Portslade History/Pictures

Portslade Old Manor (north side of St Nicolas Church) is one of a very few examples of Norman manor houses that still exist in this country. For this reason it has been deemed a Scheduled Ancient Monument, and a Grade ll listed building.
In the Domesday Book there are two references to Portslade:-

"Oswald holds half a hide in Portslade he held it before 1066. It did not pay tax, he could go where he would with the land,1 villager, value 6s".

"Albert held half a hide in Portslade. It did not pay tax. 1 villager with half plough. The value is and was 6s."

In 1226 Hubert de Burgh held the Manor of Portslade while he was Justiciar of England and Earl of Kent, Hubert was to be immortalised years later in William Shakespear's play "King John". Under the reign of Henry III, Hubert commanded the English fleet in their victory over the French at Sandwich 1217, for this victory he was hailed "the saviour of the national cause", Hubert died in 1234 at Banstead and is remembered as the last of the great Justiciars of England.

In 1312, the Lord of the Manor of Portslade, John de Warenne, Earl of Surrey, was granted a charter by King Edward II to hold a Fair at Portslade annually on the 6th December, "The Feast Day of Saint Nicolas"

Portslade Manor House was in use until 1807 when the new manor house was built. It was then used as an Almshouse for the poor. In the Victorian era it was partly demolished to provide building material for a garden folly in the manor grounds.

Guided visits to the Old Manor can be arranged through staff at the Foredown Tower Countryside Centre, Foredown Road, Portslade.

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Portslade Old Village


The new Manor House was built in 1807, which replaced the Old Manor. John Borrer who was a churchwarden at St.Nicolas, owned all the lands from the north of Easthill including all of Mile Oak, these lands were devoted to farming. In later years the Manor House was bought by Kathleen Nelson who gave it to the Roman Catholic Church. In 1904 the Manor House became the Convent for the Sisters of the Order of Poor Servants. Today the Manor House and its grounds are in the care of "Emmaus Brighton & Hove", who are a community dedicated to helping the homeless. There are 400 Emmaus Communities world-wide		Manor Lodge was formally known as Portslade Lodge, is opposite the village green. It was built at the end of the 18th century. The house was owned in 1866 by Sarah and Kate the daughters of John Borrer of Portslade Manor. Sarah Borrer served as a School Manager of St Nicolas School. When Sarah died in 1908 the house was passed onto Arthur Blaker, a relative of the Borrers.		Sellaby House was built in the mid 19th for Hannah Brakenbury a wealthy resident of Portslade. She donated the land and provided the funds for the building of a new Church School in 1872. The house was later owned by members of the Blaker Family. In 1936 the house was bought by Sussex Education Authority who used the remaining gardens to build Portslade County Infants School. The house became a school dentist and lately a Further Education Centre.


Kemps is the oldest habitable house in Portslade dating from the 16th century and is a Grade II listed building. Many alterations have been made to its fascia during its history. The house was owned by the Blaker Family who may have commissioned the original building. The earliest record in the Church shows that the Family was living in the village in 1485. During the Blaker’s 400-year association with the Parish the Family have taken prominent positions in public life. Edward Blaker was MP for Shoreham in the 17th century; Three members of the family became Churchwardens of St Nicolas Church in the 19th century. Harry Blaker became a surgeon in Brighton. Harry Blaker attended Queen Victoria when she was in residence at the Royal Pavilion; he vaccinated the Prince of Wales later to become Edward VII and Princess Victoria who became the Empress of Germany and mother of Kaiser Wilhelm II Many of the Blaker Family are buried in the family vault at St Nicolas Church.	Whychcote is a Victorian house next to the Parish Centre. It was owned by Herbert Mews, the brother of Walter who lived at Loxdale House. They were joint owners of Southdown Brewery	Loxdale is an imposing Victorian house situated next to St Nicolas School. The house was built by Walter Mews in 1899, its high red brick garden wall dominates one side of Locks Hill. The Mews Brothers, Walter and Herbert, had previously purchased the Southdown Brewery in the Old Village in 1887. The Mews Family were involved in the work of the Church, they made their extensive grounds available for fetes and jumble sales. The house was in the Mews Family until 1928. In subsequent years the house was used as a “Boys Home”, an Approved School for Girls, an Old Person’s Holiday Home and is now the Swedish Folk High School.

	Portslade Forge the building dates from the 18th c. The forge was still in use until the 1980’s


The former Southdown Brewery built in 1881, dominates the Old Village. The building is now a factory owned by Le Carbone (Great Britain) Ltd., the UK base of Groupe Carbone Lorraine. The Company manufactures carbon graphite components.		The High Street looking east to St Nicolas Church on the far hill		The High Street, looking west to Portslade Community College at the top of the hill


Foredown Tower is the former Edwardian water tower built in 1909, to supply water to the Foredown Isolation Hospital which closed in 1972, the Tower is now a countryside centre. The centre houses the only working "camera obscura" in the South East of England, and is open to the public.	Easthill House was built in 1848 by the Blaker Family. In the 1890’s the house was sold to John Dudney a churchwarden and the original owner of Southdown Brewery in the Old Village. The house was owned by successive owners until 1947, when the house and grounds were sold to Portslade District Council for a community centre and public park.	The former Oast House originally a part of Southdown Brewery

		Robin's Row c. 1740


This ancient road is above Portslade Old Village, the names of the hills on this trackway are Foredown Hill and Mount Zion. It is not known why one of these local hills was given a biblical name. In the distance are the South Downs.		Portslade War Memorial (Easthill Park) There are also a War Memorials within St Nicolas Church and the South Portslade Community Centre (St Andrew Church)

Bibliography
There are many excellent books dealing with Portslade's Local History at both Portslade Library and the P.C.C. Library (Mile Oak). Some of which, are available from local bookshops for purchase.
“The History of Portslade by Portslade History Group, 1977 & 1989”
“A Brief History of Portslade by Banks, B”.
“Portslade, A Pictorial History by Green, C.”.
“The following titles are by Middleton, J. , A History of St Nicolas School, Memories of Old Portslade 1 & 2,
Portslade (Britain in Old Photographs series), A History of St Nicolas Church”.

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