Old Heathfield
| Heathfield | |
|---|---|
 Flag of Heathfield |
|
 Heathfield High Street |
|
 Heathfield
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| Heathfield shown within East Sussex | |
| OS grid reference | TQ586209 |
| • London | 40 miles (64 km) NNW |
| Civil parish | |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | HEATHFIELD |
| Postcode district | TN21 |
| Dialling code | 01435 |
| Police | Sussex |
| Fire | East Sussex |
| Ambulance | South East Coast |
| EU Parliament | South East England |
| UK Parliament | |
| Website | http://www.heathfield.net/ |
Heathfield is a small, affluent market town in East Sussex, England. At the 2011 Census the population the town was included in the civil parish of Heathfield and Waldron.
Heathfield lies near the junction of two main roads: the A267 between Tunbridge Wells and Eastbourne; and the A265 from Hawkhurst. It is almost equidistant from Tunbridge Wells and Eastbourne: approximately 16 mi (26 km).
Historically, Heathfield lay on an ancient trackway (The Ridgeway), connecting the South Downs with the Weald. Its market charter was granted in February 1316 during the reign of Edward II. The Wealden iron brought prosperity to the town during the 16th/17th centuries; the coming of the railway (the Cuckoo Line) in 1880 gave it another new lease of life. The latter was not a financial success and the branch line between Eridge and Polegate closed in 1968. The trackbed is now named the Cuckoo Trail, part of the National Cycle Network.
The original village — Old Heathfield — is now only part of the town, which has expanded over time.
The crime rates in Heathfield were lower than the national average:
The parish church in Heathfield is dedicated to All Saints: an example of a Harmer terracotta decorated gravestone is in the churchyard. The town is the home of Heathfield Park Cricket Club, formed in 1878, and enjoying one of the most scenic positions of any cricket ground in Sussex.
The nearby mansion of Heathfield Park dates from the seventeenth century. In a corner of the estate stands a memorial named the Gibraltar Tower. To the north-east, on the edge of the parish, Braylsham Castle is a modern house begun in 1993, built in imitation of a moated medieval manor house, complete with working drawbridge.
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Wikipedia