 'county' or province to its neighbours 240 years after Offa's conquest.

During his reign,Athelstanestablished a royalmintin Hastings in AD 928.

Medieval Hastings

Duke William of Normandy(right) lancesKing Harold II of Englandat theBattle of Hastings.14th-century manuscript in theBritish Library,London.

The start of theNorman Conquestwas theBattle of Hastings,fought on 14 October 1066, although the battle itself took place 6 mi (9.7 km) to the northwest at Senlac Hill. William had landed on the coast between Hastings and Eastbourne at Pevensey. It is thought that the Norman encampment was on the town's outskirts, where there was open ground; a new town was already being built in the valley to the east. That "New Burgh" was founded in 1069 and is mentioned in theDomesday Bookas such.Williamdefeated and killedHarold Godwinson,the last Saxon King of England, and destroyed his army, opening England to the Norman conquest.

William ordered a castle to be built at Hastings, probably using the earthworks of the existing Saxon castle.

Hastings was shown as aboroughby the time of theDomesday Book(1086); it had also given its name to theRape of Hastings,one of the six administrative divisions of Sussex. As a borough, Hastings had a corporation consisting of a "bailiff, jurats, and commonalty". By a charter ofElizabeth Iin 1589, the bailiff was replaced by a mayor.

Muslim scholarMuhammad al-Idrisi,writing c.1153, described Hastings as "a town of large extent and many inhabitants, flourishing and handsome, having markets, workpeople and rich merchants".

Hastings and the sea

The Fish Market at Hastings Beach,Turner(1810)

By the end of the Saxon period, the port of Hastings had moved eastward near the present town centre in the Priory Stream valley, whose entrance was protected by the White Rock headland (since demolished). It was to be a short stay: Danish attacks and huge floods in 1011 and 1014 motivated the townspeople to relocate to the New Burgh.

In the Middle Ages Hastings became one of theCinque Ports;Sandwich,DoverandNew Romneywere the first, followed by Hastings andHythethenRyeandWinchelsea.At one point 42 towns were directly or indirectly affiliated with the group.

Hastings Castle,with the Pier and Town Centre in the background, andEastbourneon the horizon

In the 13th century, much of the town and part ofHastings Castlewas washed away in theSouth England flood of February 1287.During anaval campaign of 1339,and again in 1377, the town was raided and burnt by the French, and seems then to have gone into a decline. As a seaport, Hastings' days were finished.

Hastings town centre and the Memorial from an old postcard

Hastings had suffered over the years from the lack of a natural harbour, and there have been attempts to create a sheltered harbour. Attempts were made to build a stone harbour during the reign ofElizabeth I,but the sea destroyed the foundations in terrible storms. The fishing boats are still stored on and launched from the beach.

Hastings was then just a small fishing settlement, but it was soon discovered that the new taxes on luxury goods could be avoided by smuggling; the town was ideally located for that purpose.Near the castle ruins, on the West Hill, are "St Clement's Caves",partly natural but mainly excavated by hand by smugglers from the soft sandstone. Their trade was to come to an end with the period following theNapoleonic Wars,for the town became one of the most fashionable resorts in Britain, brought about by the assumed health-giving properties of seawater, as well as the local springs and Roman baths. Once this came about, the town expanded, westwards only as there was little space left in the valley.

The double decker promenade that runs from Hastings Pier beyond Marine Court (seen in the distance), with a break at Warrior Square, was built in the 1930s by the borough engineerSidney Little

It was at this time that the elegant Pelham Crescent and Wellington Square were built; other building followed. In the Crescent (designed by architectJoseph Kay) is the classical style church of St Mary in the Castle (its name recalling the old chapel in the castle above) now in use as an arts centre. Building the crescent and church necessitated further cutting away of the castle hill cliffs. Once that move away from the Old Town had begun, it led to the further expansion along the coast, eventually linking up with the new settlement ofSt Leonards.

Such extensive development needed a large transient workforce. Many of the people coming into Hastings at this time settled on some waste-ground to the west of the main town called theAmerica Ground.This land, originally a shingle spit created by the great storm of 1287, was declared to be Crown Property after an inquiry held atBattleduring 1827 and the land was cleared in preparation for the development of this area of land byPatrick Francis Robertson.

Main article:Hastings Old Town

George Street, Old town

Like many coastal towns, the population of Hastings grew significantly as a result of the construction of railway links and the fashionable growth of seaside holidays during theVictorian era.In 1801, its population was a mere 3,175; by 1831, it had reached over ten thousand; by 1891, it was almost sixty thousand.

