Ditchling
Encyclopedia
Ditchling is a village and civil parish
in the Lewes District
of East Sussex
, England
. The village is contained within the boundaries of the South Downs National Park
; the order confirming the establishment of the park was signed in Ditchling.
An artistic community founded by the artist
Eric Gill
during the early 20th century, and known as The Guild of St Joseph and St Dominic
survived until 1989.
in East Sussex, but very close to the border with West Sussex
. The settlement stands around a crossroads with Brighton
to the south, Burgess Hill
and Haywards Heath
to the north, Keymer
and Hassocks
to the west, and Lewes
to the east, and is built on a slight spur of land between the Downs to the south and Lodge Hill
to the north. Ditchling Beacon
, one of the highest points on the South Downs, overlooks the village.
Ditchling Common
, north of the village, is the source of the eastern River Adur
which meets with the western River Adur near Henfield
and flows on to the English Channel
at Shoreham-by-Sea
.
, when the people of Dicul settled here and King Alfred the Great
held lands as a Royal Manor.
It is unknown exactly when the people of Dicul settled in the village, but Ditchling is first recorded in 765 as Dicelinga in a grant by King Alduuf of land bordering that of Ditchling. Later it is recorded that the Manor and its lands were held by King Alfred. When Alfred died in the year 900 it was given to a kinsmen named Osferth, and then reverted to the Crown under Edward the Confessor
. After the Norman conquest, the land was held by William de Warenne. The Domesday book mentions a church and a mill in Ditchling and the population was approx 150 households. The land passed through several hands until in 1435 it was owned by the Marquess of Abergavenny who held it until the 20th century, when it was sold to developers who failed to get planning permission to build.
In the 18th and 19th centuries the Old Meeting House in Ditchling was an important centre for Baptists from the wider area, whose records and memorandum books allow a unique insight into a small rural religious community of the period. These records (in the East Sussex Record Office) bear witness to often fractious and heated debates about morality and religion.
In January 2007, Ditchling featured in a five piece BBC Documentary entitled Storyville: A Very English Village. This was filmed, produced and directed by a Ditchling resident, but the series itself came under criticism from local residents.
Ditchling has a number of establishments to offer its residents and visitors to the village. These consist of two public houses, The Bull and The White Horse and the cafe/eatery Ditchling Tea Rooms (previously known as Dolly's Pantry). It has a two local shops - The General (Renamed from Chestertons in 2010) and Parker's newsagent in addition to a small selection of other retail outlets selling jewellery, antiques and artwork.
is of biological interest because of the variety of heath grassland habitats, created by the different drainage conditions throughout the common. The second site is Clayton to Offham Escarpment
, which stretches from Hassocks in the west, passing through many parishes including Ditchling, to Lewes in the East. This site is of biological importance due to its rare chalk grassland habitat along with its woodland and scrub.
and was soon followed by other craftsmen. In 1921 they founded the Guild of St Joseph and St Dominic, a Roman Catholic community of artists and craftsmen, inspired by ideas of the medieval guilds and the Arts and Crafts movement
. The community had its own workshops and chapel, and thrived for many years. Its affairs were finally wound up in 1989, and the workshops demolished.
in the village of Hassocks
located in the adjoining county of West Sussex
.
Nonconformism
. The village has four extant places of Christian worship and one former chapel. St Margaret's Church, founded in the 11th century, is the village's Anglican
church. The fabric of the flint and sandstone building is mostly 13th-century, although the nave
is original. In 1740, a chapel (now called The Old Meeting House
) was built on the side of a late 17th-century house off East End Lane. It is now used by the Unitarian
community. Emmanuel Chapel, used by an Evangelical
congregation, was built in the early 20th century but may have had a predecessor elsewhere in the village. The Quaker
community have a modern meeting house near the centre of the village. The Beulah Strict Baptist Chapel (now a house) on East End Lane was in religious use between 1867 and the 1930s.
