Bibliography - Rottingdean, The City of Brighton and Hove
Bibliography Home

Brighton new guide or, a description of Brighthelmston, and the adjacent country; with an account of the following places: East Bourn, Lewes, Newhaven, Shoreham, Rottendean, Worthing, Arundel, Seaford, Steyning, Preston, &c. &c. &c, edited by Frederick George Fisher, published 1800 (124 pp., London: T. Burton) accessible at: British Library   View Online

Parish of Rottingdean, by Thomas Walker Horsfield, published 1835 in The History, Antiquities and Topography of the County of Sussex (vol. I, rape of Lewes, pp.187-188) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2396][Lib 3211] & The Keep [LIB/507380][Lib/500087] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Notice of an Ancient Engraved Copper, formerly Enamelled, lately discovered at Rottingdean, by Rev. Arthur Hussey, M.A. and Albert Way, published 1852 in Sussex Archæological Collections (vol. 5, article, pp.105-110) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2090] & The Keep [LIB/500224] & S.A.S. library   View Online

On Rottingdean Church in 1855, by Rev. Arthur Hussey, published 1857 in Sussex Archæological Collections (vol. 9, article, pp.67-70) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2094] & The Keep [LIB/500228] & S.A.S. library   View Online

Rottingdean, by Edward Turner, published 1863 in Sussex Archæological Collections (vol. 15, notes & queries, pp.243-245) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2100] & The Keep [LIB/500234] & S.A.S. library   View Online

Rottingdean, by Mark Antony Lower, M.A., published 1870 in A Compendious History of Sussex, Topographical, Archaeological & Anecdotal (vol. II, pp.128-129, Lewes: George P. Bacon) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 8946][Lib 3315] & The Keep [LIB/500158]   View Online

Ordnance Survey Book of Reference to the plan of the Parish of Rottingdean, published 1874 (article, London: H.M.S.O. & printed at George E. Eyre and William Spottiswoode)   View Online

Rottingdean and Wheatyears, by E. V. Lucas with illustrations by Frederick L. Griggs, published 1904 in Highways and Byways in Sussex (Chapter XVIII, London: Macmillan & Co.) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 41][Lib 12792][Lib 15825] & The Keep [LIB/500142]   View Online

The Grange, Rottingdean, the property of Lady Lewis, altered after the war by Edwin Lutyens, by Country Life contributor(s), published 12 November 1927 in Country Life (article)

The Brookside Harriers, by George Bridger Shiffner, published 1929 in Sussex County Magazine (vol. III no. 1, article, pp.26-30) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2307] & The Keep [LIB/500139]

Annals of Old Rottingdean , by Lucy Baldwin and Arthur Ridsdale, published February 1933 in Sussex Notes & Queries (vol. IV no. 5, article, pp.100-105) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2203][Lib 8222][Lib 8861] & The Keep [LIB/500206] & S.A.S. library

Annals of Old Rottingdean , by Lucy Baldwin and Arthur Ridsdale, published May 1933 in Sussex Notes & Queries (vol. IV no. 6, article, pp.168-170) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2203][Lib 8222][Lib 8861] & The Keep [LIB/500206] & S.A.S. library

Annals of Old Rottingdean , by Lucy Baldwin and Arthur Ridsdale, published August 1933 in Sussex Notes & Queries (vol. IV no. 7, article, pp.197-199) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2203][Lib 8222][Lib 8861] & The Keep [LIB/500206] & S.A.S. library

Annals of Old Rottingdean , by Lucy Baldwin and Arthur Ridsdale, published November 1933 in Sussex Notes & Queries (vol. IV no. 8, article, pp.226-229) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2203][Lib 8222][Lib 8861] & The Keep [LIB/500206] & S.A.S. library

Annals of Old Rottingdean, by Lucy Baldwin and Arthur Risdale, published February 1934 in Sussex Notes & Queries (vol. V no. 1, article, pp.9-11) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2204][Lib 8223][Lib 8862] & The Keep [LIB/500207] & S.A.S. library