Hastings Harbour Act 1890
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act for the incorporation of Commissioners and for the construction of Harbour Piers and other Works at Hastings in the County of Sussex and for other purposes.
Citation	53 & 54 Vict.c. cxliii
Dates
Royal assent	4 August 1890
Text of statute as originally enacted

The last harbour project began in 1896, but this also failed when structural problems and rising costs exhausted all the available funds. Today a fractured seawall is all that remains of what might have become a magnificent harbour. In 1897, the foundation stone was laid on a large concrete structure, but there was insufficient money to complete the work and the "Harbour Arm" remains uncompleted. In fact, during World War II, it was partly blown up to discourage possible use by German invasion forces.

Between 1903 and 1919 Fred Judge FRPS photographed many of the town's events and disasters. These included storms, the first tram, visit of the Lord Mayor of London, Hastings Marathon Race and the pier fire of 1917. Many of these images were produced as picture postcards by the British Postcard manufacturer he founded now known asJudges Postcards.

In the 1930s, the town underwent some rejuvenation. Seaside resorts were starting to go out of fashion, Hastings perhaps more than most. The town council set about a huge rebuilding project, among which the promenade was rebuilt, and an Olympic-size bathing pool was erected. The latter, regarded in its day as one of the best open-air swimming and diving complexes in Europe, later became a holiday camp before closing in 1986. It was demolished, but the area is still known by locals as "the Old Bathing Pool".

Hastings Old Town July 1965.

The 2021 census reported 91,497 inhabitants.

Governance

Borough of Hastings, shown within East Sussex

See also:Hastings and Rye (UK Parliament constituency)andHastings Borough Council

Hastings returned twoMembers of Parliament(MPs) from the 14th century until 1885, since when it has returned one. Since 1983, it has been part of theparliamentary constituency of Hastings and Rye;the current MP, sinceJuly 2024,isHelena Dollimoreof theLabour and Co-operative Party.Prior to 1983, the town formed theHastings parliamentary constituencyby itself.

Hastings, it is thought, was a Saxon town before the arrival of the Normans: theDomesday Bookrefers to anew Borough:as a borough, Hastings had a corporation consisting of a "bailiff, jurats, and commonalty".Its importance was such that it also gave its name to one of the sixRapesor administrative districts of Sussex.

Hastings Town Hall

By a Charter ofElizabeth Iin 1589 the bailiff was replaced by a mayor, by which time the town's importance was dwindling. In theGeorgian era,patronage of such seaside places (such as nearbyBrighton) gave it a new lease of life so that, when the time came with the reform of English local government in 1888, Hastings became aCounty Borough,responsible for all its local services, independent of the surrounding county, then Sussex (East); less than one hundred years later,in 1974,that status was abolished.

Hastings Borough Councilis now in the second tier of local government, belowEast Sussex County Council.

Geography and climate

East Cliff and the beach at Hastings

Hastings is situated where thesandstonebeds, at the heart of theWeald,known geologically as the Hastings Sands, meet theEnglish Channel,forming tall cliffs to the east of the town.Hastings Old Townis in a sheltered valley between the East Hill and West Hill (on which the remains of the Castle stand). In Victorian times and later the town has spread westwards and northwards, and now forms a single urban centre with the more suburban area ofSt Leonards-on-Seato the west. Roads from the Old Town valley lead towards the Victorian area of Clive Vale and the former village ofOre,from which "The Ridge", marking the effective boundary of Hastings, extends north-westwards towardsBattle.BeyondBulverhythe,the western end of Hastings is marked by low-lying land known as Glyne Gap, separating it fromBexhill-on-Sea.

The sandstone cliffs have been the subject of considerable erosion in relatively recent times: much of the Castle was lost to the sea before the present sea defences and promenade were built, and a number of cliff-top houses are in danger of disappearing around the nearby village ofFairlight.

The beach is mainly shingle, although wide areas of sand are uncovered at low tide. The town is generally built upon a series of low hills rising to 500 ft (150 m)above sea levelat "The Ridge" before falling back in the river valley further to the north.

Dinosaur footprint found among rocks at the cliff base

There are threeSites of Special Scientific Interestwithin the borough;Marline Valley Woods,Combe HavenandHastings Cliffs To Pett Beach.Marline Valley Woods lies within the Ashdown ward of Hastings. It is anancient woodlandofPedunculate oak—hornbeamwhich is uncommon nationally. Sussex Wildlife Trust own part of the site.Combe Haven is another site of biological interest, with alluvial meadows, and the largest reed bed in the county, providing habitat for breeding birds. It is in the West St Leonards ward, stretching into the parish ofCrowhurst.The final SSSI, Hastings Cliffs to Pett Beach, is within the Ore ward of Hastings, extending into the neighbouring Fairlight andPettparishes. The site runs along the coast and is of both biological and geological interest. The cliffs hold many fossils and the site has many habitats, including ancient woodland and shingle beaches.