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
in the Lewes District
Lewes (district)
Lewes is a local government district in East Sussex in southern England covering an area of , with of coastline. It is named after its administrative centre, Lewes. Other towns in the district include Newhaven, Peacehaven, and Seaford. Plumpton racecourse is within the district...
of East Sussex
East Sussex
East Sussex is a county in South East England. It is bordered by the counties of Kent, Surrey and West Sussex, and to the south by the English Channel.-History:...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The village is contained within the boundaries of the South Downs National Park
South Downs National Park
The South Downs National Park is England's newest National Park, having become fully operational on 1 April 2011. The park, covering an area of in southern England, stretches for from Winchester in the west to Eastbourne in the east through the counties of Hampshire, West Sussex and East Sussex...
; the order confirming the establishment of the park was signed in Ditchling.
An artistic community founded by the artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
Eric Gill
Eric Gill
Arthur Eric Rowton Gill was a British sculptor, typeface designer, stonecutter and printmaker, who was associated with the Arts and Crafts movement...
during the early 20th century, and known as The Guild of St Joseph and St Dominic
The Guild of St Joseph and St Dominic
The Guild of St Joseph and St Dominic was an art colony and experiment in communal life in early 20th century England. The story of the Guild began when Eric Gill the sculptor and letter cutter came to Ditchling, Sussex in 1907 with his apprentice Joseph Cribb and was soon followed by fellow...
survived until 1989.
Location
The village lies at the foot of the South DownsSouth Downs
The South Downs is a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen Valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, near Eastbourne, East Sussex, in the east. It is bounded on its northern side by a steep escarpment, from whose...
in East Sussex, but very close to the border with West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
. The settlement stands around a crossroads with Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
to the south, Burgess Hill
Burgess Hill
Burgess Hill is a civil parish and a town primarily located in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England, close to the border with East Sussex, on the edge of the South Downs National Park...
and Haywards Heath
Haywards Heath
-Climate:Haywards Heath experiences an oceanic climate similar to almost all of the United Kingdom.-Rail:Haywards Heath railway station is a major station on the Brighton Main Line...
to the north, Keymer
Keymer
Keymer is a village in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. It lies on the B2116 road south of Burgess Hill.Keymer was an ancient parish that like its near neighbour Clayton was merged into the modern day parish of Hassocks. Both Keymer and Clayton's records go back as far as the...
and Hassocks
Hassocks
Hassocks is a large village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England. Its name is believed to derive from the tufts of grass found in the surrounding fields....
to the west, and Lewes
Lewes
Lewes is the county town of East Sussex, England and historically of all of Sussex. It is a civil parish and is the centre of the Lewes local government district. The settlement has a history as a bridging point and as a market town, and today as a communications hub and tourist-oriented town...
to the east, and is built on a slight spur of land between the Downs to the south and Lodge Hill
Lodge Hill
Lodge Hill may refer to:*Lodge Hill - a residential area of Bristol, England*Lodge Hill - a cemetery and crematorium in Selly Oak, Birmingham, England*Lodge Hill - a hill in Ditchling, East Sussex, England...
to the north. Ditchling Beacon
Ditchling Beacon
Ditchling Beacon is the third-highest point on the South Downs in south-east England, behind Butser Hill and Crown Tegleaze . It consists of a large chalk hill with a particularly steep northern face, covered with open grassland and sheep-grazing areas...
, one of the highest points on the South Downs, overlooks the village.
Ditchling Common
Ditchling Common
Ditchling Common once the King's land as part of the Saxon Manor, is now a Country Park north of Ditchling and lies between Haywards Heath and Lewes to the east of Burgess Hill in West Sussex. It covers an area of and can be found at map reference TQ337181...
, north of the village, is the source of the eastern River Adur
River Adur
The Adur is a river in Sussex, England; it gives its name to the Adur district of West Sussex. The river was formerly navigable for large vessels up as far as Steyning, where there was a large port, but over time the river valley became silted up and the port moved down to the deeper waters nearer...
which meets with the western River Adur near Henfield
Henfield
Henfield is a large village and civil parish in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. It lies south of London, northwest of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester at the road junction of the A281 and A2037. The parish has a land area of . In the 2001 census 5,012...
and flows on to the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
at Shoreham-by-Sea
Shoreham-by-Sea
Shoreham-by-Sea is a small town, port and seaside resort in West Sussex, England. Shoreham-by-Sea railway station is located less than a mile from the town centre and London Gatwick Airport is away...
.
