Rock legends, pier blaze and 1066 - 10 top facts about Hastings

Did you know?

1) The name Hastings is derived from the Old English tribal name Hæstingas, meaning the constituency/followers of Hæsta.

2) The Battle of Hastings, on October 14 1066, took place 8 miles to the north at Senlac Hill. It happened because King Edward died, leaving the English throne without an heir. Harold Godwinson seized the throne but had two rivals - Harald Hardrada and William of Normandy.

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3) Much of the town and half of Hastings Castle was washed away in the South England flood in 1287.

4) The construction of the railway saw the population of Hastings grow. In 1801, its population was only 3,175. By 1891 it was almost 60,000.

5) Until the development of tourism, fishing was Hastings’ major industry. The fishing fleet is Europe’s largest beach-launched fleet.

6) Hastings had a network of trams from 1905 to 1929 that ran as far as Bexhill.

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7) Inventor John Logie Baird lived in Hastings in the 1920s where he carried out experiments that led to the transmission of the first television image.

8) Famous names from Hastings include computer scientist Alan Turing, comedian Jo Brand, and Suggs, the singer from chart toppers Madness.

9) Hastings Pier was built in 1872. It suffered major storm damage in 1990 and 95 per cent was destroyed by fire in 2010. Hastings Pier Charity oversaw its repair and it reopened in April 2016.

10) Rock legends who have performed at the Hastings Pier pavilion include The Rolling Stones, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Genesis and Pink Floyd.

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