Climate

As with the rest of theBritish Islesand Southern England, Hastings experiences amaritime climatewith mild summers and mild winters. In terms of the local climate, Hastings is on the eastern edge of what is, on average, the sunniest part of the UK, the stretch of coast from the Isle of Wight southeastern coastSandown Bayto the Hastings area. Hastings, tied with Eastbourne, recorded the highest duration of sunshine of any month anywhere in the United Kingdom – 384 hours – in July 1911.Temperature extremes since 1960 at Hastings have ranged from 34.7 °C (94.5 °F) in July 2022,down to −9.8 °C (14.4 °F) in January 1987.TheKöppen climate classificationsubtype for this climate is "Cfb"(Marine West Coast Climate/Oceanic climate).

Climate data for Hastings 1991–2020, extremes 1960–
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	15.0 (59.0)	14.0 (57.2)	19.0 (66.2)	24.4 (75.9)	26.1 (79.0)	32.3 (90.1)	34.7 (94.5)	31.5 (88.7)	27.2 (81.0)	22.2 (72.0)	17.2 (63.0)	14.5 (58.1)	34.2 (93.6)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	8.1 (46.6)	8.2 (46.8)	10.4 (50.7)	13.2 (55.8)	16.3 (61.3)	18.8 (65.8)	20.9 (69.6)	21.2 (70.2)	19.0 (66.2)	15.4 (59.7)	11.6 (52.9)	8.9 (48.0)	14.3 (57.8)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	3.4 (38.1)	3.2 (37.8)	4.5 (40.1)	6.4 (43.5)	9.3 (48.7)	12.0 (53.6)	14.2 (57.6)	14.5 (58.1)	12.4 (54.3)	9.7 (49.5)	6.5 (43.7)	4.0 (39.2)	8.3 (47.0)
Record low °C (°F)	−9.8 (14.4)	−8.8 (16.2)	−6.1 (21.0)	−2.1 (28.2)	0.0 (32.0)	2.8 (37.0)	6.7 (44.1)	7.4 (45.3)	4.4 (39.9)	0.2 (32.4)	−5.6 (21.9)	−6.7 (19.9)	−9.8 (14.4)
Averageprecipitationmm (inches)	79 (3.1)	56 (2.2)	45 (1.8)	45 (1.8)	45 (1.8)	49 (1.9)	52 (2.0)	60 (2.4)	60 (2.4)	88 (3.5)	93 (3.7)	95 (3.7)	767 (30.3)
Mean monthlysunshine hours	72	90	136	204	237	240	253	235	174	127	81	65	1,914
Source 1:Royal Dutch Meteorological Institute
Source 2: Met Office[1]

Neighbourhoods and areas

Some of the areas and suburbs of Hastings areOre,St Leonards,Silverhill,West St Leonards,andHollington.Ore, Silverhill and Hollington were once villages that have since become part of the Hastings conurbation area during rapid growth. The original part of St Leonards was bought byJames Burtonand laid out by his son, the architectDecimus Burton,in the early 19th century as a new town: a place of elegant houses designed for the well-off. It also included a central public garden, a hotel, an archery,assembly roomsanda church.Today's St Leonards has extended well beyond that original design, although the original town still exists within it.

Demography

The population of the town in 2001 was 85,029, by 2009 the estimated population was 86,900. Hastings suffers at a disadvantage insofar as growth is concerned because of its restricted situation, lying as it does with theHigh Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beautyto the north. Redevelopment of the area is partly hampered by the split administration of the combined Hastings and Bexhill economic region between Hastings andRother Districtcouncils. There is little space for further large-scale housing and employment growth within the designated boundaries of Hastings, and development on the outskirts is resisted by Rother council whose administrative area surrounds Hastings. Rother has a policy of urban expansion in the area immediately north of Bexhill, but this requires infrastructure improvements by central Governments which have been under discussion for decades.This situation has now become the subject of parliamentary consideration.

Ethnicity

Ethnicity	Count	Percentage
White: British	80004	94.09
White: Irish	808	0.95
White: Other	1686	1.98
Mixed: White and Black Caribbean	320	0.38
Mixed: White and Black African	145	0.17
Mixed: White and Asian	361	0.42
Mixed: Other	268	0.32
Asian: Indian	317	0.37
Asian: Pakistani	57	0.07
Asian: Bangladeshi	112	0.13
Asian: Other	143	0.17
Black: Caribbean	184	0.22
Black: African	180	0.21
Black: Other	46	0.05
Chinese	180	0.21
Other	220	0.26

Ethnicity in 2001

Economy

Traditional fisher on the shingle beach at Hastings – Rye registration

Until the development of tourism, fishing was Hastings' major industry. The fishing fleet, based atthe Stade,remains Europe's largest beach-launched fishing fleet and has recently won accreditation for its sustainable methods. The fleet has been based on the same beach, below the cliffs at Hastings, for at least 400, possibly 600, years. Its longevity is attributed to the prolific fishing ground of Rye Bay nearby.Hastings fishing vessels are registered atRye,and thus bear the letters "RX" (Rye, SusseX).

