| Sussex | |
|---|---|
| Historic county | |
 | |
 | |
| Area | |
| • Coordinates | 51°N 0°E / 51°N 0°E |
| History | |
| • Origin | Sub-Roman Britain |
| • Created | 5th century (traditionally 477) |
| Status | Historic county |
| Chapman code | SSX |
| Government | |
| • HQ | Various |
| • Motto | "We wunt be druv" |
| Contained within | |
| • Ceremonial counties | East Sussex • West Sussex |
| Subdivisions | |
| • Type | Rapes (largest & most notable of differing former subdivisions) |
| • Units | |
 | |
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Sussex (/ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English Sūþseaxe; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England which was historically a kingdom and, later, a county. It includes the ceremonial counties of East Sussex and West Sussex.
The area borders the English Channel to the south, and the ceremonial counties of Surrey to the north, Kent to the north-east, and Hampshire to the west. Sussex contains the city of Brighton and Hove and its wider city region, as well as the South Downs National Park and the National Landscapes of the High Weald and Chichester Harbour. Its coastline is 137 miles (220 km) long.
The Kingdom of Sussex emerged in the 5th century; during Roman Britain the area was inhabited by the Regni tribe. In about 827, shortly after the Battle of Ellendun, Sussex was conquered by Wessex. From 860 it was ruled by the kings of Wessex, and in 927 it became part of the Kingdom of England. By the Norman period, Sussex was subdivided into six administrative districts known as rapes, which were themselves divided into hundreds. By the sixteenth century, the eastern three rapes and the western three rapes had been combined for most meetings of the court of quarter sessions, a division which was reinforced when the administrative counties of East Sussex and West Sussex were established in 1889. Subsequent local government reforms maintained the division into east and west. The county retained a single lord lieutenant and sheriff until 1974, when they were replaced with separate posts for East and West Sussex and Sussex lost its status as a ceremonial county.
Sussex is widely regarded as a single unified entity for some purposes, such as the environment,[nb 1] food and drink[nb 2] and sport. In 2007, Sussex Day was created to celebrate the county's culture and history.
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