Annals of Old Rottingdean, by Lucy Baldwin and Arthur Ridsdale, published May 1934 in Sussex Notes & Queries (vol. V no. 2, article, pp.35-37) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2204][Lib 8223][Lib 8862] & The Keep [LIB/500207] & S.A.S. library

Annals of Old Rottingdean, by Lucy Baldwin and Arthur Ridsdale, published August 1934 in Sussex Notes & Queries (vol. V no. 3, article, pp.71-74) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2204][Lib 8223][Lib 8862] & The Keep [LIB/500207] & S.A.S. library

Old Rottingdean, by Florence M. King, published November 1934 in Sussex Notes & Queries (vol. V no. 4, article, pp.109-111) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2204][Lib 8223][Lib 8862] & The Keep [LIB/500207] & S.A.S. library

Annals of Old Rottingdean, by T. Baden Powell, published November 1934 in Sussex Notes & Queries (vol. V no. 4, correction, p.127) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2204][Lib 8223][Lib 8862] & The Keep [LIB/500207] & S.A.S. library

The Youngsmere, near Rottingdean, by H. S. Toms, published 1935 in Sussex County Magazine (vol. IX no. 1, article, pp.28-30) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 9330] & The Keep [LIB/500179]

John Wesley at Rottingdean, by Edmund Austen, published May 1935 in Sussex Notes & Queries (vol. V no. 6, query, p.189) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2204][Lib 8223][Lib 8862] & The Keep [LIB/500207] & S.A.S. library

Rottingdean and the East Sussex Downs and Villages, by Herbert E. Julyan, published 1940 (76 pp., Lewes: Lewes Press Ltd.) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/503482] & East Sussex Libraries

Parish of Rottingdean, edited by L. F. Salzman, published 1940 in The Victoria History of the County of Sussex (vol. 7: The Rape of Lewes, pp.232-238, London: Victoria County History, ISBN-10: 0712905898 & ISBN-13: 9780712905893) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 7398] & The Keep [LIB/500082] & R.I.B.A. Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries   View Online

Rottingdean and the East Sussex Downs and Villages, by Herbert E. Julyan, published 1941 (revised edition, 80 pp., Lewes: Lewes Press Ltd.) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

Rottingdean and the East Sussex Downs and Villages, by Herbert E. Julyan, published 1948 (3rd edition, 80 pp., Lewes: Lewes Press Ltd.) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

Excavations of Barrows on the Bostle, Balsdean, by G. P. Burstow and N. E. S. Norris, published May 1951 in Sussex Notes & Queries (vol. XIII no. 6, article, pp.129-131) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 8231] & The Keep [LIB/500215] & S.A.S. library

Rottingdean: The Story of a Village, by S. M. Moens and Henry E. Blyth, published 1952 (Brighton: John Beal & Son) accessible at: & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

This excellent little volume deserves the support of all who are interested in the story and preservation of our Sussex villages. Hitherto, most guides and booklets dealing with Rottingdean have rather tended to exaggerate the importance and influence of Burne-Jones and Kipling on the story of this interesting village. It is, of course, essential that due reference to these two worthies should be made, but in this book Col. Moens has, I think, preserved a fair balance. He has dealt fully with the life of the place, its interesting houses, and their former and present inhabitants. The casual reader, if not well acquainted with the village, might perhaps think that the author has given over emphasis to the Beard family, but it is true that for a very long time this family dominated Rottingdean. A good deal of space is given to sport in the village, which is only what those of us who know him would expect from such a sportsman as Col. Moens. He is fully conversant with his subject, having been associated with the village for over 65 years. The book is profusely illustrated, and is well worth its cost on that count alone. Those of us who knew Brighton and Rottingdean over 50 years ago will note with interest the story and picture of the ill-fated "Daddy-Long-Legs." I still remember my one and only "voyage" on this contraption. In his peroration at the end of his book Col. Moens makes a spirited appeal for the preservation of the amenities of the village. I hope the present generation will honour this, but many of us fear that this warning has come rather late, in view of large modern buildings erected on its sea front.