There are now various industrial estates that lie around the town, mostly on the outskirts, which include engineering, catering, motoring and construction; however, most of the jobs within the Borough are concentrated on health, public services, retail and education. 85% of the firms (in 2005) employed fewer than 10 people; as a consequence the unemployment rate was 3.3% (cf.East Sussex 1.7%). However, qualification levels are similar to the national average: 8.2% of the working-age population have no qualifications while 28% hold degree-level qualifications or higher, compared with 11% and 31% respectively across England.

Shopping and retail

Entrance to Kings Walk, Priory Meadow Shopping Centre

Hastings main shopping centre isPriory Meadow Shopping Centre,which was built on the site of the oldCentral Recreation Groundwhich played host to someSussex CCCfirst-classfixtures, and cricketing royalty such as Dr.W. G. Graceand SirDon Bradman.The centre houses 56 stores and covers around 420,000 ft².Further retail areas in the town centre include Queens Road, Wellington Place and Robertson Street.

Lacuna Place by Proctor and Matthews Architects,where the SAGA offices are based

There are plans to expand the retail area in Hastings, which includes expanding Priory Meadow and creating more retail space as part of the Priory Quarter development. Priory was intended to have a second floor added to part of the retail area, which has not happened yet and so far only office space has been created as part of the Priory Quarter.

Regeneration

In 2002 the Hastings and Bexhill task force, set up by theSouth East England Development Agency,was founded to regenerate the local economy, a 10-year programme being set up to tackle the local reliance on public sector employment. The regeneration scheme saw the construction of theUniversity Centre Hastings,(now known as theUniversity of Brightonin Hastings) the newSussex Coast Collegecampus and construction of the Priory Quarter, which still remains unfinished but now housesSagaoffices, bringing 800 new jobs to the area.

Culture and community

Cadets

Hastings has anArmy Cadet Force(ACF)detachmentwhich is part ofSussex ACF.This detachment is based in the old Territorial Army Unit Building on Cinque Ports Way, and is affiliated toPWRR.Hastings also has aRoyal Air Force Air CadetSquadron, 304 (Hastings) Squadron of Sussex Wing RAFAC, based in the same building.The town also has aSea Cadetsquadron, T.S.Hastings.This sits adjacent to the Army and Air Cadet building on the seafront. The site features a climbing wall and other training facilities.

Events

Hastings Borough Bonfire Society at the Old Town Carnival 2010

Jack in the Greencelebration: a giant mermaid processing through Hastings Old Town

Throughout the year many annual events take place in Hastings, the largest of which being the May Daybank holidayweekend, which features aJack-in-the-Greenfestival (revived since 1983) and usually falls around 1–3 May,and the culmination of theMaydayrun—tens of thousands of motorcyclists having ridden theA21to Hastings. The yearly carnival duringOld Town Weektakes place every August, which includes a week of events aroundHastings Old Town,including a Seaboot race, bike race, street party andpram race.In September, there is a month-long arts festival 'Coastal Currents' and a Seafood and Wine Festival. During Hastings Week held each year around 14 October the Hastings Bonfire Societystages a traditional Sussex Bonfire which includes a torchlight procession through the streets, a beach bonfire and firework display. Hastings Pirate Day takes place in July every year. Hastings, as of November 2017, still holds the Guinness World Record for the most pirates in one place.

Other events include theHastings Beer and Music Festival,held every July on the Oval (Previously Alexandra Park), theHastings Musical Festivalheld every March in theWhite Rock Theatre,theInternational Composers Festivalsplit between Hastings andBexhillduring Augustand theHastings International Chess Congress.There is also a small Wildman event in late January.

Theatre and cinema

There are two main theatres in the town, theWhite Rock Theatreand the Stables Theatre. The White Rock theatre is the venue of the yearly pantomime and throughout the year hosts comedy, dance and music acts. The Stables stages more local productions and acts as an arts exhibition centre. An additional theatre is located in Cambridge Road, theOpus Theatrein a space shared with the His Place church in what used to be theRobertson Street United Reformed Church.

