FoL Talk: Marcus Taylor: Lewes Heritage Open Days 2024: a preview of some of the venues and events this year – 20 August 2024

Tuesday 20 August 2024, from 7:30 pm, Eastgate Baptist Church Hall, Eastgate Street, Lewes, BN7 2LR – LIVE & ON ZOOM

Note: We will be in the meeting room upstairs, so please use the side entrance, which will be signed and has disabled access.

Heritage Open Days has been a popular series of national events since 1994. Friends of Lewes has been centrally involved in this annual celebration of our heritage for many years, taking on the primary responsibility for organising the weekend about 10 or so years ago.

This year’s offering is again a tempting selection: Lewes, with over 500 Listed buildings, offers plenty to choose from and web have a mix of new places and long-standing favourites. This includes a chance to see the impressive new extension to the Friends Meeting House in Friar’s Walk.

**Photo: The new gateway and rear extension, courtesy of Lewes Quakers.**

The programme, spread over 13th to 15th September, includes free access to 14 different buildings, some with special tours. In addition, five different guided walks will take place in the town with different start times to cater for what historically has been high levels of interest.

Some of the venues and events are for limited numbers and require online booking, so keep an eye out for the leaflets and posters.

This talk is free to members of the Friends of Lewes, and £4 to non-members on the door. Non-members can buy a ticket (£4) from TicketSource, which will then provide a link for this Zoom talk.

Members will receive an email with a Zoom link.

Please click on that link to attend the talk 5 minutes before it starts.

We would recommend a computer screen or an iPad as a minimum screen-size for viewing our Zoom talks.

Our presenters will be speaking live, and you can ask questions by typing in the Chat box in Zoom.

See the Diary page for a list of forthcoming events organised by the Friends of Lewes

Taking Steps for Wildlife 24 April – 15 June

A season of Biodiversity Events from 24 April to 15 June taking place at the Lewes Climate Hub
32 High Street, Lewes, BN7 2LU

11.4.24-biodiversity-poster Download

How to protect yourself from surface water flooding – 30 March 2024

Saturday 30 March, 11am-12.30pm, Lewes Climate Hub, 32 High Street, Lewes, BN7 2LU

Lewes has experienced severe flooding several times and the town is at increasing risk due to climate change and development. One particular problem is surface water flooding, which happens when there is too much rain for the drains and streets fill with water. One way of reducing this type of flooding is to slow down the water so that it can sink safely into the soil or drains. This event will look at steps that you can take in your home, garden and street to help protect yourself and your community from surface water flooding. Join us to delve into the practical solutions and meet experts including from the Friends of Lewes and Love Our Ouse with support from the Ouse & Adur Rivers Trust. Bring your questions to learn more about practical techniques for sustainable flood prevention and climate resilience.

NB. This is a NEW date which replaces the event previously scheduled for 23rd March

Lewes History Group Talk : Mr Defoe’s tour through South East England 1724 – 19 February 2024

Monday 19^th February 2024, 7:20pm for 7:30pm start – Zoom Webinar

Daniel Defoe is well known as the author of Robinson Crusoe, but he had a multitude of jobs from failed brick maker to government spy! His work on travels in Britain at the turn of the 18^th century was published in 1724 as ‘A tour of the whole island of Great Britain’. This talk looks at aspects of his journey in SE England using mainly modern images of the places he mentions alongside his commentary.

Defoe’s ‘Tour…‘ is a travelogue through a country in the initial phases of the industrial revolution, with growing urban centres and a diverse rural economy; but it was a country that had experienced recent internal strife, great political and religious changes and yet at the same time was acquiring a nascent world empire with a rapidly expanding industry-based economy. His tour [or was it his..?] through South East England takes us to places he notes are barely worth a mention (Rye, Winchelsea and Hastings!), along with a town being ‘devoured by the waters’ (Brighton) and a ‘site of much licentious behaviour and gambling’ (Tunbridge Wells). His journey through the agricultural landscapes of the Kent countryside, the High Weald forests and along the West Sussex Coastal Plain are described in some detail. His itinerary takes him west into Hampshire and returns through Surrey and Kent to the capital. The quotations from the ‘Tour’ are illustrated with mainly modern views of the same locations.

