I spent a great day by the sea at Eastbourne on England’s South Coast. A seaside resort, I loved the esplanade, promenade and the Victorian pier.

By the Sea at Eastbourne on England’s South Coast

History of Eastbourne

Stone Age to Seaside Resort

Eastbourne is a pretty seaside resort not that far from Brighton in Sussex and is full of Victorian architecture. It has an interesting history. According to Wikipedia, settlement in the area of Eastbourne can be traced back to Stone Age. In 1949 the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway arrived in Eastbourne which really put it on the map.

Duke of Devonshire

Eastbourne really came to prominence under the patronage of a local landowner (William Cavendish) who later became the Duke of Devonshire. Under his direction, from 1859, Eastbourne as we know it today was created, essentially as a new town, from four separate hamlets. Eastbourne derives a large part of its income from tourism. It is attractive for its parks and gardens, theatres and seafront area with pier.

Eastbourne Pier

A wonderful piece of Victorian architecture, the Pier opened in 1870 and is a major tourist attraction. It is a Grade II listed building. Thousands upon thousands of people have walked on the decks of this 1000ft (300 metres) long pier over the years. But what is supporting the fun that takes place on the pier? The metal supports underpinning the pier (shown here) rest in metal cups on the seabed which allows the whole structure to move during rough weather.

Architecture and Tourists

What particularly strikes you about the pier is the contrast of the white of the main architecture and the blue painted metallic structures. Not to mention the gold embellishments.

In this image of tourists playing with seagulls on the pier, you can elements of the Victorian structure.

You can also see scaffolding – the pier has suffered various fires in its history and maintenance work is ongoing.

Camera Obscura

This image of the pier shows the impressive structure at the end. A domed 400 seat pavilion was built there originally in 1888 but at the turn of the nineteenth century this was replaced with a 1,000 seat theatre, an office suite and a camera obscura. Access to the camera obscura, which gives a wonderful view of the seafront, is located under the golden dome, by way of the steps you can clearly see in the image.

Second World War

The pier played an active part in the Second World War. Machine guns were installed on it as part of preparations to repel any enemy landing.

Seaside Resort

At the end of the day the big attraction of Eastbourne is the beach, promenade and esplanade. The gardens are well kept and inviting with lots of seating areas for people to sit and take in the view and the sea breeze.

And part of the great British holiday is the great British deckchair. Find one and doze off in the sunshine. Unless it is a windy day as shown here, where no-one is brave enough to sit in the wind! They are probably in the Victorian Tea Room on the pier instead.

Where you can purchase my images of Eastbourne

My RedBubble shop offering home decor, personal and gift items with worldwide shipping.

My Pictorem shop offering a range of fine art prints and jigsaw puzzles with free shipping in North America.

Before you go

My name is Dorothy Berry-Lound an artist and writer. You can find out more about my art and writing at https://dorothyberryloundart.com.

You can follow me on Facebook.

Thank you for reading!