Discover Staplecross

Staplecross offers several historic points of interest to help you plan your trip. The buildings differ in form and date: highlights include buildings from the 17th and 18th centuries, St Mark’s Church from the 19th century and the Staplecross War Memorial, dated 1921. To the north of the village, an open field with historic boundaries adds another perspective on the past. Architecture, remembrance and landscape offer distinct themes that you can consider as separate aspects of your stay.

Historic buildings and building phases

The Cross Inn in Staplecross is an L-shaped Grade II listed building; its north wing dates from the 18th century. Its form and date offer two different perspectives: the L-shape describes the layout of the building, while the date refers specifically to the north wing. This distinction is useful when looking at the building’s history, as it links a specific part of the building with an era without assigning that date to the entire house.

Forge House and Forge Cottage together form a single Grade II listed building. Forge House probably dates from the 17th century; Forge Cottage was added in the 18th century. Here, the timeline spans two named parts: the probable early construction of the house and a later addition. Compared with the north wing of the Cross Inn, this offers a different building history to consider: in one case, the date of a wing; in the other, the combination of differently dated parts within one building.

Wrens Cottage is also a Grade II listed building. It dates from the 18th century or earlier and has weatherboarding. Its date covers a broader period than that of the Cross Inn’s north wing or the addition of Forge Cottage. The weatherboarding also draws attention to a feature of its exterior. This makes it possible to distinguish the buildings by their form, construction phase and exterior design.

Church and remembrance

St Mark’s Church was built in the 19th century. The Staplecross War Memorial is a Grade II listed First World War memorial dating from 1921. These dates are on different scales: the church refers to an entire century, while the memorial is dated to a specific year. Building history and remembrance therefore stand alongside each other as two distinct themes. If you are interested in local history, you can make either the church’s period of construction or the precisely dated memorial a focus of your trip planning.

Open field landscape north of the village

North of Staplecross lies an open field that is part of a medieval assart field landscape with historic field boundaries. This shifts the focus from individual buildings to a landscape structure. The field boundaries are part of this picture; the landscape aspect draws attention to the layout of the open field rather than to a single building. This offers a separate theme for your trip planning alongside building history: you can explore the historic buildings or consider the field landscape as a topic in its own right.

October celebration and travel date

The Ewhurst and Staplecross Bonfire Society holds its annual October celebration with a torchlight procession, bonfire and fireworks. For Saturday, 31 October 2026, the society has announced its “Grand Procession and Bonfire”. If you would like to plan your stay around this date, check the event date again before travelling. The celebration is tied to a specific date; the buildings and field landscape offer independent historical themes for your trip planning.

Discover more destinations: Rye, Hellingly, Nutley, Winchelsea Beach, Uckfield, East Dean, Piltdown, Fairlight

For the wider travel overview: East Sussex.