To join this talk, you need to:

1) register your intention to attend in advance
2) receive our confirmation email with a link to the talk itself. Save that email, and
3) click on that emailed link to attend the talk 5 minutes before it starts

LHG Members can attend our talks for free. LHG will send members emails with a link to Zoom registration. Then please follow steps 1, 2, and 3 as above.

Non-members can buy a ticket (£4) from TicketSource. The ticket will provide a link to Zoom registration. Then please follow steps 1, 2, and 3 as above.

Please join the webinar at 7:25pm.

A computer screen or an iPad is recommended as a minimum screen-size for viewing our webinars.

The presenters will be speaking live, and you can ask questions by typing in the Q&A box in Zoom.

See the Talks page for a list of forthcoming monthly events organised by the Lewes History Group.

Great Big Lewes Litter Pick – 17 March 2024

We hope that you might join a litter-picking event on Sunday 17th March, starting at 10.30 am at The Gallops, on Nevill Road between Lewes Prison and Victoria Hospital and collecting litter by various routes to finish at Cliffe High Street. The starting point is marked by a blue cross on the map below (or use What3Words sobs.handy.double).

If you are part of another litter-picking group, for example, in Malling, Landport, or Nevill, or if you go out litter-picking as a group of family or friends during the Great British Spring Clean between 15th and 31st March, it would be great if you could send us photographs and let us know how many bags of rubbish you collected so that we can count up a Lewes total!

Keep Britain Tidy have a Great Big School Clean as part of the campaign, so we are writing to schools to encourage them to take part too!

We will have some spare litter picking equipment to share when we meet at The Gallops. If you would like to set up your own event you may get litter pickers and bags from: Litter Picking – Lewes and Eastbourne Councils (lewes-eastbourne.gov.uk)

Starting point for the Litter Pick on 17 March at the Gallops, Nevill Road, marked with a blue cross.

More details of Lewes Climate Hub’s “Rethink Rubbish” season which runs 2 March to 17 March below:

Coffee Time Talk: Laughton Greenwood – Our Local Community Woodland – 19 March 2024

Tuesday 19 March, 10.30 am, Eastgate Church Hall, Eastgate Street, Lewes, BN7 2LR

Steve Lewis of Laughton Greenwood

The UK is one of the least wooded countries in Europe. Trees bring us beauty, mindfulness and carbon capture. Within Lewes town we have the excellent work of Lewes Urban Arboretum, planting trees on the verges. But the nearest community woodland to Lewes is Laughton Greenwood, just beyond Ringmer. This is one of the few volunteer-run woods in Sussex. Whereas most of the surrounding woods have signs that say ‘Private – Keep Out’, Laughton Greenwood has signs that say ‘Welcome’. Volunteers try to manage the wood for three purposes. One, to develop the ancient trees and English broadleaf wood, two, to increase nature and biodiversity, and three, to increase opportunities for the public to visit. Regular nature walks and bird or butterfly transects bring the chance to learn more about nature, and we would love to offer visits for local schools.

Come and hear Steve Lewis, current chair of the volunteer committee talk about Laughton Greenwood and the challenges and opportunities.

Tree-planting group at Laughton Greenwood, photo: courtesy of Laughton Greenwood

This talk is free for Friends of Lewes. Non-members can pay £4.00 on the door to attend or join here.

See the Diary page for a list of forthcoming events organised by the Friends of Lewes

FoL Talk: The River Ouse: Current condition, pressures and what we’re doing about it – Ouse and Adur Rivers Trust – 20 February 2024

Tuesday 20 February 2024, 7:30 pm by ZOOM

With Peter King, Director of the Ouse and Adur Rivers Trust (OART).

The River Ouse catchment contains a diverse range of streams, brooks and lakes which flow through both urban and rural settings, offering different ecosystems and habitats for a variety of wildlife and a wonderful resources for people to enjoy. The Ouse and Adur Rivers Trust (OART) believe in the importance of understanding and data-drive science. Only by being out and about on the ground, collecting a variety of information and monitoring the condition of the Ouse can we focus our efforts where they are most effective.

In his talk Pete will provide an insightful overview of the river, the state it’s in, the pressures it’s under, and some of the solutions available including a summary of some of the projects OART has under taken in the Ouse catchment over the past few years and those planned for the future.

