The story of Chichester told through 50 buildings

Chichester in 50 Buildings is the latest title in Amberley’s 50 Buildings series and promises architectural adventure around Chichester (£15.99; ISBN: 9781398121638), a city founded as Noviomagus Reginorum as a military garrison shortly after the Roman invasion of AD 43. The military usage was short lived, and it was quickly adopted as a Romano-British civilian settlement. By the time of Alfred the Great, Chichester had become a substantial town and its future as a major town/city of Sussex was cemented.

Eddy’s book goes on a journey through the city’s past, as represented by its buildings, covering all aspects of Chichester’s history – religious, medical, educational, administrative, political, military and social. Alongside the Market Cross, Chichester Cathedral and the Novium Museum, some of the more unusual aspects of the history of the city are revealed, including County Hall’s formerly top-secret role during the Cold War, the rule-breaking 1960s architecture of Marriott House and the Chichester Harbour Hotel where General Dwight D Eisenhower hosted a meeting of his D-Day advisors.

Eddy said: “I live in Bognor. My publishers contacted me with a few different ideas, and this was the top of my list. I have known Chichester since I was really young and I've been going to Chichester for many, many years. This was a really good way of you being able to explore its history.

“I was given the title and that was it. The first job was to compile a list of the 50 buildings, and I can’t tell you how many times I revised it after that. There are so many buildings that you could include but I wanted 50 buildings that told the history of Chichester right through from the beginning. It was revision after revision trying to get the history.

“The first building is the amphitheatre (at the back of the Market Road car park). I know there is not much to see there apart from the earth mound but it's the oldest surviving building in the city. I know I'm using the word building loosely but underneath the archaeology still exists and there is still a structure there. The most recent building is The Novium museum and it was not long ago that I visited it for the first time. I was amazed. It's an incredible building and the lovely thing is it links back to the first building in the book. It brings it full circle. You've got the modern building, the latest incarnation of the museum in the city, linking back to the beginning of the city.”

The buildings are mostly in the city centre, with the furthest one out the old nunnery, now the Free School, just south of the city. Among his favourites Eddy counts the Bishop's Palace: “It was fascinating. I had never been in there before and I got permission to go in and it was absolutely amazing to look around, a real honour.”

Chichester Festival Theatre is also included: “That was important to me in terms of including the arts and culture. It was not just about buildings that represented the different eras. I wanted to represent the military, education and arts and culture and religion, all those different things, and that's why it took so long to come up with the 50 buildings!

“I absolutely loved doing it. I started writing as a hobby and it just progressed to getting book contracts and it has gone on from there. It is a really unique and interesting way to explore the history of the place. I love the city and to have access to lots of places where the public would not normally go was a real honour.”