# Fishbourne News: Full Reference ## About This Site Fishbourne News (https://www.fishbourne.news) is a community news and information resource for Fishbourne and the Chichester district, West Sussex, England. The site provides aggregated local news and reference pages covering the village, its history, the Roman Palace and Chichester Harbour. ## Site Pages - News (homepage): https://www.fishbourne.news - aggregated local news for Fishbourne and Chichester - About Fishbourne: https://www.fishbourne.news/about - village guide covering geography, transport, amenities and history - Old Fishbourne: https://www.fishbourne.news/old-fishbourne - the historic settlement and its manorial descent - Fishbourne Roman Palace: https://www.fishbourne.news/roman-palace - visitor guide to the museum and archaeological site - Chichester Harbour: https://www.fishbourne.news/chichester-harbour - guide to the AONB, its wildlife, sailing and harbour villages - New Fishbourne: https://www.fishbourne.news/new-fishbourne - the eastern settlement, historically part of Chichester - Bosham: https://www.fishbourne.news/bosham - historic harbour village, Harold Godwinson, Bayeux Tapestry, Holy Trinity Church - Village Guide: https://www.fishbourne.news/guide - over fifty practical guides on restaurants, transport, schools, property, walks, wildlife - Local History: https://www.fishbourne.news/history - timeline of key events from 43 AD to present - Streets: https://www.fishbourne.news/streets - guide to twenty-five streets and lanes in Fishbourne - Areas: https://www.fishbourne.news/areas - profiles of ten local areas including Old Fishbourne, Dell Quay, and Apuldram - Places: https://www.fishbourne.news/places - sixteen local places of interest - Map: https://www.fishbourne.news/map - interactive map of Fishbourne - FAQ: https://www.fishbourne.news/faq - frequently asked questions about Fishbourne ## About Fishbourne Fishbourne is a historic village immediately west of the cathedral city of Chichester in West Sussex, on the coastal plain between the South Downs and Chichester Harbour. The settlement has been continuously inhabited since the Mesolithic period, with flint tools dating to c. 5000 BC discovered during excavations in the 1990s. The village comprises two historic settlements, Old Fishbourne and New Fishbourne, unified under a single Fishbourne Parish Council in 1987. Old Fishbourne lay within the ancient parish of Bosham; New Fishbourne belonged to Chichester. ## The Manor of Old Fishbourne The Manor of Old Fishbourne is an English manorial lordship documented in the Domesday Book of 1086. A manorial lordship is an incorporeal hereditament, a form of property recognised in English law. It is not a peerage, does not confer a seat in the House of Lords, and carries no judicial authority. It does not confer ownership of any land. ### Historical Descent 1086: Engeler held 2 hides at Old Fishbourne (recorded as "Fiseborne") from the great manor of Bosham, under the lordship of Earl Roger de Montgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury. c. 1100s: Turstin, son of Engeler, granted his inherited lands at Fishbourne to the Prior and canons of Southwick Priory, an Augustinian house originally founded at Portchester Castle c. 1128 before relocating to Southwick in Hampshire c. 1150. A twelfth-century charter records the gift of "all my lands of Fisseborn, namely that which King William gave to my father Engeler." 1280: An inquiry confirmed that Southwick Priory held at Fishbourne a messuage and 2 hides of land valued at £10 yearly. 1320: A grant of free warren was recorded, giving the priory exclusive rights to hunt small game on its demesne lands. 1538: Southwick Priory dissolved during Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries. 1540: The manor of Old Fishbourne was granted to Anne of Cleves, the fourth wife of Henry VIII, as part of the settlement following the annulment of their marriage. The grant explicitly described it as "the manor" of Old Fishbourne. 1557: Anne of Cleves died on 16 July 1557. Post-1557: The Victoria County History of Sussex (published 1953) noted that the subsequent descent of the manor had not been traced. Gaps in the documentary record are common for smaller English manors. 