There is a small four screenOdeoncinema in the town, located opposite the town hall; however, there are plans to build a new multiplex cinema as part of the Priory Quarter development in the town centre. The town has an independent cinema called the Electric Palace located in the Old Town and a restored cinema in St Leonards called the Kino Teatr. The new luxury 'Sussex Exchange' Cinema, bar and conference venue is situated in St. Leonards.

The Regal cinema and the Cinema de Luxe in Hastings, and the Elite Cinema in St. Leonards, featured in a 1942 legal case,Regal (Hastings) Ltd v Gulliver,aleading caseheard in theHigh Courtand theAppeal Court,and ultimately resolved in theHouse of Lords,on the issue ofcompany directors'duty of loyaltyto the company they direct.

Museums and art galleries

Fishermen's Museum, housed in former St. Nicholas Church. Opened in 1854, it is a grade II listed building.

There are three museums in Hastings; theHastings Museum and Art Gallery,theHastings Fishermen's Museumand the Shipwreck Museum. The former two mentioned are open for the whole year while the Shipwreck Museum is open only weekends during the winter, but daily for the rest of the year.

The Hastings Museum and Art gallery concentrates mostly on local history and contains exhibits onGrey OwlandJohn Logie Baird.It also features aDurbar Hall,donated byLord Brassey;the hall contains displays focusing on the Indian subcontinent and the Brassey Family. The Fishermen's Museum, housed in the former fishermen's church, is dedicated to the fishing industry and maritime history of Hastings. TheShipwreck Museumdisplays artifacts from wrecks around the area.

TheHastings Contemporary(formerlyJerwood Galleryuntil 2 July 2019)located in the Stade area ofHastings Old Townis the home for the Jerwood Collection of 20th and 21st century art and a changing contemporary exhibition programme.The project was opposed by many locals who felt that a new art gallery would have been better located elsewhere in the town.

In 2019, following a funding dispute with its sponsor theJerwood Foundation,the gallery was renamed the Hastings Contemporary.

Parks and open spaces

There are many parks and open spaces located throughout the town, one of the most popular and largest beingAlexandra Parkopened in 1882 by the Prince and Princess of Wales. The park contains gardens, open spaces, woods, a bandstand, tennis courts and a café. Other open spaces include White Rock Gardens, West Marina Gardens, St Leonards Gardens, Gensing Gardens, Markwick Gardens, Summerfields Woods, Linton Gardens, Hollington woods, Filsham Valley, Warrior Square, Castle Hill, St Helens Woods andHastings Country Park.

Local media

Local news and television programmes is provided byBBC South EastandITV Meridian.Television signals are received from the local TV transmitter.

Hastings's local radio stations areBBC Radio Sussexon 104.5 FM,Heart Southon 102.0 FM andMore Radio Hastingson 107.8 FM.

Local newspapers are theHastings Observerand Hastings Independent Press.

Landmarks

An aerial view ofHastings Castle.Also shown St. Mary in the castle, former church completed 1828. The listed building is now a 500-seat auditorium and exhibition venue.

Hastings Castlewas built in 1070 by theNormans,four years after theNorman invasion.It is located on the West Hill, overlooking the town centre and is a Grade Ilisted building.Little remains of the castle apart from the arch left from the chapel, part of the walls and dungeons. The nearbySt. Clements Cavesare home to the Smugglers Adventure, which features interactive displays relating to the history of smuggling on the south coast of England.

Hastings Piercan be seen from any part of the seafront in the town. The old pier was opened in 1872, but closed in 2006 following safety concerns from the council. In October 2010, a serious fire burned down most of the buildings on the pier and caused further damage to the structure.However, the pier reopened on 27 April 2016 in modern architectural forms after a £14.2m refurbishment.It won the Stirling Prize of theRoyal Institute of British Architects(RIBA)in 2017.

Marine Court

Many church buildings throughout the town are Grade II listed including;Church in the Wood,Blacklands Parish Church, Ebenezer Particular Baptist Chapel,Fishermen's MuseumandSt Mary Magdalene's Church.

On the seafront at St Leonards isMarine Court,a 1938 block of flats in theArt Decostyle that was originally called 'The Ship' due to its style being based on the ocean linerRMSQueen Mary.This block of flats can be seen up to 20 mi (32 km) away on a clear day, from Holywell, in the Meads area ofEastbourne.

An important former landmark was "the Memorial", a clock tower commemorating Albert thePrince Consortwhich stood for many years at the traffic junction at the town centre, but was demolished following an arson attack in the 1970s.

