insideSUSSEX Magazine Issue 20 - October 2016 | Page 83

TOWNSPOTLIGHT

S P OT L I G H T

O N

LEWES

BY LISAMARIE LAMB

It might surprise you to know that Lewes only takes up 4.4 square miles of East Sussex. Yet
despite its diminutive stature, this town – the county town of East Sussex, no less – packs a lot
in. There is bags of culture, art and history; there are stunning surroundings; there are walks
and days out aplenty; and local produce and producers flourish here - it might be small, but it’s
certainly made its mark on Sussex.

History in Brief
Lewes – or at least the area now known as
Lewes – has been around for a surprisingly
long time. The oldest artefacts found in the
area date back 400,000 years, but it was really
the Romans who made the area their own.
After the invasion of 43 AD, a market grew up.
This market was well received, and sellers and
buyers travelled from far and wide to attend it.
As the market grew, so did the town around
it. Villas were built, and an entire settlement,
Mutuantonis, was created.
Next came the Saxons, who clearly liked the
look of the place as much as the Romans had
– they built a castle for protection, and they

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changed the town’s name to the much more
familiar (and much easier to pronounce),
Lewes. After the Saxons, the Normans added
to the defences and Lewes Castle came into
existence. This was thanks to William de
Warenne, who was gifted the land around
Lewes by William the Conqueror.
Lewes’ wealth and status grew once more in
1846 when the railway came, an addition that
allowed the town to become an important hub
of production, as well as a country escape for
city dwellers.