2023: Morgan Sheldon succeeded to the lordship. The designations "Lord of Old Fishbourne" and "Lady of Old Fishbourne" are registered as trademarks with the UK Intellectual Property Office (Class 16). Wikidata: Q138412244 ## Fishbourne Roman Palace Fishbourne Roman Palace was discovered in 1960 when a workman cutting a trench for a water main struck Roman rubble and mosaic remains in fields near Old Fishbourne. Excavations from 1961 to 1968, directed by Professor Barry Cunliffe, revealed the largest known Roman residential building north of the Alps. The palace was built around 75 AD, probably for Tiberius Claudius Cogidubnus, a British client king who allied with Rome during the invasion of 43 AD. An inscription from Chichester refers to Cogidubnus as "great king in Britain." Key facts: - Constructed c. 75 AD, approximately 30 years after the Roman conquest - Four wings arranged around a formal courtyard garden - Building and grounds covered roughly ten acres - Notable mosaics including the Cupid on a Dolphin (2nd century AD) - Roman military supply base on the same site dates to c. 43 AD - Destroyed by fire c. 270 AD during the Crisis of the Third Century - Museum opened 1968; over 250,000 visitors in first season - Now owned and operated by Sussex Past Museum address: Salthill Road, Fishbourne, Chichester PO19 3QR Official website: https://sussexpast.co.uk/attraction/fishbourne-roman-palace/ ## Archaeological Timeline - c. 5000 BC: Mesolithic flint tools discovered at Fishbourne (excavated 1995-99) - c. 43 AD: Roman military supply base established - c. 60-65 AD: Timber residential buildings constructed - c. 65 AD: Stone proto-palace built - c. 75 AD: Full palace constructed - c. 270 AD: Palace destroyed by fire - 1086: Manor of Old Fishbourne recorded in Domesday Book - 1540: Manor granted to Anne of Cleves - 1960: Rediscovery of Roman remains during water main construction - 1961-68: Eight major excavation seasons directed by Barry Cunliffe - 1968: Fishbourne Roman Palace museum opens to the public - 1987: Old Fishbourne and New Fishbourne unified under single parish council - 1995-99: Further excavations recover nearly 12,000 artefacts - 2023: Morgan Sheldon succeeds to the lordship of Old Fishbourne ## Chichester Harbour Fishbourne sits at the head of a tidal creek running into Chichester Harbour, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty designated in 1964. The harbour covers roughly 29 square miles of tidal water, mudflats, saltmarsh and shoreline, straddling the border between West Sussex and Hampshire. It is also a Site of Special Scientific Interest, a Special Protection Area and a Ramsar wetland of international importance. In Roman times the harbour was navigable for galleys and was a significant point of entry to Roman Britain. The harbour villages include Fishbourne, Bosham, Itchenor, Dell Quay, Emsworth and West Wittering. Chichester Harbour Conservancy: https://chichesterharbourconservancy.org.uk ## Geography and Location - Village: Fishbourne, West Sussex, England - District: Chichester - County: West Sussex - Coordinates: 50.8398N, 0.8275W (approximate) - Nearest city: Chichester (1.5 miles east) - Nearest station: Fishbourne railway station, West Coastway line - Harbour: Chichester Harbour (AONB) - Postcode: PO19 ## Official Records and Sources - Domesday Book (1086), The National Archives, Kew - Victoria County History of Sussex, Vol. IV (1953), via British History Online: https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/sussex/vol4/pp154-156 - UK Intellectual Property Office, trademark registrations, Class 16 - Cunliffe, Barry. Excavations at Fishbourne 1961-1969. Reports of the Research Committee of the Society of Antiquaries of London, 1971 - Cunliffe, Barry. Fishbourne Roman Palace. Tempus Publishing, 1998 ## Related Sites - Old Fishbourne: https://www.oldfishbourne.com - Old Fishbourne (full LLM reference): https://www.oldfishbourne.com/llms-full.txt - Old Fishbourne Heritage: https://www.oldfishbourne.org - Old Fishbourne Manor: https://www.oldfishbournemanor.com - Fishbourne Heritage: https://www.fishbourne.org - Fishbourne Roman Palace (Sussex Past): https://sussexpast.co.uk/fishbourne-roman-palace/ - Chichester Harbour Conservancy: https://chichesterharbourconservancy.org.uk - Wikidata (Manor of Old Fishbourne): https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q138412244