The Story of Rottingdean Parish Church, by Donald Corrie, published 1953 (pamphlet) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 7822]

Excavations at Balsdean Chapel, Rottingdean, by Norman E. S. Norris and E. F. Hockings, published 1953 in Sussex Archæological Collections (vol. 91, article, pp.53-68) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2176] & The Keep [LIB/500338] & S.A.S. library

My story of St Dunstan's, by Fraser of Lonsdale, Ian Fraser, published 1961 (London: George G. Harrap & Co.) accessible at: British Library & East Sussex Libraries

Home for blind armed forces personnel, Rottingdean. William Jocelyn Ian Fraser (1897-1974), Baron Fraser, was the Chairman of the home, and had himself been blinded in World War I. He was born, and partly educated in, Eastbourne

Smugglers Village: The Story of Rottingdean, by Henry Blyth, published 1963 (pamphlet, 72 pp., Rottingdean: H. E. Blyth Ltd.) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12328] & The Keep [LIB/503479] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

A Suspected Barrow at Rottingdean, by Martin Bell, published 1974 in Sussex Archæological Collections (vol. 112, shorter notice, p.156) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 5960] & The Keep [LIB/500317] & S.A.S. library

Edward Burne-Jones, by Penelope Fitzgerald, published 1975 (320 pp., London: Michael Joseph)

Burne-Jones Talking: His Conversations, 1895-98, Preserved by His Studio Assistant Thomas Rooke, by Thomas Rooke and edited by Mary Lago, published 19 April 1982 (xi + 211 pp., London: John Murray Publishers Ltd, ISBN-10: 0719538912 & ISBN-13: 9780719538919) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

A Summer at Rottingdean in 1814, by Ronald Tibble, published December 1984 in Sussex Genealogist and Family Historian (vol. 6 no. 3, article, pp.89-92) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [MP 6277] & The Keep [LIB/501192] & CD SXGS from S.F.H.G.

Rottingdean in Old Picture Postcards, by Ernest Ryman, published 1 May 1985 (28 pp., Brighton: Dyke Publications, ISBN-10: 0950975621 & ISBN-13: 9780950975627)

Rottingdean in Old Picture Postcards, by A. S. Payne and Eddie Scott, published January 1986 (80 pp., European Library, ISBN-10: 9028833102 & ISBN-13: 9789028833104)

One Camp Chair in the Living Room: A Woman's Life in Rottingdean, by Margaret Ward, published July 1988 (53 pp., Brighton: QueenSpark Books, ISBN-10: 0904733157 & ISBN-13: 9780904733150) accessible at: The Keep archive of QueenSpark Books & East Sussex Libraries

Born in 1916, Margaret Ward describes her life as a 'winding lane' because of the many twists and turns it has taken. Her autobiography describes her childhood in Rottingdean, growing up amongst a loving family in the picturesque Sussex seaside village. For Margaret, 'nowhere in the world is there such a lovely place' to grow up.
Her story moves from childhood, through adolescence and working life to her eventual retirement. She recounts the inevitable good and bad times that she experienced, in her story of family life in a close-knit community of a trusting bygone age, when villagers knew and trusted their neighbours, and could leave their doors open or let their children roam freely outdoors.

Rev. Thomas Redman Hooker, D.D. (1762-1838), by Ron Tibble, published December 1988 in Sussex Family Historian (vol. 8 no. 4, article, p.149) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 10736] & The Keep [LIB/501260] & CD SFH40 from S.F.H.G.

Thomas Redman Hooker was born at Tonbridge, the son of Thomas Hooker owner of Tonbridge Castle. He was educated privately and then at Oriel College, Oxford. He came to Sussex in 1791 as Rector of Whatlington and then Vicar of Rottingdean in 1792. In the vicarage he conducted the school that made him famous for forty years. He also established one of the first Sunday Schools.

