Pevensey Bay is an old fishing village founded in the 1600s as Wallsend, the end of the sea wall from Eastbourne. Even now, it is only just above sea level, and at high tide in the winter, the sea sometimes breaks through the sea defences.
This area was underwater during the Norman invasion, and only the constant erosion of Beachy Head at Eastbourne has allowed the pebbles to build up. The area was originally a spit of land attached to Eastbourne, but with the sea level dropping, the shingle has now spread to Bexhill in the east.
The area to the northeast, the Pevensey Levels, is a natural haven for wild birds, flowers and animals. The area is very flat and still marshy, with many areas flooding in the winter.
Pevensey Bay was part of the Napoleonic defences of England in the early 1800’s. Many Martello towers were built between Eastbourne and Hastings to prevent invasion. The towers were manned by the army, based at the Hailsham barracks. At the time, the only people who lived here were a few fishermen or smugglers.
In the early 1900s, the village became the holiday resort it is today, with much of the coastline development starting in the 1930s. Today, it is a popular tourist attraction with the nearby historical Pevensey castle.