Transport

Road

Hastings urban area (2011 census: includes Bexhill) is by a sizeable margin the most populous area in Britain to have no direct dual-carriageway link to the national motorway network. There are two major roads in Hastings: theA21trunk road to London; and theA259coastal road. Both are beset with traffic problems: although the London road, which has to contend with difficult terrain, has had several sections of widening over the past decades there are still many delays. Long-term plans for a much improved A259 east–west route (including a Hastings bypass) were abandoned in the 1990s. A new Hastings-Bexhill Link Road opened in April 2016 known as theA2690with the hope of reducing traffic congestion along the A259 Bexhill Road. The new link road travels from Queensway in the North of Hastings and joins up to the A259 in Bexhill.Hastings is also linked toBattlevia theA2100,the original London road.

The town is served byStagecoach South Eastbuses on routes that serve the town, and also extend to Bexhill, Eastbourne and Dover as part ofThe Wave route.Stagecoach also run long distance buses up toNorthiam,Hawkhurst,Royal Tunbridge Wells,AshfordandCanterbury.

National Expressrun service 023 toLondon.

National rail

1914Railway Junction Diagramof Hastings area lines and stations; theBexhill Westbranch andWest Marina stationhave since closed.

Front ofHastings railway station,rebuilt in 2004

Hastings has fourraillinks: two to London, one toBrightonand one toAshford.Of the London lines, the shorter is theHastings Line,the formerSouth Eastern Railway(SER) route toCharing CrossviaBattleandTunbridge Wells,which opened in 1852; and the longer is theEast Coastway Line,the formerLondon, Brighton & South Coast Railway(LBSCR) route toVictoriaviaBexhill,EastbourneandLewes.Trains to Brighton also use the East Coastway Line. TheMarshlink Lineruns viaRyeto Ashford where a connection can be made withEurostarservices, and is unelectrified except for theHastingstoOresegment.

A historicBritish Rail Class 201"Thumper" can sometimes be seen on historic runs to and from Hastings.

Hastings is served by two rail companies:SoutheasternandSouthern.Southeastern services run along the Hastings Line, generally terminating at Hastings, with some peak services extending to Ore; the other lines are served by Southern, with services terminating at Ore or Ashford.

The town currently has four railway stations: from west to east they areWest St Leonards,St Leonards Warrior Square,HastingsandOre;this latter has been proposed to be renamed to Ore Valley.There is also one closed station and one proposed station in the area.West Marina station(on the LBSCR line) was very near West St Leonards (on the SER line) and was closed in 1967. A new station has been proposed at Glyne Gap in Bexhill, which would also serve residents from western Hastings.

Local rail

TheEast Hill Lift:one of the two funicular railways in Hastings

There are twofunicular railways,known locally as theWest HillandEast Hill Liftsrespectively.

TheHastings Miniature Railwayoperates along the beach fromRock-a-Noreto Marine Parade, and has provided tourist transport since 1948. The railway was considerably restored and re-opened in 2010.

Paths

TheSaxon Shore Way,(along distance footpath,163 mi (262 km) in length fromGravesend,Kent traces the Kent and Sussex coast "as it was inRomantimes "to Hastings. TheNational Cycle Networkroute NCR2 links Dover toSt Austellalong the south coast, and passes through Hastings.

Historical transport systems

Turnpike

In 1753 many prominent Hastings figures – including the major landownersEdward MilwardandJohn Collier– obtained an act of Parliament, the Hastings-Flimwell Turnpike Act, that allowed them to take control of the existing Hastings-London trackway via Battle and Whatlington, as far north as Flimwell,however the first properly recognised turnpike developed in St. Leonards in 1837 when builderJames Burtonwas building his new town of St Leonards. The route of the road is that taken by the A21 today.

Trams and trolleybuses

Map of the Hastings and District Electric Tramways

Hastings had a network of trams from 1905 to 1929. The trams ran as far as Bexhill, and were worked by overhead electric wires, except for the stretch along the seafront from Bo-Peep to the Memorial, which was initially worked by the Dolter stud contact system. The Dolter system was replaced by petrol electric trams in 1914 due to safety concerns,but overhead electrification was extended to this section in 1921.Trolleybusesrather than trams were used in the section that included the very narrow High Street, and the entire tram network was replaced by theHastings trolleybus systemin 1928–1929.

Maidstone & Districtbought the Hastings Tramway Company in 1935, but the trolleybuses still carried the "Hastings Tramways" logo until shortly before they were replaced by diesel buses in 1959, following the failure of the "Save our trolleys" campaign.

Education

Hastings has 18 primary schools, four secondary schools, one further education college and one higher education institution.

TheUniversity of Brightonin Hastings offers higher education courses in a range of subjects and currently attracts over 800 students. The university's Hastings campus doubled in size in 2012, with the addition of the new Priory Square building designed by Proctor and Matthews Architects.This is located in the town centre a short distance from the railway station.

Sussex Coast College and Hastings railway station

Sussex Coast College,formerly called Hastings College, is the town's further education college; it is located at Station Plaza, next to the railway station.

