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adjoining, in the parishes of Keymer and Clayton; and on the west side of Glynde Bridge near the railway station a paved Roman causeway was discovered, lying 3ft. below the turf upon a bed of silt or blue clay 20ft. thick, and close to it was found a large brass coin of the reign of Emperor Antoninus Pius.
The possessors of the lordship of Brighton are as ancient as any that we meet with, for in Edward the Confessor s time, Godwin, Earl of Kent, was Lord of this Manor, with many others in this County. He left it to his son Harold, who was afterwards King ; he being conquered by William the Norman, the manor became the Conqueror's, who then gave it to one of his generals, William de Warrenne (of Bellencombre, in Normandy) in reward for his services, also the earldom of Surrey, the whole rape of Lewes, and large possessions in Norfolk, Suffolk and Yorkshire. De Warrenne afterwards married his daughter Gundrada. She was the fifth daughter of William by his wife Matilda, of Flanders. In return for these favours, De Warrenne exerted himself to the utmost on behalf of his father-in-law, and was made one of the chief Justiciaries of England. About the year 1070, the Earl and Countess determined on a pilgrimage to Borne, having previously resolved to erect a monastery for the saving of their souls and those of their ancestors and successors. In the course of their journey they visited the great abbey of Clugni, in Burgundy, and observing there a discipline superior to that which was practised elsewhere, decided on making their projected monastery a branch or cell of that institution. Accordingly on their return to England, and probably to their residence in Lewes Castle, they summoned certain monks of Clugni to lay the foundation stone of the establishment, and they under the guidance of one of their number, Lanzo* by name, were soon energetically
* Lanzo was the first Prior of Lewes, and continued as such for more than 30 years. "He was a man," says Malmsbury, "surpassed by none lor the gifts of the Holy Spirit." |
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