East Sussex, England, High Weald, History, photography, Ruins & Remains, South East, Sussex, UK, World War II

The Secret WWII Defences Still Hidden in Sussex

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If Hitler Had Invaded Sussex

A railway station hiding machine-gun positions. A medieval castle defended by an anti-tank gun. A Sussex vineyard surrounded by enormous concrete obstacles.

These are some of the remarkable remnants of Britain’s preparations for a German invasion in 1940.

Following the fall of France and the evacuation of Dunkirk, Hitler’s forces stood just across the English Channel. Britain faced the possibility of invasion, and Sussex was on the front line.

In my previous article, If Hitler Had Invaded Sussex, we explored the coastal defences constructed during that desperate summer.

But what if German troops had actually reached the beaches? And what stood in their way if they managed to break through?

I’ve been exploring more of East Sussex’s forgotten defences, discovering how ordinary buildings, villages, roads and rivers were transformed into part of a much larger military network.

Some of what survives is extraordinary.

Continue reading The Secret WWII Defences Still Hidden in Sussex →
East Sussex, England, History, South East, Sussex, UK, Videography, World War 1

THE FORGOTTEN FIRST WORLD WAR AIR WAR OVER EAST SUSSEX

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When the First World War began in 1914, powered flight was still remarkably new.

The Wright brothers had made their first successful powered flight only eleven years earlier. Aircraft were fragile, their range was limited and nobody yet fully understood what role they might play in a major war.

Four years later, everything had changed.

Along the East Sussex coast, airships were hunting submarines over the Channel, seaplanes were protecting shipping, primitive land-based aircraft were flying coastal patrols, pilots were being trained and a network of small military landing grounds had appeared across the countryside.

Most of that first air war has now disappeared from the landscape.

But if you know where to look, a surprising number of traces remain.

Continue reading THE FORGOTTEN FIRST WORLD WAR AIR WAR OVER EAST SUSSEX →
Ancient Trees, East Sussex, England, High Weald, History, Natural History, South Downs, South East, Sussex, UK

Ancient Yew Trees of East Sussex: Pagan Sacred Sites or Christian Symbols?

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Some of the oldest living things in Sussex are not hidden away in remote woodland. They are standing in churchyards.

Across East Sussex, enormous yew trees grow beside churches that are themselves hundreds of years old. At places such as Crowhurst, Wilmington and Rotherfield, the trunks have expanded, hollowed and regenerated through centuries of English history.

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Castles, East Sussex, England, History, Landmarks, landscape photography, National Parks, photography, Ruins & Remains, South Downs, Sussex, UK, World War II

If Hitler Had Invaded Sussex: WWII Defences Still Hidden in the Landscape

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Introduction

Today, the East Sussex coast is a landscape of shingle beaches, river valleys, chalk cliffs, harbours and quiet countryside.

In the summer of 1940, it was being prepared for invasion.

France had fallen and German forces stood across the English Channel. Hitler’s planned invasion of Britain — Operation Sea Lion — depended on gaining control of the skies and the Channel.

Continue reading If Hitler Had Invaded Sussex: WWII Defences Still Hidden in the Landscape →
Brede Hill, East Sussex, England, Folklore & Legends, High Weald, Historic Estates, History, South East, Sussex, UK

The Sussex Giant Who Ate Children – The Legend of the Giant of Brede

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In the quiet East Sussex village of Brede lies the tomb of a Tudor knight called Sir Goddard Oxenbridge.

He was a real landowner who lived during the reign of Henry VIII. But local folklore remembers somebody rather different: an enormous man who ate children, could not be killed by metal weapons and eventually met a particularly gruesome end.

He became known as the Giant of Brede.

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East Sussex, England, High Weald, History, Memorials, photography, South East, Sussex, UK, World War II

Allied Fighters Over East Sussex

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Three pilots, three nations, one changing air war.

Today, the landscapes around Rye Harbour, Forest Row and Uckfield are peaceful corners of East Sussex.

Walk across the marshes towards Camber Castle, follow the old railway path beside Forest Row, or drive through Uckfield and there is little to suggest that these places once lay beneath an aerial battlefield.

Yet hidden within these landscapes are memorials to three Allied fighter pilots whose stories span four remarkable years of the Second World War.

Harry Raymond Hamilton came from Canada. John Dallas Crossman came from Australia. Eugène Georges Achille Seghers came from Belgium.

All three served with the Royal Air Force. All three fought in the skies over southern England. And all three are now commemorated in quiet locations across East Sussex.

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East Sussex, England, High Weald, History, landscape photography, Memorials, photography, South Downs, South East, Sussex, UK, World War II

Bombers of East Sussex: The Last Miles Home

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Introduction

Today, the South Downs, Ashdown Forest and the wooded hills of the High Weald are among the most peaceful landscapes in East Sussex. Walk these places now and it can be difficult to imagine the skies above them filled with aircraft heading to and from war.

Yet during the Second World War, East Sussex lay beneath one of the great aerial highways between Britain and occupied Europe.

