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27-451: The event will consist of a timed climb of the metalled road known as Bo-Peep Hill, situated near the village of Selmeston , on a turning off the A27 . Map reference No. 183/498053. Each competitor will be permitted two timed runs in addition to practice." In 1966 The Autocar reported: " The hill covers 600 yards, and if the weather is fine the setting is really superb." The situation faced by

54-543: A Cooper Climax. Patsy Burt did her utmost to retain her title but was unable to better 23.97." On 12 September 1965, Jack Sears driving a Bentley 8-litre set fastest time of the day by a Bentley. David Good , BRM , set the track record of 22.78 sec on 28 May 1967, a record he holds in perpetuity, as the course closed at the end of the season. Key: R = Course Record; S/C = Supercharged. 50°49′33″N 0°07′21″E  /  50.8258°N 0.1225°E  / 50.8258; 0.1225 Selmeston Selmeston

81-514: A demonstration run: "He chose to run in the big twin Cooper rather than the Formula 2 car, the former being less of a handful on Firle's somewhat bumpy surface." A report from 1965 states: "Once again, many of the hill records were lowered, including the absolute record for the hill, which came down from 24.45 seconds, set up by Miss Patsy Burt in 1963, to 23.87 seconds standing to Gordon Parker in

108-562: A prominent early physician and medical educator, and even a lord mayor of London. An ancient bronze seal found in the 1800s near Eastbourne, now in the collection of the Lewes Castle Museum , shows the coat-of-arms of John Livet and is believed to have belonged to the first member of the family named lord of Firle in 1316. On the bankruptcy of lord of the manor Thomas Levett in 1440, the ownership passed to Bartholomew Bolney, whose daughter married William Gage in 1472. Following

135-564: A village and civil parish in the Lewes district of East Sussex , England. Firle refers to an old-English / Anglo-Saxon word fierol meaning overgrown with oak . Although the original division of East Firle and West Firle still remains, East Firle is now simply confined to the houses of Heighton Street, which lie to the east of the Firle Park. West Firle is now generally referred to as Firle although West Firle remains its official name. It

162-680: Is Lewes . The general election in July 2024 elected the Liberal Democrat MP James MacCleary . Prior to Brexit in 2020, the village was part of the South East England constituency in the European Parliament . [REDACTED] Media related to Selmeston at Wikimedia Commons West Firle Firle ( / ˈ f ɜːr l / ; Sussex dialect : Furrel / ˈ f ʌr əl / ) is

189-544: Is a village and civil parish in the Wealden District of East Sussex , England. It is located eight miles (13 km) east of Lewes , to the north of the A27 road between there and Polegate . The church existed at the time of its mention in the Domesday Book of 1086; it is dedicated to St Mary. The ecclesiastical parish is linked with the village of Alciston . The Domesday Book also has entries for

216-666: Is first mentioned in 1879 in a diary of the then vicar of Firle, Reverend Crawley, though it was re-formed in 1982 to encourage and promote traditional bonfire festivities in the village. The society forms part of a network of bonfire societies in the Lewes area which serve the purpose both of remembering the Gunpowder Plot and of recalling the fate of the Sussex Martyrs . The village holds its celebrations in October before

243-572: Is located south of the A27 road four miles (9 km) east of Lewes. During the reign of Edward the Confessor (1042–66) Firle was part of the Abbey of Wilton's estate. Following the Norman Conquest the village and surrounding lands were passed to Robert, Count of Mortain . Half-brother of King William I , Robert was the largest landowner in the country after the monarch. The village

270-512: Is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, referred to as 'Ferla'. The value of the village is listed as being £44, which was amongst the highest in the county. The manor house, the site on which Firle Place now stands, was occupied from the early 14th century by the 'de Livet' ( Levett ) family, an ancient Sussex gentry family of Norman descent who owned the manor. The Levett family would later include founders of Sussex's iron industry, royal courtiers, knights, rectors, an Oxford University dean,

297-640: Is the Reverend Peter Owen-Jones . The Ram Inn is the only remaining one of the village's three original public houses , that previously all acted as resting stops on the Lewes to Alfriston coach road. It was also the village court room where the rents for tenants farmers were collected and set. The area in front of the Ram is called the Beach, not to be confused with the Dock which is further up

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324-809: Is the next tier of government, for which Selmeston is part of the Alfriston ward, along with Alfriston, Berwick, Chalvington & Ripe and Alciston. The ward returns one councillor, who was a Green in the May 2023 election. Selmeston is represented at the East Sussex County Council as part of the Alfriston, East Hoathly & Hellingly Ward. The May 2005 election returned the Conservative Councillor John Garvican. The parliamentary district for Selmeston

351-823: The Firle 2nd XI are in ESCL Division 9. Previously both teams played in the Cuckmere Valley League; 2007 was their first year in the ESCL. South of the village lie the South Downs and Firle Beacon , which reaches a height of 712 feet (217 m). The beacon was once a lighting beacon used as part of a warning system during the time of the Spanish Armada in 1588. On the site there are also around 50 Bronze Age burial barrows . Firle Bonfire Society

378-536: The Firle village memorial hall. Its responsibilities include footpaths, street lighting, playgrounds and minor planning applications. The parish council has five seats available which were uncontested in the May 2007 election. On 8 March 1971 the parish was renamed from "West Firle" to "Firle". The next level of government is the district council. The parish of Firle lies within the Ouse Valley and Ringmer ward of Lewes District Council which returns three seats to

