Portal:South East England

The South East England Portal

South East England is one of the nine official regions of England that are in the top level category for statistical purposes. It consists of the nine counties of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, Surrey and West Sussex. South East England is the third-largest region of England, with a land area of 19,072 square kilometres (7,364 sq mi), and is also the most populous with a total population of 9,379,833 in 2022.

South East England contains eight legally chartered cities: Brighton and Hove, Canterbury, Chichester, Milton Keynes, Oxford, Portsmouth, Southampton and Winchester. Officially it does not include London, which is a separate region. The geographical term for "South East England" may differ from the official definition of the region, for example London, Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Essex are sometimes referred to as being in the south east of England. This article only considers the South East as being the official statistical region.

In medieval times, South East England included much of the Kingdom of Wessex, which was the precursor to the modern state of England. Winchester was the capital of England after unification of the various states, including the kingdoms of Kent, Sussex and Mercia. Winchester stopped being the administrative capital of England some time in the 13th century as its influence waned while the City of London dominated commerce. The last monarch to be crowned at Winchester was Richard II in 1377, although the last monarch to be crowned by the Bishop of Winchester was Queen Mary I in 1553.

Today, the region's close proximity to London has led to South East England becoming a prosperous economic hub with the largest economy of any region in the UK, after London. The region is home to Gatwick Airport and Heathrow Airport (the UK's two busiest airports). The coastline along the English Channel provides numerous ferry crossings to mainland Europe. South East England is also known for its countryside, which includes two national parks: the New Forest and the South Downs, as well as the North Downs, the Chiltern Hills and part of the Cotswolds. The River Thames flows through the region and its basin is known as the Thames Valley.

It is also the location of a number of internationally known places of interest, such as HMS Victory in Portsmouth, Cliveden in Buckinghamshire, Thorpe Park and RHS Wisley in Surrey, Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire, Windsor Castle in Berkshire, Leeds Castle, the White Cliffs of Dover and Canterbury Cathedral in Kent, Brighton Palace Pier, and Hammerwood Park in East Sussex, and Wakehurst Place in West Sussex. The region has many universities; the University of Oxford is the oldest in the English-speaking world, and ranked among the best in the world.

South East England is host to various sporting events, including the annual Henley Royal Regatta, Royal Ascot and The Derby, and sporting venues include Wentworth Golf Club and Brands Hatch. Some of the events of the 2012 Summer Olympics were held in the south east, including the rowing at Eton Dorney and part of the cycling road race in the Surrey Hills. (Full article...)

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The culture of Sussex is the pattern of human activity and symbolism associated with Sussex and its people. It is informed by Sussex's history as an Anglo-Saxon kingdom, English county, diocese of the church and present-day cultural region.

Sometimes thought by outsiders to be some sort of rural adjunct to London, Sussex has a cultural identity as unique as any other English county. The last Anglo-Saxon kingdom to be Christianised, Sussex has a centuries-old reputation for being separate and culturally distinct from the rest of England. This relative isolation until recent times is due to Sussex's geography, with the sea to the south, the forest and sticky clays of the Weald to the north and coastal marshes to the east and west. Sussex escaped the wholesale rearrangements of life and customs which the Norse invasions brought to much of England and the Germanic culture of the South Saxons remained much more intact than that of the rest of England. The people of Sussex have a reputation for independence of thought and an aversion to being pushed around, as expressed through the Sussex motto, We wunt be druv. The reputation for independence also extends to admiration of the independence of others and toleration of others. Other regional characterisations include the sharp shrewd stubborn Sussex Wealdsman and the more deferential Sussex Downsman.

Sussex is known for its strong tradition of bonfire celebrations and its proud musical heritage. Sussex in the first half of the 20th century was a major centre for modernism, and saw many radical artists and writers move to its seaside towns and countryside. The county is home to the Brighton Festival and the Brighton Fringe, England's largest arts festival. Brighton Pride is one of the UK's largest and oldest gay pride parades and other pride events take place at most other major towns including Crawley, Eastbourne, Hastings and Worthing. Chichester is home to the Chichester Festival Theatre and Pallant House Gallery. The feast day of Sussex's patron saint, St Richard of Chichester, 16 June, has been observed since 2007 as Sussex Day to celebrate the county's culture and history. (Full article...)