Eastbourne

**Eastbourne** is a large town in East Sussex, on the south coast of England between Brighton and Hastings. It is in the county of Sussex. It is a place where people go on holiday and also where non-English speakers go to learn English. It is at the eastern end of the chalk hills called the South Downs, and next to the high cliff at Beachy Head. The town was built in the early 19th century for people to visit the seaside. A railway station was built in 1849.

## Geography

Eastbourne lies next to chalk hills called the South Downs. The famous chalk cliffs Beachy Head is in the town. Eastbourne's architecture and buildings are mainly from the Victorian and Georgian periods. Eastbourne has recently built a marina called Sovereign Harbour which makes the town bigger.

## Census

Eastbourne's population was approximately 97,992 in 2009.

- 15.9% of residents are aged 0 to 14.
- 18.0% of residents are aged 15 to 29.
- 18.0% of residents are aged 30 to 44.
- 25.0% of residents are aged 45 to 65.
- 10.3% of residents are aged 65 to 74.
- 8.6%  of residents are aged 75 to 84.
- 4.2   of residents are aged 85+

Most jobs in Eastbourne are in tourism or tourism-related services.

## Politics

As of 7 May 2015, the MP for Eastbourne is Caroline Ansell. She is a member of the Conservatives.

Eastbourne Borough Council has 27 members (called councillors). Currently, there are 15 Conservative councillors, 11 Liberal Democrat councillors and one independent councillor. The leader of the council is Councillor Ian Lucas.

## History

There have been people living in the Eastbourne area since 4000BC, but the town did not develop until around 1150AD. St. Mary's Church (now in Eastbourne's Old Town) was first built between 1160 and 1190. Eastbourne was strategically important during the Napoleonic Wars and had a Martello Tower built from 1804 to 1810. The tower is one of few Martello Towers that are still standing, and is now called the Wish Tower.

The town became much bigger after a railway station was built there in 1849. It joined Eastbourne to London, Brighton and the South Coast Railway. From 1858, William Cavendish, 2nd Duke of Burlington (later 7th Duke of Cavendish) invested a lot of money into the town. The elegant areas of Meads, Devonshire Park and the Western Parades were developed as a result of his investment. Cavendish's influence is recognised by many place and business names in Eastbourne, for example: the Cavendish School, the Burlington Hotel, or the Devonshire Park Theatre.

Eastbourne Pier was first built in 1865. It is a famous symbol of Eastbourne and today houses amusement arcades, a nightclub and a public house. It also has a rare, working camera obscura.http://www.eastbournehistory.org.uk/timeline/index.html

## Notable Residents

- John Bodkin Adams, suspected serial killer, lived and worked in Eastbourne from 1922 until his death in 1983. He is thought to have murdered at least 163 people, but was never found guilty of any.

- Aleister Crowley, occultist and mystic, spent one year at school in Eastbourne.

## Other websites

- Eastbourne Borough Council
- The Francis Frith Collection of Historical Photographs http://www.francisfrith.com/search/england/sussex/eastbourne/