The secondary schools in the town includeArk Alexandra Academy,Hastings AcademyandThe St Leonards Academy.East Sussex County Councilclosed three mixed comprehensive schools: Filsham Valley, The Grove and Hillcrest, replacing them with twoacademy schools;The St Leonards Academy, and The Hastings Academy. The sponsors for the academies areUniversity of Brighton(lead sponsor),British Telecomand East Sussex County Council itself.

Religious buildings

Main article:List of places of worship in Hastings

The most important buildings from the late medieval period are the two churches in the Old Town, St Clement's (probably built after 1377) and All Saints (early 15th century). There is also a mosque, formerly "Mercatoria School" until purchased by the East Sussex Islamic Association. The former Ebenezer Particular Baptist Chapel in the Old Town dates from 1817 and islisted at Grade II.Christ Church, Blacklands (1876) has a complete decorative scheme of Mural, Stained Glass, Mosaic and Wrought Iron from the firm of Hardman's which gives it a ll* listing. When St. Andrew's was demolished in 1970 to make way for a supermarket, a fragment of the decorative scheme there, painted by Robert Noonan (also known asRobert Tressell,author ofThe Ragged Trousered Philanthropists) was rescued and features in the Hastings Museum. The Parish and title were added to Blacklands Church.

Healthcare

During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries healthcare has been provided in a number of institutions, including theRoyal East Sussex Hospital,Hastings, St Leonards and East Sussex Hospital, the Buchanan Hospital and St Helen's Hospital. In 1993 hospital provision was centralised into theConquest Hospital.

Sport

Runners during the 2009 edition of the Hastings Half Marathon.

Every year theHastings Half Marathonis held in the town although due to COVID-19 restrictions there was no half marathon that took place in 2020 or 2021. The 13.1 mi (21.1 km) race first took place in 1984 and attracts entrants from all over the country, taking runners on a route encircling the town, starting and finishing by the West Marina Gardens in St Leonards.

Hastings United F.C.is the town's oldest football team, playing in thePremier Divisionof theIsthmian League.It was founded in 1894 and plays its home games at The Pilot Field, which ground used to be home to two other senior clubs;St Leonardsandthe original Hastings Unitedwhich folded in 1985. There are football clubs in Hastings that compete in theEast Sussex League,such as Hollington United, St Leonards Social and Rock-a-Nore, playing at local parks and recreation grounds about the town. United attracted sports media headlines, when in 2013 they made it to the third round of theFA Cupfor the first time in their history, being the lowest ranked team left in the contest before going out – losing 4–1 to Middlesbrough.

TheCentral Recreation Groundwas one of England's oldest, most scenic and most famous cricket grounds. The first match was played there in 1864 and the last in 1989, after which the site was redeveloped into a shopping centre which opened in 1996.It was particularly popular with touring Australian sides who played 18 matches there.Hastings Prioryis the town's largest cricket club, having 4 teams playing competitive, as well as a large junior section. The club's home is atHorntye Park,though it also makes use of the facilities atArk Alexandra Academy.

ARK Alexandra Academy sees clubs using the school as their base, such as Hastings & Bexhill Rugby Football Club, Hastings Athletic Club andHastings Priory Cricket Club3rd and 4th teams.

Founded in 1895South Saxons Hockey Clubis one of the largest sports clubs in Hastings and is the towns only field hockey club. Locally known as 'Saxons' their home ground is the astroturf pitch atHorntye Park Sports Complex.Saxons field nine Saturday teams (4 Mens, 2 Ladies, 2 Boys development and a Girls development team). Saxons also have a thriving junior section who train on a Sunday and play in county 7's tournaments. Saxons Mens 1st XI play in Kent and Sussex Regional Division One and Saxons Ladies 1st XI play in Sussex Ladies League Premier Division.

Hastings Conquerors is an American Football Club, founded in March 2013 by local resident Chris Chillingworth and currently trains at William Parker Sports College. In June 2013 when it became the UK's first Co-Operative run not-for-profit American Football club.

There are many bowling greens in the parks and gardens located about the town; the Hastings Open Bowls Tournament has been held annually in June since 1911 and attracts many entrants country-wide.

Since 1920 Hastings has hosted theHastings International Chess Congress.The annual event is held over the Christmas period atHorntye Park Sports Complex.A testament to its importance is that every World Champion beforeGarry KasparovexceptBobby Fischerplayed at Hastings includingEmanuel Lasker(1895),José Raúl Capablanca(1919, 1929/30, 1930/1 and 1934/5),Alexander Alekhine(1922, 1925/6, 1933/4 and 1936/7),Max Euwe(1923/4, 1930/1, 1931/2, 1934/5, 1945/6 and 1949/50),Mikhail Botvinnik(1934/5, 1961/2 and 1966/7),Vasily Smyslov(1954/5, 1962/3 and 1968/9),Mikhail Tal(1963/4),Tigran Petrosian(1977/8),Boris Spassky(1965/6), andAnatoly Karpov(1971/2).

