Historic county of England
Sussex
Downs, Weald and a long coast facing the Channel.
Sussex is built around three great landscapes. The South Downs run eastwards across the county before meeting the sea in white chalk cliffs; behind them lies the wooded, rolling country of the Weald; in front stretches a long coastal strip whose towns look directly towards the English Channel.
Brighton and Worthing belong to that coastal world, Lewes sits where the Ouse cuts through the Downs, Horsham lies within the Wealden interior and Eastbourne stands where downland and sea meet dramatically. These places feel different because the landscapes around them are different, yet the Downs, river gaps and routes across the Weald tie them into one county. Sussex makes most sense as a progression from Weald to chalk ridge to sea.
- Kingdom of the South Saxons 6th Century
- Absorbed by Wessex 9th Century
- Domesday Book (1086): Suthsexe
- Area: 1,466 sq mi
- Population: 1,612,454
- County Top: Black Down
County geography
Current Census
Contemporary Census profile
England and Wales Census 2021. Detailed contemporary statistics are available in the Geographic County Census Explorer.
- Population density
- 1,166.7 people per sq mi (450.5 people per km²)
- Population
- 1,713,958
The Downs through the county
The South Downs give Sussex its strongest physical line. Rivers including the Arun, Ouse and Cuckmere cut through the chalk on their way to the coast, creating natural corridors between inland country and sea.
Eastwards the Downs culminate in the spectacular chalk coast around the Seven Sisters and Beachy Head.
The Weald behind the Downs
North of the chalk ridge lies a very different Sussex: wooded ridges, clay country, market towns and old routes through the former great forest of the Weald.
The contrast is important. Sussex is not simply a seaside county with countryside behind it; coast, Downs and Weald are three equally characteristic parts of its geography.
County questions
Questions about Sussex
Are East Sussex and West Sussex separate geographic counties?
No. Sussex is the geographic county. East and West Sussex have been used for administrative divisions within it, but those arrangements do not divide geographic Sussex into two counties.
Why does Sussex have such a strong east–west distinction?
Its elongated shape naturally encouraged strong internal identities, reinforced over centuries by administrative and cultural divisions. Those distinctions are real, but they exist within one geographic Sussex.
County record
Names and continuity
- Formal name
- County of Sussex
- Name note
- Kingdom of the South Saxons
- County day
- 16 June
- Foundation
- 8th-10th century
Sussex and County of Sussex are forms of the county name. The name preserves the identity of the South Saxons, while the Downs, Weald and Channel coast continue to give the county its characteristic shape.