East Sussex, a county in South East England, is part of the ancient kingdom of the South Saxons, who established there in the 5th century AD.
The archaeological remain are plentiful, especially in the upland areas. Its earlier industries have included fishing, iron-making, and the wool trade, all of which have declined, or lost completely. Sussex has become popular with tourists, so that the main coastal towns have become seaside resorts.
After resolve its situation about county administrations since 12th century, East Sussex was made a ceremonial county.
Thus it is divided into five local government districts; three are larger and rural districts: Wealden, Lewes and Rother; the mainly urban areas are: Eastbourne and Hastings.
East Sussex is part of South Downs, a range of moderate chalk hills which run across the southern part of the county from west to east. The sandstones and clays come to the sea at Hastings and the Downs at Beachy Head. The chalk uplands of the South Downs occupy the coastal strip between Brighton and Eastbourne.
There are two river gaps: the Rivers Ouse and Cuckmere. The Seven Sisters where the Downs meet the sea, are the remnants of dry valleys cut into the chalk; they end at Beachy Head, 162 above sea level.
The location of settlements in East Sussex has been determined both by its history and its geography. Its economy lay: fishing along the coast and agriculture and iron mining on the Weald. Today the industry tends to be geared towards tourism, and particularly along the coastal strip. There are over 200 villages in East Sussex.
Here towns such as Bexhill-on-Sea, Eastbourne, and Hastings lie. Newhaven and Rye are ports, although the latter is also of historical importance.
Peacehaven and Seaford are more dormitory towns than anything else. Away from the coast lie former market towns such as Hailsham, Heathfield and Uckfield; Crowborough is a centre for the Ashdown Forest. Lewes and Battle are the other two towns of significance.
East Sussex apart from the physical landmarks such as the Downs and the Weald, it has many landmarks of historical interest. There are castles at Bodiam, Herstmonceux, Lewes and Pevensey; and defence works such as the Martello towers and Eastbourne Redoubt.
Battle Abbey, built to commemorate the Battle of Hastings; Bateman's, home of Rudyard Kipling, and the University of Sussex buildings at Falmer are among interesting buildings. It also has a number of great parks suitable for tourists.
The main roads through the county are those parts of the radial pattern from London. Bus routes serve all the main areas of settlement and many of the villages in the county. The railways serve the main towns in a similar fashion to the roads.
There are three heritage railways: the Kent and East Sussex Railway operates from Tenterden in Kent to Bodiam; the Bluebell Railway from Sheffield Park to Kingscote with a planned extension to East Grinstead; and the Lavender Line Steam Railway near Lewes.