405-664: The Gross Reine Claude fruit tree to England from France ca. 1725, and later became known as the greengage plum. Francis Young, author of The Gages of Hengrave, Suffolk Catholicism 1640-1767 St Peter's Church notably contains an alabaster effigy of Sir John Gage wearing his Order of the Garter and lying beside his wife Philippa. It also has a John Piper stained-glass window in warm colours, depicting Blake's Tree of Life . There are also memorials for those named Bolney, Moreton, Levett, Swaffield and others. The current vicar

432-582: The church in 1933. The results of the findings of this excavation can be viewed at the Barbican House Museum in Lewes . The museum also holds later evidence of a Saxon burial site, located behind Manor Cottages. This spot may have been so popular because of its plentiful natural springs, which were still used as the main water supply up until the 1950s when running water was installed. The village maintains its country charm with its lack of streetlights or pavements, although in 2020 local outrage

459-504: The council. The election on 4 May 2007 elected two Liberal Democrats and one Conservative . East Sussex County Council is the next tier of government, for which Firle is within the Ouse Valley East division. The council has responsibility for education, libraries, social services, civil registration, trading standards and transport. Elections for the county council are held every four years. The Liberal Democrat Thomas Ost

486-753: The death of Bolney in 1476 without a male heir, the seat of Firle Place was passed to William Gage and has remained the seat of the Viscount Gage ever since. During the Second World War , Firle Plantation to the south of the village was the operational base of a four-man Home Guard Auxiliary Unit . The commonly used word greengage is linked with another branch of the Gage family who lived at Hengrave Hall in Suffolk. It would appear that Sir William Gage, 2nd bart ( c.  1650 –1727), introduced

513-487: The main event in Lewes. Traditionally the Firle Bonfire Society Pioneers wear Valencian costumes. It is customary to burn an effigy other than Guy Fawkes; in 2003 an effigy of a Gypsy family in a caravan was burned, sparking a controversy that resulted in members of the bonfire society being arrested. On a local level, Firle is governed by Firle Parish Council, which meets every two months in

540-613: The race here in 1951. The BARC event held on Sunday 2 June 1957, was run in conjunction with the BARC 11th Annual Rally at Eastbourne, a 50-mile road event held the day before, starting at the Grasshopper Inn near Westerham , with intermittent driving tests, including one at Butts Hill, Willingdon , and then on to Eastbourne, via Beachy Head. A steward of the rally was Captain A. Frazer-Nash, M.I.Mech.E. On 14 September 1958 Tony Marsh set an unofficial record of 25.31 sec during

567-484: The racing motorist in England after World War Two was bleak. Brooklands was permanently closed and Donington Park was out of action. Two other obstacles were petrol rationing, which was not abolished until 26 May 1950, and an acute shortage of tyres, the R.A.C. having banned retreaded or remoulded tyres from competition. The search was on for a place to race. The Bentley Drivers' Club found Firle. W.O. Bentley attended

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594-544: The street. Firle Cricket Club was founded in 1758 and is said to be one of the oldest in the country. Even earlier in 1725 Sir William Gage, 7th Baronet challenged the Duke of Richmond to a game of cricket, one of the first recorded matches. The club continues to be central to village life and has two teams which both compete in the East Sussex Cricket League. The Firle 1st XI are in ESCL Division 3 and

621-489: The two large houses that lie in the Parish, Sherrington Manor (variously referred to as Elerintone, Serintone and Sirintone) and Tilton house (referred to as Telentone and Tilintone). The Labour politician John C Wilmot (1895–1964) took his title of Baron from the village. The local area has been a popular choice for inhabitation since Mesolithic times, with evidence of Mesolithic settlements discovered in old sandpits around

648-572: Was caused when the petrol station at the edge of the village, flanking the A27, installed floodlights which are on throughout the night. Some villagers say this is a concern for the native South Downs wildlife species and are concerned correct planning procedures were not followed. The village with its single street (aptly named 'The Street') marks a route between the Ouse and the Cuckmere rivers. The church

675-408: Was closed in 1968 and is now a private residence and Grade II listed building. The village hall was opened on 27 July 1935, and is shared with Alciston . The lowest tier of government for Selmeston is a Parish meeting . Instead of voting for representatives, a small parish may hold a community meeting twice a year to which all the electors may attend and vote on issues. Wealden District Council

702-547: Was elected in the 2005 election. The UK Parliament constituency for Firle is Lewes . The Liberal Democrat Norman Baker served as the constituency MP since 1997, before losing his seat in the 2015 general election to the Conservative Maria Caulfield . She had her majority reduced to just over 2,000 in the 2019 general election by runner up Lib Dem candidate, Oli Henman. The 2024 general election returned Liberal Democrat James MacCleary as MP with

729-541: Was originally Saxon, built in 1100, but after a fire in 1860 it was left as a ruin until 1867 when it was reconstructed with tile walls and a shingle spire. In 1807 the cricket pitch was donated to the village and by 1834 the Selmeston cricket team was well-established, playing in the West Firle Poor Law Union. The village school was constructed in 1846, made of Sussex flint with a tiled roof. It

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