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511:) family, an ancient Sussex gentry family of Norman descent who owned the manor. The Levett family would later include founders of Sussex's iron industry, royal courtiers, knights, rectors, an Oxford University dean, a prominent early physician and medical educator, and even a lord mayor of London. An ancient bronze seal found in the 1800s near Eastbourne, now in the collection of the
1331:
64:
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460:. Although the original division of East Firle and West Firle still remains, East Firle is now simply confined to the houses of Heighton Street, which lie to the east of the Firle Park. West Firle is now generally referred to as Firle although West Firle remains its official name. It is located south of the
259:
759:
On a local level, Firle is governed by Firle Parish
Council, which meets every two months in the Firle village memorial hall. Its responsibilities include footpaths, street lighting, playgrounds and minor planning applications. The parish council has five seats available which were uncontested in the
738:
Firle
Bonfire Society is first mentioned in 1879 in a diary of the then vicar of Firle, Reverend Crawley, though it was re-formed in 1982 to encourage and promote traditional bonfire festivities in the village. The society forms part of a network of bonfire societies in the Lewes area which serve the
697:
challenged the Duke of
Richmond to a game of cricket, one of the first recorded matches. The club continues to be central to village life and has two teams which both compete in the East Sussex Cricket League. The Firle 1st XI are in ESCL Division 3 and the Firle 2nd XI are in ESCL Division 9.
781:
is the next tier of government, for which Firle is within the Ouse Valley East division. The council has responsibility for education, libraries, social services, civil registration, trading standards and transport. Elections for the county council are held every four years. The
519:
Thomas Levett in 1440, the ownership passed to
Bartholomew Bolney, whose daughter married William Gage in 1472. Following the death of Bolney in 1476 without a male heir, the seat of Firle Place was passed to William Gage and has remained the seat of the
747:. The village holds its celebrations in October before the main event in Lewes. Traditionally the Firle Bonfire Society Pioneers wear Valencian costumes. It is customary to burn an effigy other than Guy Fawkes; in 2003 an effigy of a
685:
coach road. It was also the village court room where the rents for tenants farmers were collected and set. The area in front of the Ram is called the Beach, not to be confused with the Dock which is further up the street.
554:–1727), introduced the Gross Reine Claude fruit tree to England from France ca. 1725, and later became known as the greengage plum. Francis Young, author of The Gages of Hengrave, Suffolk Catholicism 1640-1767
584:, economist, another member of the Bloomsbury Group, took an extended lease in a house in Firle in 1925 and died there in 1946. Keynes was cremated and his ashes scattered above the downs of nearby Tilton.
299:
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804:. She had her majority reduced to just over 2,000 in the 2019 general election by runner up Lib Dem candidate, Oli Henman. The 2024 general election returned
1158:
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515:, shows the coat-of-arms of John Livet and is believed to have belonged to the first member of the family named lord of Firle in 1316. On the bankruptcy of
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709:, which reaches a height of 712 feet (217 m). The beacon was once a lighting beacon used as part of a warning system during the time of the
276:
547:
is linked with another branch of the Gage family who lived at
Hengrave Hall in Suffolk. It would appear that Sir William Gage, 2nd bart (
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830:. The site is an extensive area of chalkland which hosts a wide range of flora. The rarest of these is the early spider orchid
500:
of 1086, referred to as 'Ferla'. The value of the village is listed as being £44, which was amongst the highest in the county.
343:
233:
199:
662:. There are also memorials for those named Bolney, Moreton, Levett, Swaffield and others. The current vicar is the Reverend
590:, writer, visited nearby Lewes in December 1910 and decided to relocate in Firle, where she rented a house and renamed it
763:
The next level of government is the district council. The parish of Firle lies within the Ouse Valley and
Ringmer ward of
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family in a caravan was burned, sparking a controversy that resulted in members of the bonfire society being arrested.
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served as the constituency MP since 1997, before losing his seat in the 2015 general election to the
Conservative
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Le Neve's
Pedigrees of the Knights Made by King Charles II., King James II ... – Peter Le Neve – Google Books
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496:, Robert was the largest landowner in the country after the monarch. The village is mentioned in the
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Previously both teams played in the
Cuckmere Valley League; 2007 was their first year in the ESCL.
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Club was founded in 1758 and is said to be one of the oldest in the country. Even earlier in 1725
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May 2007 election. On 8 March 1971 the parish was renamed from "West Firle" to "Firle".
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View of the tower of St. Peter's church, at Firle, East Sussex, England. September 2024.
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578:, writer, had close ties with the Bloomsbury Group, lived in Firle for a brief time.
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which returns three seats to the council. The election on 4 May 2007 elected two
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Inquisitions and
Assessments Relating to Feudal Aids: Stafford to Worcester
1330:
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618:, and Duncan Grant are all buried in the churchyard of St Peter's, Firle.
461:
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now stands, was occupied from the early 14th century by the 'de Livet' (
484:(1042–66) Firle was part of the Abbey of Wilton's estate. Following the
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1562:
1532:
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1159:"Lay off revellers who blew up gipsy caravan on my land, says viscount"
826:(SSSI) within the parish which extends into the neighbouring parish of
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602:, moved to Firle in 1916 taking residence with her live-in lover
1344:
1063:"Subterranea Britannica: Sites: Firle Patrol (Auxiliary Units)"
1041:"Antiquities preserved in the Society's Museum at Lewes Castle"
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St Peter's Church notably contains an alabaster effigy of
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is the only remaining one of the village's three original
658:
stained-glass window in warm colours, depicting Blake's
418:
388:
1233:. Lewes District Council. 4 May 2007. Archived from
1182:. Lewes District Council. 3 May 2007. Archived from
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and his wife Phillippa in St Peter's Church, Firle.
