Alfriston

Coordinates: 50°48′29″N 0°09′18″E / 50.808°N 0.155°E / 50.808; 0.155
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about the village in England. For the suburb of Papakura, see Alfriston, New Zealand.

Alfriston
East Sussex
AmbulanceSouth East Coast
UK Parliament
Websitewww.alfriston-village.co.uk
List of places
UK
England
East Sussex
50°48′29″N 0°09′18″E / 50.808°N 0.155°E / 50.808; 0.155

Alfriston is a village and civil parish in the East Sussex district of Wealden, England. The village lies in the valley of the River Cuckmere, about four miles (6 km) north-east of Seaford and south of the main A27 trunk road and part of the large area of Polegate. The parish had a population of 829 at the 2011 census.[2]

History

The Alfriston lock-up

There is strong evidence of ancient occupation of the area, since several Neolithic long barrows have been discovered on the surrounding Downs; among them, to the west is the fairly well preserved Long Burgh.[3]

The place-name 'Alfriston' is first attested in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as Alvricestone. It appears as Alfrichestuna in a French document circa 1150. The name means 'Ælfric's town or settlement'.[4]

One building of historical importance is the Star Inn. Originally a religious hostel built in 1345 and used to accommodate monks and pilgrims en route from

Dean's Place Hotel which was built in the 17th century or earlier.[6]

Governance

An electoral ward in the same name exists. This ward stretches north to Chalvington with Ripe and has a total population taken at the 2011 census of 2,321.[7]

Churches

Main articles: List of current places of worship in Wealden and List of former places of worship in Wealden
St Andrew's Church

The

West Dean. Alfriston's former United Reformed Church is included in that grouping.[8]

The village of Alfriston

Alfriston clergy house

The east side of the village lies by the

National Trust. It was the very first property bought by the Trust, in 1896, and it is a classic example of a Wealden hall house with thatched roof and timber-framed walls. It also has a tranquil garden and orchard on the banks of the Cuckmere. Also on the Tye is the Georgian Unitarian Chapel. The wooden sign for the village at the entrance to the Tye was carved by a previous vicar of the village who also repaired the Star Inn's red lion. The centre of the village is Market Square which contains a 15th-century market cross
.

The village contains four pubs, the Star Inn, the Smugglers' Inn, the George Inn and the Six Bells. A Channel 5 archaeology programme, Pub Dig, revealed evidence of long occupation of the site of the Smugglers' Inn, including signs of smuggling, animal butchery and neolithic activity at the rear of the building.[9] In 2021, the Star Inn featured in another Channel 5 programme, called Alex Polizzi: My Hotel Nightmare, which documented the renovation of the 15th century, 37-bedroom coaching inn.[10][11][12][13]

  • Star Inn
    Star Inn
  • George Inn
    George Inn
  • Smugglers Inn
    Smugglers Inn

The South Downs Way crosses the river in Alfriston, and then continues up onto the Downs.

During the week leading up to the August bank holiday weekend, there is the Alfriston Festival, which ends with a Grand Fair on the Tye, with the proceeds going to several local national charities. It is attended by a large number of people from many miles around.[14] In December there is also an Alfriston Christmas Weekend.[15] The village also has its own clay pigeon shooting club.[16] The Alfriston Cricket Club has won the Cuckmere Valley League on nine occasions, with the earliest being 1920 and the most recent 2003.[17]

The arts and Alfriston

In 1931 Eleanor Farjeon wrote the popular hymn "Morning Has Broken" in Alfriston; the hymn is supposedly about the beauty she saw around her in this village.[18] The song was later recorded by Cat Stevens in the 1970s, reaching a wider audience.

The 1946 novel

Pevensey Bay, Rottingdean and Polegate. The book was made into a film in 1948, starring Moira Lister and Michael Rennie
. Cheyney also mentions Alfriston in several other of his novels, including Dance without Music (1947).

Another well-known thriller-writer, Victor Canning, sets the prologue to his 1956 novel The Hidden Face (US Burden of Proof) in Alfriston. The hero Peter Barlow comes to the village to confront a resident, James Gurney Hansford, who has cheated his father and driven him to suicide. They fight. Later Hansford is murdered and Barlow wrongly convicted of the crime.

The 1964 film The Chalk Garden starring Sir John Mills, Hayley Mills and Deborah Kerr was filmed in and around the village.[19]

Waltz of the Toreadors was also filmed here.[20]

A panoramic view of the village of Alfriston from the South Downs Way bridleway

Notable people

  • Dr June Goodfield (1927–) historian, scientist and writer[citation needed]
  • Denis Healey, Baron Healey, CH, MBE, PC, FRSL (1917–2015 in Alfriston) a British Labour Party politician, Secretary of State for Defence 1964–1970, Chancellor of the Exchequer 1974–1979 and Deputy Leader of the Labour Party 1980–1983[21]
  • Edna Healey (1918 – 2010) author, lecturer and filmmaker. Wife of Denis.[21]
  • Albert Hilton (1862 in Alfriston – 1935) an English cricketer active from 1891 to 1895 who played for Sussex, appearing in 29 first-class matches[citation needed]
  • Peter Medawar (1915–1987) and his wife are buried in Alfriston[21]
  • Elgar Pagden (1820–1880), first-class cricketer[22]
  • Jacqueline Wilson (1945– ) children's author of the Tracy Beaker franchise, lives in Alfriston[23]

References

  1. ^ "East Sussex in Figures". East Sussex County Council. Retrieved 26 April 2008.
  2. ^ a b "Civil Parish population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  3. ^ Historic England. "Long Burgh long barrow, Alfriston (1012923)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  4. ^ Eilert Ekwall, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Place-names, p.6.
  5. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 October 2011. Retrieved 26 October 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. ^ The Village Reference: Alfriston:Smuggling and Ghosts Archived 12 January 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ "Ward population 2011". Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  8. ^ Alfriston churches Archived 11 February 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ "Rory McGrath's Pub Dig". Channel 5. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  10. ^ "Alex Polizzi: My Hotel Nightmare - Channel 5".
  11. ^ "Alex Polizzi's hotel nightmare as she refurbishes £2 million Alfriston inn".
  12. ^ ""I just feel battered" - Alex Polizzi's rush against time to reopen in My Hotel Nightmare".
  13. ^ "The Alfriston hotel owned by Alex Polizzi starring on Hotel Inspector". 12 August 2021.
  14. ^ "Alfriston Summer Festival". Alfriston Village website. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  15. ^ "Recent Events". Archived from the original on 11 February 2009. Retrieved 21 February 2009.
  16. ^ "Services and Amenities". Archived from the original on 8 February 2009. Retrieved 21 February 2009.
  17. ^ "Club Titles". Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 21 February 2009.
  18. ^ says, Linda searles (25 October 2021). ""Morning has broken"". Sussex Rambles. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  19. ^ Briffett, Anne (February 2013). "The Chalk Garden". The Deans Magazine (February 2013).
  20. ^ "Waltz of the Toreadors". Sussex Screen. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  21. ^ a b c "Notable Burials at St. Andrew's Church Alfriston" (PDF). cuckmerechurches.org.uk. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  22. ^ "Elgar Pagden". Wisden. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  23. ^ Donnelly, Luke (14 February 2021). "Alfriston: The charming part of East Sussex rated one of England's 'most beautiful villages'". www.sussexlive.co.uk. Retrieved 20 February 2021.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Alfriston.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alfriston&oldid=1214378725"