Template:Wp-Eastbourne

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Eastbourne is a town, seaside resort and borough in the non-metropolitan county of East Sussex on the south coast of England, 19 miles (31 km) east of Brighton. Eastbourne is immediately to the east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain.

With a seafront consisting largely of Victorian hotels, a pier and a Napoleonic era fort and military museum, Eastbourne was developed from four separate hamlets. It has a growing population, a broad economic base and is home to companies in a wide range of industries.

Though Eastbourne is a relatively new town, there is evidence of human occupation in the area from the Stone Age. The town grew as a fashionable tourist resort largely thanks to prominent landowner, William Cavendish (1808-1891), later to become the Duke of Devonshire. Cavendish appointed architect Henry Currey to design a street plan for the town, but not before sending him to Europe to draw inspiration. The resulting mix of architecture is typically Victorian and remains a key feature of Eastbourne.

As a seaside resort Eastbourne derives a large and increasing income from tourism, with revenue from traditional seaside attractions augmented by conferences, public events and cultural sightseeing. The other main industries in Eastbourne include trade and retail, healthcare, education, construction, manufacturing, professional scientific and the technical sector.

Eastbourne's population is growing; between the UK censuses of 2001 and 2011 it increased from 89,800 to 99,412. The 2011 census shows that the average age of residents has decreased as the town has attracted students, families and those commuting to London and Brighton.

The following quotation answers the question: What were the names of the four individual hamlets? From Eastbourne's Story provided by Eastbourne Borough Council

"In the 13th century, the Lamb Inn (as popular now as it ever was) was built facing the church. Business was conducted in the cellar and the resident merchant lived in a flat above. On the other side of what is now one of Eastbourne's busiest roads, is the timbered house, Pilgrims, which has mediaeval origins and is thought to be one of the oldest inhabited private homes in the Britiah Isles. By 1555 the Manor (estate) was call East Bourne and was purchased by three Sussex families. A hundred years later there were just 130 houses in the parish and the population of 800-900 was grouped in four areas: in Bourne, near the church; in the area which is now around South street [unnamed]; at Sea Houses--some of which still stand on Marine Parade; and in Meads."