677:, that previously all acted as resting stops on the
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610:, which subsequently became a regular haunt of the
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654:and lying beside his wife Philippa. It also has a
488:the village and surrounding lands were passed to
19:For the suburb of Adelaide, South Australia, see
594:. Pointz Hall, a fictional manor from her novel
918:. westfirle.com. 11 April 2008. Archived from
713:in 1588. On the site there are also around 50
1356:
1177:"Results – Town and Parish Council Elections"
1140:"How tradition lit the fuse for gipsy effigy"
786:Thomas Ost was elected in the 2005 election.
8:
789:The UK Parliament constituency for Firle is
1363:
1349:
1341:
1082:. East Sussex County Council. 15 July 2008
566:, British army general, was born in Firle.
30:
811:as MP with a majority of just over 12.5k
1637:List of civil parishes in Lewes District
91:13.9 km (5.4 sq mi)
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539:The Greengage at Hengrave Hall, Suffolk
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1025:A handbook for visitors to East-Bourne
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572:, businesswoman and fine arts lecturer
464:four miles (9 km) east of Lewes.
1624:Parts of the World's End district of
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1022:Chambers, George Frederick (1868).
824:Site of Special Scientific Interest
503:The manor house, the site on which
1283:"SSSI Citation – Firle Escarpment"
14:
1157:Syal, Rajeev (16 November 2003).
1080:"Virginia Woolf (1882 1941)"
1045:Sussex Archaeological Collections
743:and of recalling the fate of the
1329:
1103:"Virginia Woolf – Firle Village"
970:. secretsofthenormaninvasion.com
739:purpose both of remembering the
570:Alexandra Gage, Viscountess Gage
411:
381:
62:
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1138:Helm, Toby (15 November 2003).
16:Village in East Sussex, England
1618:The East Saltdean district of
444:, England. Firle refers to an
1:
1666:Civil parishes in East Sussex
1257:"Councillor Pat (Thomas) Ost"
1209:"Lewes Registration District"
1101:Wilkinson, Sheila M. (2001).
701:South of the village lie the
695:Sir William Gage, 7th Baronet
548:
63:
1263:. East Sussex County Council
870:. East Sussex County Council
1105:. Virginia Woolf Society GB
1039:Lower, Mark Antony (1866).
116:OS grid reference
28:Human settlement in England
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968:"Table of Domesday Values"
779:East Sussex County Council
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533:Home Guard Auxiliary Unit
476:The Street, Firle in 1901
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38:
946:The Domesday Book Online
868:"East Sussex in Figures"
614:. Vanessa Bell, her son
490:Robert, Count of Mortain
1661:Villages in East Sussex
1125:"Firle Bonfire Society"
1005:Neve, Peter Le (1873).
733:Samuel Hieronymus Grimm
543:The commonly used word
492:. Half-brother of King
456:meaning overgrown with
1309:Cite journal requires
896:. Name Origin Research
765:Lewes District Council
735:
643:
635:
477:
468:History of the village
234:Postcode district
137:47 miles (76 km)
99:327 (Parish-2007)
21:Firle, South Australia
1338:at Wikimedia Commons
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641:
630:
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110:61/sq mi (24/km)
1416:Villages and hamlets
1261:Find your Councillor
948:. domesdaybook.co.uk
608:Charleston Farmhouse
592:Little Talland House
482:Edward the Confessor
480:During the reign of
214:Sovereign state
1498:Kingston near Lewes
1189:on 25 February 2009
1163:The Daily Telegraph
1144:The Daily Telegraph
652:Order of the Garter
582:John Maynard Keynes
576:Katherine Mansfield
513:Lewes Castle Museum
432:) is a village and
355: /
1231:"Election Results"
922:on 11 January 2016
890:"Surname: Verrill"
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300:UK Parliament
246:Dialling code
1643:
1642:
1603:Wivelsfield Green
1463:East Blatchington
1334:Media related to
1288:. Natural England
769:Liberal Democrats
558:Notable residents
517:lord of the manor
374:
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164:Shire county
45:The Street, Firle
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1588:Town Littleworth
1583:Telscombe Cliffs
1468:East Chiltington
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820:Firle Escarpment
806:Liberal Democrat
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623:Village features
612:Bloomsbury Group
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1443:Bishopstone
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564:Thomas Gage
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527:During the
505:Firle Place
450:Anglo-Saxon
446:old-English
442:East Sussex
364:50.84; 0.12
362: /
336:East Sussex
277:East Sussex
172:East Sussex
78:East Sussex
1650:Categories
1593:Westmeston
1513:Piddinghoe
1438:Beddingham
1397:Peacehaven
1215:3 February
852:References
828:Beddingham
755:Governance
715:Bronze Age
656:John Piper
632:John Piper
190:South East
96:Population
1548:Southease
1538:Spithurst
1458:Ditchling
1402:Telscombe
1165:. London.
1146:. London.
894:SurnameDB
815:Landmarks
683:Alfriston
545:greengage
494:William I
284:Ambulance
224:Post town
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1518:Plumpton
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1392:Newhaven
1241:9 August
874:26 April
840:See also
771:and one
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146:District
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1533:Rodmell
1528:Ringmer
1448:Chailey
1407:Seaford
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994:. 1908.
691:Cricket
671:Ram Inn
436:in the
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331:England
206:England
200:Country
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106:Density
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1488:Hamsey
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793:. The
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634:window
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454:fierol
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350:0°07′E
265:Sussex
260:Police
182:Region
133:London
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1478:Firle
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1380:Towns
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