History
The history of Ditchling starts properly in Saxon timesHistory of Anglo-Saxon England
Anglo-Saxon England refers to the period of the history of that part of Britain, that became known as England, lasting from the end of Roman occupation and establishment of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in the 5th century until the Norman conquest of England in 1066 by William the Conqueror...
, when the people of Dicul settled here and King Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great was King of Wessex from 871 to 899.Alfred is noted for his defence of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of southern England against the Vikings, becoming the only English monarch still to be accorded the epithet "the Great". Alfred was the first King of the West Saxons to style himself...
held lands as a Royal Manor.
It is unknown exactly when the people of Dicul settled in the village, but Ditchling is first recorded in 765 as Dicelinga in a grant by King Alduuf of land bordering that of Ditchling. Later it is recorded that the Manor and its lands were held by King Alfred. When Alfred died in the year 900 it was given to a kinsmen named Osferth, and then reverted to the Crown under Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor also known as St. Edward the Confessor , son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, was one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England and is usually regarded as the last king of the House of Wessex, ruling from 1042 to 1066....
. After the Norman conquest, the land was held by William de Warenne. The Domesday book mentions a church and a mill in Ditchling and the population was approx 150 households. The land passed through several hands until in 1435 it was owned by the Marquess of Abergavenny who held it until the 20th century, when it was sold to developers who failed to get planning permission to build.
In the 18th and 19th centuries the Old Meeting House in Ditchling was an important centre for Baptists from the wider area, whose records and memorandum books allow a unique insight into a small rural religious community of the period. These records (in the East Sussex Record Office) bear witness to often fractious and heated debates about morality and religion.
In January 2007, Ditchling featured in a five piece BBC Documentary entitled Storyville: A Very English Village. This was filmed, produced and directed by a Ditchling resident, but the series itself came under criticism from local residents.
Ditchling has a number of establishments to offer its residents and visitors to the village. These consist of two public houses, The Bull and The White Horse and the cafe/eatery Ditchling Tea Rooms (previously known as Dolly's Pantry). It has a two local shops - The General (Renamed from Chestertons in 2010) and Parker's newsagent in addition to a small selection of other retail outlets selling jewellery, antiques and artwork.
Landmarks
There are two Sites of Special Scientific Interest within the parish of Ditchling. Ditchling CommonDitchling Common
Ditchling Common once the King's land as part of the Saxon Manor, is now a Country Park north of Ditchling and lies between Haywards Heath and Lewes to the east of Burgess Hill in West Sussex. It covers an area of and can be found at map reference TQ337181...
is of biological interest because of the variety of heath grassland habitats, created by the different drainage conditions throughout the common. The second site is Clayton to Offham Escarpment
Clayton To Offham Escarpment
The Clayton to Offham Escarpment is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in East Sussex, but extends in to West Sussex and thus can be found on the List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in West Sussex as well as the List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in East Sussex...
, which stretches from Hassocks in the west, passing through many parishes including Ditchling, to Lewes in the East. This site is of biological importance due to its rare chalk grassland habitat along with its woodland and scrub.
The Guild of St Joseph and St Dominic
Eric Gill, the sculptor and letter cutter, came to Ditchling in 1907 with his apprentice Joseph CribbJoseph Cribb
Joseph Cribb was born in Hammersmith, London, in 1892, and became Eric Gill's assistant at the age of 14. The following year he started an official five year apprenticeship with Gill. He became a well-known sculptor in his own right, after Gill left Ditchling for Wales in 1924...
and was soon followed by other craftsmen. In 1921 they founded the Guild of St Joseph and St Dominic, a Roman Catholic community of artists and craftsmen, inspired by ideas of the medieval guilds and the Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts was an international design philosophy that originated in England and flourished between 1860 and 1910 , continuing its influence until the 1930s...
. The community had its own workshops and chapel, and thrived for many years. Its affairs were finally wound up in 1989, and the workshops demolished.
Education
There is one school in Ditchling, Ditchling (St Margaret's) Church of England Primary School. This is a voluntary controlled primary school for children aged 4–11. Many of the children after leaving this school go to Downlands Community SchoolDownlands Community School
Downlands Community School is a maintained comprehensive for pupils aged 11 to 16. It currently caters for around 960 pupils. It is recognised as a specialist Science and Mathematics school and also has the Sportsmark.-Location:...
in the village of Hassocks
Hassocks
Hassocks is a large village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England. Its name is believed to derive from the tufts of grass found in the surrounding fields....
located in the adjoining county of West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
.
