Area Village Index


Isfield East Blatchington
Businesses Whats On General Services Views Nearby
OtherLinks Advertising Rates Free Business Listing
 
go back to the Previous Page
 
Location
  51°02'N
  0°13'E
  TN6
       
     
Book your stay in Rotherfield
VillageNet-i
Local Details
Businesses in Rotherfield(6)
WhatsOn in Rotherfield(2)
All Areas
HouseSales
Businesses Nearby(343)
Accommodation Nearby(30)
WhatsOn Nearby(1282)
Why not register for our Whats On Email for Kent and Sussex

On this Page
General
Services
Views

Other Pages
Local Attractions
History
Reference
Famous People
Derivation of our village names

Local Links
Map of the Area
Weather for Our Area
East Sussex Council fault reporting service
Friends of Argos Hill Windmill
Parish Council Link
Rotherfield ROC Post
Argos Hill Tunnel
    Rotherfield
(Source of the rivers Rother and Uck)
Domesday Community

Name Derivation
Rotherfield is an old Anglo Saxon name that has changed over the years from Hyroera Felde meaning Cattle or Oxen field.


General Details

Rotherfield Sussex - Village Center
Rotherfield lies on the Mayfield to Crowborough road, about halfway between the two on the top of a hill. It is the source of two rivers, the Rother which comes from a spring in the cellar of one of the houses in the village, and the Uck from the other side of the village.

The first reference that there seems to be about Rotherfield , is in AD792, when Duke Berthoald bequested a church on his estate of Hryoeranfeld or Ridrefeld. The church was dedicated to saint Dionysuis , a French saint to whose monastry Berthoald had made a pilgrimage to in order to have his illness cured.

Before the Battle of Hastings Earl Godwin was the landowner, but the land was given to Odo of Bayeux , the half brother of William the Conqueror before the Domesday Book was written.

In 1087 the village was give to the De Clare family, whose last male was killed at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314. About 50 years later the female side of the De Clare family married into the Neville family, who were the Lords of Burgavenny which changed later in 1724 to Abergavenny .

The original wooden church was replaced in the 11th century by a stone structure, with additions in the 12th 13th and 14th centuries, by this time the dedication to St Dionysuis had been corrupted to St Denys.

From the 1450's the Neville family owned the village, and their emblems can be seen in the villages from Rotherfield to Eridge .

In 1557 Alexander Hosmar and Ann Ashdown were arrested for heresy and were burned at the stake in Lewes with other Sussex Martyrs.

Again this is one of the villages influenced by the wealden iron industry , with furnaces and forges found in the area.

The Argos Hill Windmill was first recorded in 1656 and was producing flour until 1927. The early windmill was replaced by a new one in 1835 built by the Weston family, and this is the one currently found on the site. During the second world war the roof was painted red to help the British pilots to navigate back to their bases. Today the windmill is in the process of restoration by the Friends of Argos Hill Windmill please visit their website and offer to help.


Services

Rotherfield Sussex - St Denys Church
Rotherfield has a few local services, but the main shopping centre is at Crowborough about 3 miles west. Tunbridge Wells lies about 6 miles to the north and provides the services you expect from a large town.

The nearest trains also run from from Crowborough.


Views

Rotherfield Sussex - Argos Hill Windmill 1985
Rotherfield is one of those Sussex villages that you can't forget once you have been there, perhaps the archictecture, perhaps the feeling of ancient times.

The village centre is very pretty, and lying as it does on the top of a hill, provides very pretty views all round.

Views from around the Argos Hill Windmill are very good as it is a high point of the area.


Nearby Villages (within 6 miles)
 
Mark Cross (Policeman arrests eccentric landowner) 1.9 miles
Crowborough (The home of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle) 2.3 miles
Mayfield (Saint Dunstan and the Devil) 2.7 miles
Five Ashes (Vast collection of rock plants) 2.8 miles
Eridge Green (The home of the Neville and Abergavenny Family) 3.5 miles
Hadlow Down (Wealden Cannons and Charcoal) 3.9 miles
Frant (King Johns hunting lodge) 4.1 miles
High Hurstwood (Coming Soon) 4.8 miles
Bells Yew Green (The ruins of Bayham Abbey) 4.9 miles
Groombridge (Home of the Groombridge Gang) 5.0 miles
Withyham (De La Warrs and Sackvilles) 5.2 miles
Wadhurst (Last bare fisted Prize-Fight in England) 5.3 miles
Cross in Hand (The Crusaders Assembly) 5.5 miles
Langton Green (Modern village and Old Quarry) 5.6 miles
Buxted (The first Iron Cannon in England) 5.7 miles
Heathfield (19th Century Natural Gas) 5.8 miles
Blackboys (Charcoal and Soot) 5.9 miles
Hartfield (A.A.Milne and Winnie-the-Pooh) 5.9 miles

 
       
 
© VillageNet.co.uk 1998-2011 Top of Page
Page Last Updated: 2012-02-02 21:18:03
If you have any information, or comments on our site please E-Mail Villagenet
since 1998
 
 
 
Buy or Sell your property here Why not advertise your event for free
Local Businesses
Richard Vobes
Walks in 1066 country
Rob Dedman Painter and Decorator
Ella Clarke
VillageNet website hosting
Greenwich Meridian walks
NaluBeads - the original surf bead
The 1066 Country Walk
NEW Kindle Book by local author Giles Velarde - Rupert, invalided out of the Royal Navy some years before, is at the end of his tether. He hates himself, his family, his job and can see no point in living. Rowing four miles out to sea off the south coast of England, he almost collides with a yacht being sailed by a young journalist. Sam is temporarily disenchanted with her own relationships and is spending time alone to sort out her life. In growing intimacy and some uncertainty, they help each other .....
Advertise in this space
format is a picture
200 x 150 pixels
With a link to your Website or Email address
for details Click Here