Offington is a neighbourhood of the Borough

Borough

A borough is an administrative division in various countries. In principle, the term borough designates a self-governing township although, in practice, official use of the term varies widely....

 of Worthing

Worthing

Worthing is a large seaside town with borough status in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, forming part of the Brighton/Worthing/Littlehampton conurbation. It is situated at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of the county town of Chichester...

 in 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...

, 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...

. It lies on the A2031 road 1.6 miles (2.5 km) northwest of the town centre.

Today, the area is a residential suburb of Worthing. Offington was part of the parish of Broadwater

Broadwater, West Sussex

Broadwater is a neighbourhood of the Borough of Worthing in West Sussex, England. Situated between the South Downs and the English Channel, Broadwater was once a parish in its own right and included Worthing when the latter was a small fishing hamlet. Before its incorporation into the Borough of...

 and became part of the borough of Worthing in 1902. It is possibly best known for its large manor house, which survived from medieval times to the 1960s

Etymology

Offington means Offa's farmstead. Offington's name is of Anglo-Saxon

Anglo-Saxon

Anglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...

 origin. The name 'Offa' would have been relatively common in the Saxon era and there is no no evidence to suggest that the name is derived from King Offa of Mercia, although it is possible that Offa took control over the Kingdom of Sussex

Kingdom of Sussex

The Kingdom of Sussex or Kingdom of the South Saxons was a Saxon colony and later independent kingdom of the Saxons, on the south coast of England. Its boundaries coincided in general with those of the earlier kingdom of the Regnenses and the later county of Sussex. A large part of its territory...

 in the eighth century. In 1086, in the Domesday Book

Domesday Book

Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...

, the settlement was known as Ofintune.

History

In the mid-eleventh century, Offington was held by Godwin, Earl of Wessex

Godwin, Earl of Wessex

Godwin of Wessex , was one of the most powerful lords in England under the Danish king Cnut the Great and his successors. Cnut made him the first Earl of Wessex...

. Following the successful Norman invasion of 1066, Offington, along with neighbouring settlements became part of the rape of Bramber

Rape of Bramber

The Rape of Bramber is one of the rapes, the traditional sub-divisions unique to the historic county of Sussex in England. Bramber is a former barony, originally based around the castle of Bramber and its village, overlooking the river Adur.-History:...

.

Offington Manor House was apparently recorded in 1357. By the mid 15th century there was a large complex of buildings including at least one courtyard, a chapel, a guest-house, and a gate-house. Offington was home to Thomas West, 8th Baron De La Warr

Thomas West, 8th Baron De La Warr

Thomas West, 8th Baron De La Warr and 5th Baron West, KB, KG was the oldest son of Richard West, 7th Baron De La Warr and 4th Baron of West and Catherine Hungerford.Thomas succeeded to his titles at the age of 19...

 and his son Thomas West, 9th Baron De La Warr

Thomas West, 9th Baron De La Warr

Thomas West, 9th Baron De La Warr and 6th Baron West, KG succeeded to his titles at the age of 50. He was the son of Thomas West, 8th Baron De La Warr and Lady Elizabeth Morton, daughter of Sir George Morton, of Lechlade....

. The 8th Baron West was also buried in Broadwater's Parish Church

Broadwater Church

St. Mary's Church, Broadwater, is located in the Diocese of Chichester, in the deanery of Worthing and serves the parish of Broadwater in Worthing in West Sussex. It is one of four churches within this parish alongside Hosanna, Queen Street Fellowship and St. Stephen's Church.-History:1086. The...

. In the 1850s, Thomas Gaisford extended the house further, including a new library and a chapel. The chapel became Worthing's chief place of Roman Catholic worship until the building of Worthing first Catholic church, St Mary of the Angels

St Mary of the Angels, Worthing

The Church of St Mary of the Angels, Worthing, is in Worthing, West Sussex, England. It is a Grade II listed building and the earliest of the four Roman Catholic churches in Worthing...

.

There is a local legend that a tunnel containing buried treasure led from Offington House to the ancient hill fort of Cissbury

Cissbury

Cissbury is the name of a prehistoric site near the village of Findon around 5 miles north of Worthing in the English county of West Sussex. The site is managed by the National Trust....

 to the north and was protected by a serpent.

The former outbuilding of Offington Manor, the Old Brewhouse in Hall Close is grade II listed. Said to date from 1150, the present structure is probably mainly 16th-17th century. Also the 18th century former stables of Offington Hall remain and are grade II listed. They are now known as Offington Hall Riding School in Hall Avenue.

Actor Roger Moore

Roger Moore

Sir Roger George Moore KBE , is an English actor, perhaps best known for portraying British secret agent James Bond in seven films from 1973 to 1985. He also portrayed Simon Templar in the long-running British television series The Saint.-Early life:Moore was born in Stockwell, London...

 was evacuated to Offington and lived with a family in Shirley Drive during the Second World War.