Bomber crews crossed the Sussex coast on their way out. Hours later, often in darkness and poor weather, they searched for England again. Some returned with damaged aircraft, wounded crew or failing engines, knowing that reaching the English coast did not necessarily mean they were safe.

Across East Sussex, memorials still mark some of those final journeys.

This story begins on the cliffs at Beachy Head, follows the returning aircraft inland towards the airfields they hoped to reach, and ends among the fields that once formed another temporary wartime airfield.

It is a story about British, American and Polish airmen. But it is also about the landscape that remembers them.

More than eighty years later the runways have disappeared, the wreckage has gone and nature has reclaimed most of the crash sites. In many places, a stone, plaque or small memorial is now the only indication that anything happened there at all.

Battle of Britain Over East Sussex – Four Pilots, Two Days, Four Memorials

Continue reading Bombers of East Sussex: The Last Miles Home →
East Sussex, England, High Weald, History, Memorials, photography, South East, Sussex, UK, World War II

Battle of Britain Over East Sussex: Four Pilots, Two Days, Four Memorials

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Introduction

Today, the High Weald of East Sussex is one of the most peaceful landscapes in southern England. Narrow lanes wind between woods and fields, old farms sit among wooded ridges, and from the higher ground there are long views across a countryside that can seem almost untouched by the modern world.

It is difficult to imagine this same landscape with a battle raging in the skies above it.

Autumn view from Penhurst Lane across the High Weald towards the South Downs and Butts Brow, with morning light on the trees.
High weald view from penhurst lane looking south west to butts brow on the south downs east Sussex south east England UK

Yet during the summer and autumn of 1940, south-east England stood beneath the Battle of Britain. German bombers and fighters crossed the coast while RAF pilots climbed to intercept them, often fighting at great height before damaged aircraft spiralled back towards the countryside below.

Continue reading Battle of Britain Over East Sussex: Four Pilots, Two Days, Four Memorials →
East Sussex, England, Hastings, High Weald, landscape photography, photography, South East, Sussex, UK, Woodland & Parks

10 Places You May Not Know About in Hastings Country Park

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Hastings Rock-a-Nore sunrise
Hastings Rock-a-Nore sunrise

Hastings Country Park begins above Rock-a-Nore on the eastern edge of Hastings, where the town quickly gives way to ancient woodland, deep glens, open heathland and some of the wildest coastline in East Sussex.

From Rock-a-Nore, the park stretches east towards Fairlight and Cliff End, covering hundreds of acres of dramatically changing landscape. Most visitors know it for its clifftop walks and views across the English Channel, but there is much more to discover within its hills and valleys.

Over several years of walking and photographing the park, I’ve come across places I once walked straight past without noticing their significance—an ancient settlement, secluded waterfalls, caves and springs, remnants of old industry, military history and attractions that have almost disappeared from the landscape.

Continue reading 10 Places You May Not Know About in Hastings Country Park →
Ancient Trees, Castles, East Sussex, England, Geology & Rock Formations, Hastings, High Weald, Historic Estates, History, Landmarks, Memorials, Natural History, photography, Ruins & Remains, South East, Sussex, UK, Woodland & Parks

10 Hidden Places in Hastings Most Visitors Never See

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Hastings is famous for 1066, its ruined castle, historic Old Town and working fishing beach. Look beyond those familiar attractions, however, and another side of the town begins to appear—one hidden among woodland, cliffs, parks, housing estates and quiet corners that most visitors pass without noticing.

These lesser-known places reveal a much longer and stranger history than the Battle of Hastings alone. They include secluded beaches, the remains of a vast Roman iron industry, ruined medieval churches, a mysterious woodland bath, a pyramid memorial, a forgotten waterfall and a cave once occupied by a Victorian hermit.

This guide explores ten unusual places in and around Hastings, East Sussex. Some are nationally important historic remains, while others are natural curiosities or local landmarks with remarkable stories. Each offers something worth discovering and photographing, whether you are exploring with a camera, a phone or simply an interest in the hidden history of Hastings.

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Downs and Farmland, East Sussex, England, July, landscape photography, Photo Stories, photography, South Downs, South East, Summer, Sussex, UK

A Summer Scouting Walk on Mill Hill from Rodmell

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This short photo story comes from a scouting walk around Mill Hill above Rodmell, looking for summer compositions on the South Downs. The original aim was to check the Phacelia fields, but the walk also produced poppies, wheat fields, shifting cloud, views towards Kingston Ridge, and several locations worth returning to in better light.

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East Sussex, England, History, June, Landmarks, Photo Stories, photography, South Downs, South East, Summer, Sussex, UK

Ashcombe Windmill and Poppies near Kingston, Lewes

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Ashcombe Windmill is one of those landmarks that seems to belong exactly where it stands. High above Kingston near Lewes, with the South Downs rolling around it, the restored mill already makes a strong subject — but finding a field of poppies in front of it turned the scene into something far more special.

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