Religious buildings
Ditchling has a long history of ProtestantProtestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
Nonconformism
Nonconformism
Nonconformity is the refusal to "conform" to, or follow, the governance and usages of the Church of England by the Protestant Christians of England and Wales.- Origins and use:...
. The village has four extant places of Christian worship and one former chapel. St Margaret's Church, founded in the 11th century, is the village's Anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
church. The fabric of the flint and sandstone building is mostly 13th-century, although the nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
is original. In 1740, a chapel (now called The Old Meeting House
Ditchling Unitarian Chapel
Ditchling Unitarian Chapel is a Unitarian chapel in Ditchling, a village in the English county of East Sussex...
) was built on the side of a late 17th-century house off East End Lane. It is now used by the Unitarian
Unitarianism
Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....
community. Emmanuel Chapel, used by an Evangelical
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
congregation, was built in the early 20th century but may have had a predecessor elsewhere in the village. The Quaker
Religious Society of Friends
The Religious Society of Friends, or Friends Church, is a Christian movement which stresses the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. Members are known as Friends, or popularly as Quakers. It is made of independent organisations, which have split from one another due to doctrinal differences...
community have a modern meeting house near the centre of the village. The Beulah Strict Baptist Chapel (now a house) on East End Lane was in religious use between 1867 and the 1930s.
Notable residents (past and present)
- Sir Frank Brangwyn
- Raymond BriggsRaymond BriggsRaymond Redvers Briggs is an English illustrator, cartoonist, graphic novelist, and author who has achieved critical and popular success among adults and children...
- S. F. EdgeSelwyn EdgeSelwyn Francis Edge was an Australian businessman, racing driver, and record-breaker. He is principally associated with selling and racing De Dion-Bouton, Gladiator; Clemént-Panhard, Napier and AC cars.-Personal life:...
- Herbie FlowersHerbie FlowersHerbie Flowers is an English musician specialising in bass guitar, double-bass and tuba. He is noted as a member of Blue Mink, T...
- Eric GillEric GillArthur Eric Rowton Gill was a British sculptor, typeface designer, stonecutter and printmaker, who was associated with the Arts and Crafts movement...
- Peter JamesPeter James (writer)Peter James is a British writer of crime fiction and film producer.-Life:James is the son of Cornelia James, the former glovemaker to Queen Elizabeth II. He was educated at Charterhouse School and went on to Ravensbourne Film School. Subsequently he spent several years in North America, working as...
- Edward JohnstonEdward JohnstonEdward Johnston, CBE was a British-Uruguayan craftsman who is regarded, with Rudolf Koch, as the a father of modern calligraphy, in the form of the broad edged pen as a writing tool, a particular form of calligraphy....
- David JonesDavid Jones (poet)David Jones CH was both a painter and one of the first generation British modernist poets. As a painter he worked chiefly in watercolor, painting portraits and animal, landscape, legendary and religious subjects. He was also a wood-engraver and designer of inscriptions. As a writer he was...
- John Vernon LordJohn Vernon LordJohn Vernon Lord is an illustrator, author and teacher. He has illustrated many classical texts, including Aesop's Fables, The Nonsense Verse of Edward Lear; the Folio Society's Myths and Legends of the British Isles, and Epics of the Middle Ages...
- Dame Vera Lynn
- John NealJohn Neal (cricketer)John Howard Neal is a former English cricketer. Neal was a right-handed batsman who fielded as a wicket-keeper. He was born at Ditchling, Sussex....
(b. 1926), cricketer - Hilary Pepler
- Brocard SewellBrocard SewellMichael Seymour Sewell , usually now known by his religious name Brocard Sewell, was a British Carmelite friar and literary figure....
- Sir Donald Sinden
- Jamie TheakstonJamie TheakstonJamie Theakston is an English television and radio presenter, producer and actor.-Education:...
- Len HowardLen HowardGwendolen Howard was a British naturalist and musician. She is known for the unique amateur bird studies that were published in various periodicals and two books under her pseudonym, Len Howard....