Rudyard Kipling: The Rottingdean Years, by Michael Smith, published 1989 (27 pp., Brownleaf, ISBN-10: 0951510703 & ISBN-13: 9780951510704) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Religious Survey 1851 - Lewes district, edited by John A. Vickers, published August 1990 in The Religious Census of Sussex 1851 (Sussex Record Society, vol. 75, pp.74-94, ISBN-10: 085445036X & ISBN-13: 9780854450367) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 10578][Lib 13824] & The Keep [LIB/500452][LIB/507827] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Lewes district incl. Ditchling, Wivelsfield, Westmeston, East Chiltington, Streat, Plumpton, Hamsey, Chailey, Newick, Barcombe, Ringmer, Glynde, Beddingham, West Firle, Ripe, Chalvington, Selmeston, Alciston, Berwick, Newhaven, East Blatchington, Bishopstone, Denton, Tarring Neville, Piddinghoe, Telscombe, Southease, Iford, Kingston-near-Lewes, Stanmer, Falmer, Rottingdean & Ovingdean

Rottingdean - Land Tax 1785, edited by Roger Davey, published 1991 in East Sussex Land Tax, 1785 (Sussex Record Society, vol. 77, pp.184-185, ISBN-10: 0854450386 & ISBN-13: 9780854450381) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 11681][Lib 13075] & The Keep [LIB/500454][Lib/507860] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Militia Lists for Burwash (1831), Pevensey (1810) & Rottingdean (1797), published 1992 by PBN Publications (Ref: PBN85, CD-ROM) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/503589]

Memories of Rottingdean, by Margaret Ward, published 1993 (40 pp., Brighton: QueenSpark Books, ISBN-10: 0904733394 & ISBN-13: 9780904733396) accessible at: The Keep archive of QueenSpark Books & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

The Remarkable History of Rottingdean, by Derek Heater, published 1 June 1993 (124 pp., Brighton: Dyke Publications, ISBN-10: 0950975664 & ISBN-13: 9780950975665) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12049] & The Keep [LIB/503481] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

The Grange: A brief history of a house and its residents, by Michael Smith, published 1994 (Rottingdean Preservation Society) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/503024]

East Sussex Census 1851 Index: Newhaven Area - Glynde, Beddingham, West Firle, Ripe, Chalvington, Selmeston, Alciston, Berwick, East Blatchington, Bishopstone, Denton, South Heighton, Tarring Neville, Newhaven, Piddinghoe, Southease, Telscombe, Rodmell, Iford, Kingston, Stanmer, Falmer, Rottingdean, and Ovendean, by June C. Barnes, published 1 March 1994 (vol. 23, booklet, 108 pp., C. J. Barnes & printed at Battle Instant Print Ltd., ISBN-10: 1870264223 & ISBN-13: 9781870264228) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/503435] & East Sussex Libraries

Rottingdean: A Short Guide to Saint Margaret's Church and the Village, by Elvi Rhodes, published 1995 (Church Council of St Margaret's) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/508078]

Edward Burne-Jones, by Penelope Fitzgerald, published 1997 (revised edition, Sutton Publishing, ISBN-10: 0750915625 & ISBN-13: 9780750915625) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

This biography traces Edward Burne-Jones's life and suggests a deeper understanding of his work. It tells of his beginnings as a solitary child in Birmingham, the only son of a not too successful picture-framer, and his formative years at Oxford where, with William Morris, he felt the powerful influence of Ruskin and the Pre-Raphaelites. In 1860 he married the 19-year-old Georgiana Macdonald. This book describes their life together, Georgie's constant loyalty throughout his periods of illness and his infatuations with striking young women, and his love for his children: he was a slave to his beautiful daughter, Margaret, and bewildered by his difficult son, Phil. But Burne-Jones was, in fact, a sympathetic man, and a great wit. This edition has been brought back into print to coincide with the centenary of Burne-Jones's death.

Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones 1833-1898, His Life and his House in Rottingdean, Sussex, by Ann Read and Valerie King, published 1998 accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Rottingdean - 18c. Schools, edited by John Caffyn, published 1998 in Sussex Schools in the 18th Century (Sussex Record Society, vol. 81, pp.225-226, ISBN-10: 0854450424 & ISBN-13: 9780854450428) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 13825][Lib 13828] & The Keep [LIB/500458][Lib/507864] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Edward Burne-Jones, by Ann S. Dean, published 1 February 1998 (32 pp., Pitkin Publishing, ISBN-10: 0853728836 & ISBN-13: 9780853728832)

Burne-Jones, the Life and Works of Sir Edward Burne-Jones (1833-1898) , by Christopher Wood, published 25 May 1998 (160 pp., Weidenfeld & Nicholson, ISBN-10: 0297823450 & ISBN-13: 9780297823452) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

The centenary of Burne-Jones' death falls in 1998, and here the career of the greatest of all English romantic painters is reassesed. Throughout his lifelong association with William Morris and the Pre-Raphelites, Burne-Jones became one of the major figure in the late 19th-century art world. Here, for the first time in a quater of a century, his work and legacy will be restored to their rightful position as a major European artist.