Hastings & St Leonards/Hastings Downs Golf Club (now defunct) was founded in 1893. The club disappeared in the 1950s.

Hastings has hosted theWorld Crazy Golf Championshipssince 2003.

Notable people

Main article:List of people from Hastings

• John Logie Bairdlived in Hastings in the 1920s where he carried out experiments that led to the transmission of the first television image.Robert TressellwroteThe Ragged-Trousered Philanthropistsin Hastings between 1906 and 1910.
• NovelistCatherine Cooksonlived in the town for many years and began her writing career when she joined the local writing group.There is a blue plaque on her former home at 9–10 Exmouth Place.
• Many notable figures were born, raised, or lived in Hastings, including computer scientistAlan Turing,poetFiona Pitt-Kethley,actressGwen Watford,comedianJo Brand,Madness singerSuggsandThomas H. Jukes,biologist.Gareth Barry,who holds therecord number of appearances in the Premier League,was born in Hastings. Archibald Belaney, the author who worked asGrey Owl,was born in Hastings and lived here for several years.
• Harry H Corbett,an actor best known for his role as Harold Steptoe in the BBC sitcomSteptoe and Son,lived in Hastings up until his death in 1982.
• Mark Edwards,a best-selling British fiction writer, grew up in Hastings.
• Anna Brassey,a collector and feminist pioneer of early photography, was based in Hastings until her death in 1887 (she was buried at sea).
• Tom Chaplin,best known as the lead singer of the English pop rock bandKeane,was born in Hastings.
• The internationally renowned punk rock bandMaid of Aceis from Hastings.
• Martin Honeysett(1943–2015), cartoonist known for his grotesque and biting sketches, lived in Hastings for a number of years.
• Roger Lewis(born 1960), journalist, writer and biographer, author ofThe Life and Death of Peter Sellers,lives in the town. He suffered a heart attack on the car park atMorrisonssupermarket and had to be airlifted to hospital.

Filmography

Film

• Shadow of a Man(1956)
• The Canterbury Tales (1972)
• I Want You(1998)
• Grey Owl(1999)
• Some Voices(2000)
• The Final Curtain(2000)
• The Last of the Blonde Bombshells(2000)
• Another Life (2001)
• When I Was 12(2001)
• Byzantium(2013)
• Drunk on Love (2015)
• The Great Escaper(2023)

Television

• Buddy(1986)
• Foyle's War(2002–15)
• Roadkill (TV series)(2020)
• Giri/HajiTV series(2019)
• Close to Me(2021)

Twin towns

See also:List of twin towns and sister cities in the United Kingdom

Hastings istwinnedwith:

• Béthune,France
• Oudenaarde,Belgium
• Schwerte,Germany
• Dordrecht,Netherlands
• Hastings,Sierra Leone

See also

• Healthcare in Sussex
• Hastings Borough Council elections

References

Bibliography

• Baines FSA, John Manwaring (1963).Historic Hastings.F J Parsons Ltd.
• Challis, Christopher Edgar; I Stewart; NJ Mayhew; GP Dyer; PP Gaspar (1993). "The English and Norman Mints, c. 600–1158".A New History of the Royal Mint.Cambridge University Press. p. 40.ISBN978-0-521-24026-0.Archivedfrom the original on 2 January 2014.Retrieved31 March2008.
• Combes, Pamela; Lyne, Malcolm (1995)."Hastings, Haestingaceaster and Haestingaport: a question of identity"(PDF).Sussex Archaeological Collections.133:213–24.doi:10.5284/1086680.ISSN0143-8204.
• Peak, Steve (1985).Fishermen of Hastings: 200 Years of the Hastings Fishing Community.Newsbooks.ISBN0-9510706-0-6.
• Marchant, Rex (1997).Hastings Past.Phillimore & Co. Ltd.ISBN1-86077-046-0.
• Winn, Christopher (2005).I Never Knew That About England.
• Down the Line to HastingsBrian Jewell, The Baton PressISBN0-85936-223-X
• Robert J Harley,Hastings Tramways.Middleton Press 1993.ISBN1-873793-18-9.
• Nairn, Ian; Pevsner, Nikolaus (1965).The Buildings of England: Sussex.Penguin. p. 119.
• Brooks, Ken (1972).Hastings: Then And Now.

External links

• Hastings Borough Council official website