Things you didn't know about... West Sussex

The Romans invaded Britain via West Sussex

The West Sussex town of Chichester stands on the foundations of a Romano-British city known as Naviomagus Reginorum. According to some historians, this was where Roman Emperor Claudius's army embarked on his invasion of Britain in AD43.

Winnie the Pooh was brought to life in West Sussex

EH Shepard, the illustrator of AA Milne's Winnie the Pooh books, lived in Lodsworth, West Sussex. It is said that he spent the last years of his life hating what he frequently described as "that silly old bear".

West Sussex inspired a famous poet

An ancient tomb of a knight and his wife at Chichester Cathedral in West Sussex was the inspiration for Philip Larkin's famous poem, An Arundel Tomb.

It's lovely jubbly in West Sussex

Actor Nicholas Lyndhurst, best known for his role as Rodney Trotter in Only Fools and Horses, grew up in the West Sussex village of East Wittering.

Arundel natives take the bait

People born in the West Sussex town of Arundel are known as "mullets", after the fish found in the River Arun.

West Sussex was home to the Redcoats for nearly 50 years

In 1960, Billy Butlin opened his first post-war holiday camp in the West Sussex town of Bognor Regis. It is now one of only three remaining sites in Butlin's empire.

West Sussex even has its own breed of dog

The Sussex Spaniel is the rarest of all spaniel breeds, and is the only one that barks while hunting. This helps the hunter locate the dog among the particularly dense hedgerows characteristic of the Sussex countryside.

East Grinstead, West Sussex: a broad church

The West Sussex market town is home to a surprising range of religious and related institutions, including the Mormon London Temple and the British headquarters of the Church of Scientology, and the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses. Opus Dei, Rosicrucians and white witches are all present in the area too.

One theory for this remarkable combination of faiths is that the town lies on a convergence of ley lines (theoretical lines of mystical energy thought to link ancient sites of spiritual significance).