Burne-Jones, by Christopher Wood, published 1999 (new edition of Weidenfeld & Nicholson book, 160 pp., London: Phoenix illustrated, ISBN-13: 9780753807279) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

Rottingdean the Village, by Laurian d'Harcourt, published 2001 (144 pp., D.D. Publishing, ISBN-10: 0954003314 & ISBN-13: 9780954003319) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/503480] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

The church in a garden: Our Lady of Lourdes, Queen of Peace, Rottingdean, Brighton, by Douglas D'Enno, published 9 February 2001 (204 pp., Brighton: D.D. Publishing, ISBN-10: 0954003306 & ISBN-13: 9780954003302) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

Come Write Me Down: The Copper Family of Rottingdean, by Bob Copper, published 22 October 2002 (Audio CD)

The Copper Family of Rottingdean in Sussex has roots in traditional song that are at least 200 years old. Their rare southern English harmony is presented at its most outstanding in these classic performances from the '50s and early '60s. Bob & Ron came to prominence outside their immediate local environment when recordings of the duo were released during the early part of the folk revival. These newly remastered recordings are included here in their entirety. In addition, earlier recordings involving Bob and Ron's fathers (Jim & John) are available for the first time. There are three songs which feature the full quartet.

Edward Burne-Jones, by David Peters Corbett, published 2 July 2004 (80 pp., Tate Publishing, ISBN-10: 1854374354 & ISBN-13: 9781854374356) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Tutored by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, one of the founding members of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, Edward Burne-Jones (1833-1898) was one of the leading artists in what is often referred to as the second generation of the Pre-Raphaelite movement. Inspired by medieval, classical and biblical themes, Burne-Jones's paintings of graceful women, angels, gods and heroes, often in pensive or sad poses or asleep are dreamlike, romantic and sentimental. He also designed mosaics, tapestries and stained-glass windows that can be seen in many English churches, including Christ Church, Oxford, and Birmingham Cathedral. This fascinating, scholarly study throws new light on the inspiration and working practices of this most romantic of artists.

A Profound Secret: May Gaskell, her daughter Amy, and Edward Burne-Jones, by Josceline Dimbleby, published 1 February 2005 (447 pp. + 8 pp. of plates, London: Black Swan, ISBN-10: 0552999814 & ISBN-13: 9780552999816) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

A chance encounter with Andrew Lloyd Webber at a summer party sent Josceline Dimbleby on a quest to uncover a mystery in her own family's past. Her great-aunt Amy Gaskell was the subject of a beautiful dark portrait by the Pre-Raphaelite painter Edward Burne-Jones, but all that was known about Amy, according to family lore, was that she had 'died young of a broken heart'.
In her search, Josceline discovered a cache of unpublished letters from Burne-Jones to her great-grandmother May Gaskell, Amy's mother.They formed a passionate and prolific correspondence, of up to five letters a day, from the last six years of the painter's life. As she read, more and more questions were raised: why did Burne-Jones feel he had to protect May from an overwhelming sadness? What was the deep secret she had confided to him? And what was the tragic truth behind beautiful Amy's wayward, wandering life, her strange marriage and her unexplained early death?

