Bramber |
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- Location
Bramber is on the A283, north of Shoreham on the bank of the river Adur.
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Now little more than one very pretty main street, Bramber used to be a thriving port known as Portus Adurni. First the Anglo-Saxons then the Normans built fortifications to guard the busy port of
Bramber. |
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The Norman castle (built 1070-1073 by William de Broase) was probably built on the site of an earlier Anglo-Saxon fortification as the name Bramber derives from the Saxon
Brymmburh meaning fortified hill. During the Middle Ages Bramber was an important administrative and military centre. |
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Following his defeat at the Battle of Worcester in 1651 Charles
II, on his flight to the coast, narrowly escaped capture by the parliamentary troops by hiding in the house of St. Mary. This house is described as having the finest example of late 15th century timber framing in Sussex. |
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During the Civil War the Parliamentarians destroyed the castle, and the church (built 1075 as a chapel for the castle) was used as a gun emplacement. After the estuary silted up the port declined into a small village. Bramber castle is now a ruin. |
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Storrington |
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- Location
3 miles south east of Pulborough on the A283.
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One of the oldest settlements in Sussex, there is evidence of human habitation in Storrington since pre-historic days.
Created a market town 600 years ago, there are a number of surviving old buildings and a village pond. St. Mary the Virgin goes back to the llth century. |
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Parham House |
A couple of miles outside the Storrington lies Parham House, a glorious Elizabethan mansion set in a huge deer park. Much of the house is original with long gallery 160 feet long! There are collections of paintings, china, tapestries and rare needlework. Open to the public from Easter to October. |
