EDITORIAL NOTE

The seventh volume to be published of the Victoria History of the County of Sussex deals with the southern part of the rape of Bramber. The circumstances of its compilation and the method of numbering require some explanation. Volumes One and Two, covering various aspects of the history of the county in general, were published in 1905 and 1907 respectively, and Volume Three, on Romano-British Sussex and the City of Chichester, in 1935. The rest of the topography was to be covered in six volumes, one for each rape, the rapes stretching from the sea to the northern boundary and neatly dividing the county into roughly equal bands. Between 1937 and 1953 Volumes Four, Seven, and Nine were published, leaving Arundel, Bramber, and Pevensey rapes to be treated in Volumes Five, Six, and Eight respectively. Since then the expansion of the available source material and of the content of local history has made it impossible to do justice to each rape in a single book of the size which it is now most practical to produce. It was therefore decided, while retaining the scheme of numbering, to publish two or more separate parts for each of the remaining rapes. Thus the northern parishes of Bramber rape will be treated in Volume Six, Part Two.

In 1953 work on the Sussex V.C.H. was allowed to lapse. It was resumed in 1971 when members of the general Editor's staff at the Institute of Historical Research of the University of London began again to collect materials. In response to that initiative the West Sussex County Council offered to provide funds for an additional member of that staff to work on the history of West Sussex. Dr. T. P. Hudson, who had accordingly begun work in October 1973 as an assistant to the general Editor, became County Editor in 1979. The present volume is the first fruit of the partnership between the County Council and the University. That partnership differs little in form from those between other Local Authorities and the Institute, which, together with the structure and aims of the Victoria History as a whole, are described in the General Introduction, published in 1970. The University here records its gratitude to the West Sussex County Council for its generosity.

Many people have given help with the compilation of the histories printed below, and they are all offered sincere thanks. For access to the many libraries, record offices, and collections, both public and private, whose resources have been exploited special acknowledgement is made to His Grace the Duke of Norfolk, E.M., C.B., C.B.E., M.C., his predecessor, and their successive archivists (the late Dr. F. W. Steer and Miss A. P. Taylor), to the Hon. Mrs. R. J. P. Wyatt, to the Librarian of Magdalen College, Oxford, to the West Sussex County Archivist (Mrs. P. Gill) and her staff, to the East Sussex County Records Officer (Mr. A. A. Dibben) and his staff, and to the West Sussex County Librarian (Mr. R. Huse) and his staff; Mrs. Gill has also given much help and encouragement in other ways. Those who provided material for the illustrations or gave permission for their use are named on page x, and those whose assistance related to individual parishes are named in the appropriate footnotes; a special debt for advice on the history of Worthing and the associated parishes is owed to Mr. D. R. Elleray, of Worthing Reference Library. Mr. E. Holden, Mr. T. J. McCann, Dr. P. Thane, the staff of the Education Department of the West Sussex County Council, and the county archaeologist (Mr. F. G. Aldsworth) gave invaluable help on topics which recur throughout the volume. Thanks are also offered to those who allowed access to buildings in their ownership or occupation.