Newhaven Local & Maritime Museum
| Newhaven | |
|---|---|
 From the air |
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 Newhaven
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| Newhaven shown within East Sussex | |
| Area | 7.12 km2 (2.75 sq mi) |
| Population | 12,232 (2011) |
| • Density | 4,326/sq mi (1,670/km2) |
| OS grid reference | TQ449016 |
| • London | 49 miles (79 km) N |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | NEWHAVEN |
| Postcode district | BN9 |
| Dialling code | 01273 |
| Police | Sussex |
| Fire | East Sussex |
| Ambulance | South East Coast |
| EU Parliament | South East England |
| UK Parliament | |
| Website | Newhaven Town Council |
Newhaven is a town in the Lewes District of East Sussex in England. It lies at the mouth of the River Ouse, on the English Channel coast, and is a ferry port for services to Dieppe in France. It was formerly known as Meeching.
Newhaven lies at the mouth of the River Ouse, in the valley the river has cut through the South Downs. Over the centuries the river has migrated between Newhaven and Seaford in response to the growth and decay of a shingle spit (shoal) at its mouth.
There was a Bronze Age fort on what is now Castle Hill.
In about 480 AD, the Saxon people established a village near where Newhaven now stands, which they named "Meeching" (variously known as "Myching" or "Mitching").
Throughout the Middle Ages, the main outlet and port of the Ouse was at Seaford (one of the Cinque Ports).
The growth of the shingle spit hindered the outflow of the river, which consequently flooded the Levels upstream and hindered access to the port. Therefore, a channel through the shingle spit was cut in the mid-16th century below Castle Hill, creating access to a sheltered harbour, better than that at Seaford. This was the origin of modern Newhaven.
However, shingle continued to accumulate and so the mouth of the Ouse began to migrate eastwards again. Under the Ouse Navigation Act (1790), a western breakwater was constructed to arrest longshore drift and so cut off the supply of shingle to the spit. A new outlet (The Cut) was built on the river's present course, below Castle Hill. At that time the settlement began to be known as the "new haven". The present breakwater was built in 1890.
It was part of the Holmstrow hundred until the abolition of hundreds in the 19th century.
Although there are some signs of the derelict facilities that serviced the former train ferry operations, the port still sees a great deal of freight and passengers movement. International ferries run to the French port of Dieppe, Seine-Maritime, operated by DFDS Seaways. Currently there are two outbound sailings per day, one in the morning and one in the evening, using the 18,654 GT ro-ro ferry MS Côte D'Albâtre. Rail passengers wishing to connect with the ferries are advised nationally to travel to Newhaven Town, and then use the free bus service; this has resulted in a dramatic fall in passenger services at Newhaven Harbour, leading to questions re its future and that of Newhaven Marine.
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Wikipedia