Rottingdean Mill, by Ron Martin, published 2008 in Sussex Industrial History (issue no. 38, article, pp.9-16, ISSN: 0263-5151) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/506536]   Download PDF

Rottingdean Mill is located on Beacon Hill at TQ 365024, 160 m north of the South Coast Road, A259. It is an octagonal four storey smock mill on a substantial single storey base of flint rubble, rendered and tarred externally with brick lacing courses and birdsmouth angles. In the base there were two doors, facing east and west, with brick quoins. After the mill ceased working these were infilled with herringbone brickwork, the eastern one only partly so, the remaining space being filled with a steel door, which currently provides access to the mill. Inside, square openings in the walls and odd bits of timber projecting from the brickwork, suggest that the base has been heightened at some time during the mill's working life, the floor levels being changed accordingly. The transition from a low structure with common sails that could be reefed from the ground to a taller one with self-adjusting patent sails meant that no stage was ever required.

Kipling's Sussex, by Michael Smith, published 25 April 2008 (246 pp., Brownleaf, ISBN-10: 0951510711 & ISBN-13: 9780951510711) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Rottingdean Through Time, by Douglas D'Enno, published 30 November 2009 (96 pp., Stroud: Amberley Publishing, ISBN-10: 1848681976 & ISBN-13: 9781848681972)

Rottingdean Through Time is a unique insight into the illustrious history of this part of the country. Reproduced in full colour, this is an exciting examination of Rottingdean, the famous streets and the famous faces, and what they meant to the people of Rottingdean throughout the 19th and into the 20th Century. Looking beyond the exquisite exterior of these well-kept photos, readers can see the historical context in which they are set. Through the author's factual captions for every picture, and carefully-selected choice of images, the reader can achieve a reliable view of the town's history. Readers are invited to follow a timeline of events and watch the changing face of Rottingdean, as Douglas d'Enno guides us through the town's streets. There is something for everyone here, whether they have lived in the area all their lives, or whether they are just visiting this fabulous town. It also shows how photography has continually evolved to keep up with an ever-changing society.

It has been said that Sussex has more books written on it than any other county, and within the county Rottingdean must be up in the top-ten of village histories. Douglas D'Enno has added to the total with this latest addition to the Amberley series of 'then and now' images.
In a much larger format and length than previously, D'Enno has given us the definitive work on the neighbouring suburb of Saltdean, but this is aimed at a different audience and fulfils different criteria. The quality of this series' images is stunning and the local input that he provides gives some interesting insights to what are standard postcard views. The volume is, however, patchy with a whole section on vintage vehicles that sits somewhat uneasily with the 'then and now' view. The most interesting aspect of the book is the impact of interwar development on the village with the road widening along the coast, undercliff walk, and replacement or remodelling for a string of pubs, blocks of flats and the addition of domestic suburban housing. The interwar predilection of postcard publishers to show domestic housing is one that has (sadly) gone missing from the present day equivalents!

A Place-Name History of Rottingdean and Ovingdean (including Woodingdean and Saltdean), by Richard Coates, published 2010 (240 pp., English Place-Name Society, ISBN-10: 090488984X & ISBN-13: 9780904889840) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/508951]

Richard Coates is one of the country's leading place-name scholars and it is to the benefit of Sussex - and Brighton's far eastern suburbs - that he has produced this multi-faceted volume. It can be read at a variety of levels, whether the interest is in the linguistic history of particular places or the derivation of suburban house-names and while Rottingdean has books a-plenty on its history there is little on Ovingdean, Saltdean and Woodingdean; so this composite territorial collection is indeed welcome. The research is assembled in discrete sections with a general account of the area, its geology and history, leading to a detailed listing of individual names and of geographical areas, which include offshore locations, an oft-forgotten aspect of coastal landscapes. The suburban nature of the contemporary landscape gives scope for sections on street names and detailed gazetteers of individual house-names; as a suburban aficionado this reviewer found the latter category a rich seam to mine!
The book is illustrated with a selection of good quality images and its scholarly approach is attested by the inclusion of 13 pages of bibliography, the only detraction has to be the lack of an index, which in a densely fact packed volume would be a bonus.