Photo: Courtesy of OART

This talk is free to members of the Friends of Lewes, and £4 to non-members. Non-members can buy a ticket (£4) from TicketSource, which will provide a link for this Zoom talk.

Members will receive an email with a Zoom link.

Please click on that link to attend the talk 5 minutes before it starts.

We would recommend a computer screen or an iPad as a minimum screen-size for viewing our Zoom talks.

Our presenters will be speaking live, and you can ask questions by typing in the Chat box in Zoom.

See the Diary page for a list of forthcoming events organised by the Friends of Lewes

Lewes History Group talk: Exploring the Medieval History and Archaeology of Lewes Castle – Monday 8 January 2024, 7:20 for 7:30pm start

A Zoom Webinar

Arthur Redmonds: Exploring the Medieval History and Archaeology of Lewes Castle

The January Lewes History Group talk will look at the medieval history and archaeology of Lewes Castle in a range of contexts to explore its relationship with Lewes, and the surrounding Sussex countryside. The talk will also explore how it might have impacted and influenced the everyday lives of people around it.

As part of a PhD at the Universities of Exeter and Cardiff, Arthur Redmonds has been exploring how the medieval castle influenced those who experienced them within their localities and landscapes. Lewes is one of his urban case studies, and it plays a central role in the history and making of modern day Lewes. The talk will explore the impact of the castle on everyday life in the town, and Redmonds will briefly touch on some of the many sources and methods we might use to look at the medieval castle.

This talk will start with a brief look at how medieval castles operated, who worked within their lands and the types of sites and landscapes we might associate with them, before contextualising Lewes within the story of other castles both within Sussex and nationally.

Next, we will explore a biography of the castle, with the influence on the town and countryside explored at each stage of its life. This will include its construction, occupation, and finally its decline and partial abandonment. Along the way, we will briefly touch on some of the more important historical events in which the castle played a part, including its role in the 1264 battle of Lewes and its assault by peasants during the 1381 peasants revolt.

The Barbican at Lewes Castle, Photochrome Company postcard

To join this talk, you need to:

1) register your intention to attend in advance
2) receive LHG’s confirmation email with a link to the talk itself. Save that email, and
3) click on that emailed link to attend the talk 5 minutes before it starts

Lewes History Group Members can attend our talks for free. We will send members emails with a link to Zoom registration. Then please follow steps 1, 2, and 3 as above.

Non-members can buy a ticket (£4) from TicketSource. The ticket will provide a link to Zoom registration. Then please follow steps 1, 2, and 3 as above.

Please join the webinar at 7:25pm.

We would recommend a computer screen or an iPad as a minimum screen-size for viewing our webinars.

Our presenters will be speaking live, and you can ask questions by typing in the Q&A box in Zoom.

See the Talks page for a list of forthcoming monthly events organised by the Lewes History Group.

Become a Friend of Lewes

Lewes Societies Fair, Saturday 2 September 2023, 10am to 1pm, Lewes Town Hall

The Lewes Societies Fair is back! This is a great opportunity for the community – especially newcomers – to drop in and find out about the clubs and societies that operate in our area. Dozens of clubs, groups and societies, including Lewes History Group, and the Friends of Lewes will have stalls, and will show residents what they have to offer.

Come along and find out how you can get involved!

We thank Ruth O’Keeffe for reinstating and organising this event after a 3 year Covid gap.

Lewes Societies Fair, image from Facebook

Become a Friend of Lewes

Lewes Heritage Open Days, 8-10 September 2023

Heritage Open Days celebrates England’s architecture and culture by offering free access to properties that are usually closed to the public, or charge for admission.

This year’s event in Lewes includes free access to 18 different buildings in Lewes, some with special tours. In addition, 7 different guided walks are to take place in the town with 10 start times to cater for high levels of interest.

Advance booking through Eventbrite is essential for some of these tours and walks.

Booking opens on 18^th of August 2023, and closes the day before the event.

Brochure, full details, and how to book your place for tours

An opportunity not to be missed!

Lewes 2023 Heritage Open Days leaflet

Click on image to enlarge for details of open buildings and walks