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1066 Country has a diverse range of places that attract visitors, all different. Each one has its own story to tell. The individual place stories have been written to depict the key characteristics of each of these nine towns and villages in a concise and engaging way. Use them to tell people what’s special about each location.
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Unfolding England’s story
Named to commemorate the most famous conflict on English soil, this compact market town grew up alongside the 1066 battle site, tranquil medieval Abbey and surrounding ancient woodlands — largely unchanged to this day. Celebratory bonfires and battle re-enactments, plus an annual festival of contemporary arts, theatre and music, are all features of Battle’s enduring heritage.
Retro on Sea
The resort that built itself an iconic Modernist pavilion. Designed for the people, De La Warr Pavilion is now a creative hotspot for contemporary culture on Bexhill’s elegant seafront. A classical colonnade lines the long promenade and frames broad views across the bay to Beachy Head. Modern vintage shops, quirky places for art and music, and independent cafés and restaurants, defy traditional seaside stereotypes.
Fabled fortress of the Weald
Bodiam’s fame rests on its storybook moated castle. Once guarding a wider Rother estuary it is now securely inland, a romantic valley setting approached by steam train or river boat as well as by road. Its nostalgic history and gentle landscape come in quintessentially English form.
Sands across the dunes
Nowhere on the south coast is quite like Camber. Backed by dunes and beach houses, it spreads its broad sands far out to sea. Inviting in the height of summer, invigorating in the depth of winter, Camber can be a place of solitude for an evening stroll or an exciting backdrop for beach games, kite surfing, wind surfing and horse riding.
Salty sea dog
Set between hills that reach to the sea, Hastings lights up many lives: traditional fishing fleet, seaside resort, winding Old Town and edgy creative outpost. An alternative art and music scene that draws attention from the capital. Hastings is an oyster that comes with its own grit, where modern rubs along with retro, rough edges with smooth corners: fish and chips on the beach, super cool gallery, subterranean skate park, futuristic pier launching into the foam…and brilliant light on the horizon.
Looking up at the stars
A village with many claims to fame — moated castle, former Royal Observatory, science centre and home of the Sussex trug. Herstmonceux, with its telescope domes, windmill and castle turrets, sits modestly between Wealden hills and marshy levels, its eyes on the skies and its feet on the ground.
Saxon frontier land
A Roman coastal fort stands above the beach where Norman forces landed in 1066. Today it’s an eclectic seaside stronghold, one face hugging the shoreline, the other overlooking a hinterland of levels. Open spaces, broad skies and closeness to nature — Pevensey has its own original story to tell and a wild side for every season.
Huddled and cobbled citadel
A medieval citadel huddled against invaders and the sea. Cobbled together over centuries, Rye reveals its history gently. Today it’s a myriad of art, artifacts, curiosities and cosy pubs. Home to smuggled secrets and timeless tales, Rye has nooks and crannies to explore and distant views across Romney Marsh to ponder. Reach to the tip of the estuary and you find Rye Harbour, its saltmarsh and shingle shore a haven for wildlife, wide open to the wind and sea.
History in grids and squares
Once one of England’s thriving ports, now landlocked, Winchelsea was planned as a medieval new town, set on a hill and constructed in a chequer pattern with hidden vaults beneath. Today there’s a sense of calm, order and quietness preserved in its streets and buildings, and of intrigue when touring its labyrinth of underground cellars.
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