Pevensey, the scene of so many notable events in English history, was probably a fishing-port in prehistoric times.  It is situated on flat and low-lying marsh-land, about 15 miles westward along the coast from Hastings.  Here the Romans built a town and fortress.  Entering Pevensey Castle by the main gateway, you stand on the site of the Roman city of Anderida, of which many evidences remain in the shape of Roman cement and tiles in a wall which surrounds the enclosure.  The Romans retired from Anderida in the fifth century, when it was destroyed by the Saxons under Ella, and the inhabitants slain for their obstinate resistance.

A fortnight before the great battle on Senlac Hill, William of Normandy landed at the old Roman city.  After the Conquest, Roger, Earl of Mortmain and Cornwall, half-brother of the Conqueror, built the Norman building whose shattered walls are to be seen to-day.  William Rufus, Simon de Montfort, and Stephen each attacked the castle, and it remained a fortress until the reign of Queen Elizabeth.  In the south-eastern corner of the Brito-Roman city, there still stands an interesting old culverin, bearing the crown, Tudor rose, and the initials of Queen Elizabeth.  It is one of two cannon placed there in 1587 in readiness for the Spaniards.  The present castle shows the different work of several centuries.  The remains of a much-weathered stone font, surrounded by an iron cage, stand in the centre of the enclosure.  Near by, within a palisade, is the old castle well, with hart’s-tongue ferns growing on the damp brick lining.

At one time Pevensey formed, with Hastings, one of the Cinque Ports.  It began to decline as a seafaring place with the loss of its harbour, owing to the receding of the sea along the Sussex shore—­the walls, which were formerly almost washed by the waves, being now quite a mile inland.  Visitors may enter the castle on week days without charge.

[Illustration:  PEVENSEY CASTLE.

Before the sea receded the waves almost reached the Castle walls.]

WINCHESTER & ITS CATHEDRAL

=How to get there.=—­Train from Waterloo.  L. and S.W.  Railway. =Nearest Station.=—­Winchester. =Distance from London.=—­66-1/2 miles. =Average Time.=—­Varies between 1-1/2 to 2-3/4 hours.

                     1st 2nd 3rd
=Fares.=—­Single 11s. 0d. 7s. 0d. 5s. 6d. 
          Return 19s. 3d. 12s. 2d. 10s. 6d.

=Accommodation Obtainable.=—­“George Hotel,” “Royal Hotel,”
  “Black Swan Hotel,” etc.
=Alternative Route.=—­Train from Paddington.  Great Western Rly.