Rottingdean, St. Margaret - Church monuments, edited by Nigel Llewellyn, published 2011 in East Sussex Church Monuments, 1530-1830 (Sussex Record Society, vol. 93, pp.286-288, ISBN-10: 0854450750 & ISBN-13: 9780854450756) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 17926] & The Keep [LIB/500470][LIB/507876] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries   View Online

Edward Burne-Jones: The Hidden Humorist, by John Christian, published 1 April 2011 (112 pp., British Museum Press, ISBN-10: 0714126756 & ISBN-13: 9780714126753) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Edward Burne-Jones, member of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood is renowned for his beautiful but usually melancholy evocations of a mythical, literary, ancient or medieval world, as well as his life-long friendship with William Morris. It will surprise many therefore to discover that he was a talented caricaturist and comic sketch artist. This charming book reveals a man brimming with imagination, a keen eye and impish sense of humour who took delight in drawing to amuse and entertain. His witty but affectionate caricatures of friends and family feature familiar faces, such as Morris and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, while his self-caricatures are endearingly self-deprecating. Accompanying these are enchanting sketches he created to illustrate letters and entertain children, and an introduction discussing the life and work of the artist in wider context. Beautifully illustrated with rarely published pieces from the large collection at the British Museum, this book provides an insight into another side of Burne-Jones and illuminates the personality and relationships of one of the most beloved English romantic painters.

68-70 High Street, Rottingdean (NGR: TQ42201104) - watching brief report, by Sean Wallis, published April 2012 (Reading: Thames Valley Archaeological Services)   View Online

The Last Pre-Raphaelite: Edward Burne-Jones and the Victorian Imagination, by Fiona MacCarthy, published 6 September 2012 (656 pp., Faber & Faber, ISBN-10: 0571228623 & ISBN-13: 9780571228621) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

In this gripping book Fiona MacCarthy explores and re-evaluates his art and life - his battle against vicious public hostility, the romantic susceptibility to female beauty that would inspire his art and ruin his marriage, his ill health and depressive sensibility, the devastating rift with his great friend and collaborator William Morris as their views on art and politics diverged.
With new research and fresh historical perspective, The Last Pre-Raphaelite tells the extraordinary, dramatic story of Burne-Jones as an artist, a key figure in Victorian society and a peculiarly captivating man.

The Grange, The Green, Rottingdean (NGR: TQ36970250) - building survey and watching brief reports, by Sean Wallis, published February 2013 (Reading: Thames Valley Archaeological Services)   View Online

The Rottingdean glitterati, by Richard Coates, published 2014 accessible at: The Keep [LIB/507954]   Download PDF

Edward Burne-Jones, by Penelope Fitzgerald, published 2014 (336 pp., HarperCollins Publishers Ltd., ISBN-10: 0007588224 & ISBN-13: 9780007588220)

Penelope Fitzgerald's delightful biography charts his life from humble beginnings in Birmingham as the son of an unsuccessful framer, through a transformative period at Oxford, where he met his close friend and collaborator William Morris, and on to the apprenticeship with Dante Gabriel Rossetti that would shape his artistic vision. His work harks back to an Arthurian England - an Arcadia that offered solace against the onset of the Industrial Revolution, and on a deeply personal level provided respite from his ever-present melancholia. This is an illuminating portrait of a fascinating figure - artistic genius, doting father, troubled husband - written with all Penelope Fitzgerald's characteristic sympathy and insight.

Warren Farm School, by Allison Caffyn, published September 2014 in Sussex Family Historian (vol. 21 no. 3, article, pp.104-107) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/508853]

In 1858 the Brighton Guardians were beginning the process of building a new workhouse with an industrial school located about two miles away at Warren Farm in Rottingdean. The aim of the school was to give pauper children a basic education and a grounding in industry so that they could go out and earn a living (so reducing the likelihood they would be a burden on the system in the future). The school opened in 1862, boys were taught trades such as gardening, tailoring and shoemaking whilst girls were taught domestic service. There was a school band and many boys were taught to play an instrument, often leading to a career in an army band.
The school produced a variety of records including a log book which lists the children as they were placed in employment. The log book is now at the East Sussex Record Office (reference R/S/37/1) and covers the period 1891 to 1935 but the 100 year rule means only entries up to 2013 can be viewed (two other log books survive which take the records up to 1951).

Family Trees and Rottingdean Presrvation Society, by Brian Eaton, published June 2017 in Sussex Family Historian (vol. 22 no. 6, article, pp.278-279) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 15860]