Brighton is a beautiful coastal town located in the south coast of England. It is the largest part of the conurbation known as Brighton & Hove formed by the union of the towns of Brighton, Hove, Portslade and other communities.The city is only 45 minutes by train from London and therefore is also called "London by the Sea"in the County of East Sussex in the Southern England.
With its 237,000 inhabitants (although the city reaches approximately 480,000 inhabitants with all its suburbs and urban belt) Brighton is today a splendid and attractive mix of ancient and modern,with a constant tourism,but much more refined than other British seaside resorts,attracting artists,musicians,tourists and intellectuals.With its cosmopolitan aspect,several of clubs restaurants, interesting nightlife and abundance of culture, this city is a major British resources.Brighton is a popular tourist destination with its numerous Hotels, restaurants and leisure facilities.The Modern city, Brighton and Hove is also an important centre of education with two universities and the study of English language widely represented by over 40 schools and the Brighton Pier which is the second most popular tourist attraction of 'England.
Known in antiquity as Brighthelmston historically Brighton was a small humble village and later it was famous to be a Saxon settlement.The Saxons conquered Sussex in the 5th century AD.One of them called Beorthelm owned a farm called it Beorthelm Tun, (Tun in the old Saxon language means farm) which eventually became the city of Brighton and apart the farmers in addition the new inhabitants started to develop another activity consisting in fisheries.
In the Middle Ages,exactly in the year 1313 was signed a charter in a document granting the inhabitants certain rights.The former town was already an active centre with an important fish market which was taking place daily in proximity of the beach of Brighton,furthermore there was also a pigs market and weekly a corn market and a general market selling all kinds of goods.Once a year had an exhibition in Brighton,in the Middle Ages a fair was like a market which was carried out annually and bringing together buyers and sellers of a wide area.
The first fortification at Brighton was the Bulwark, which was a tower built in 1497.The existence of Brighton was recorded in the Domesday Book in the first official census of England,executed for orders of King William I and in that time the town was called Bristelmestone. In June 1514 the former town was attacked and burned by French invaders during a war between England and France,only a part of the Church of St. Nicholas and the area known as The Lanes survived. to that devastation. Brighthelmestone was recorded in painting for the first time in 1545 through a table depicting the scene of the French invasion.
The 18th century is when Brighton started to change from a simple fishing town in an important SPA centre.In the year 1740 there was increasing popularity when the priests in religious rites and to bless used the waters of Brighton furthermore a famous Doctor, Richard Russell sent many of his patients to Brighton for therapies and treatments and the Prince of Wales,George IV visited Brighton for the first time in 1783, partly on the recommendation of his doctors who thought that sea water could relieve swollen glands in his neck.
In 1780, the construction of the Georgian terraces started and the small fishing town gradually became the resort which is quoted and notorious today. During the first visit of King George IV, the ruler fell in love with the town and ordered the construction of a palace, known today as the Royal Pavilion.The Royal Pavilion was transformed, for over 35 years from an elegant huge cottage to a spectacular palace.The town emerged as a tourist centre during the 18th century and became a prime destination for travellers after the arrival of the railway in 1840 with a Station it became a popular destination of people from London at the time of the Prince Regent who gave the Regency name to the particular architectural style,typical of Brighton.
in 1841 opened the door to a new era with the first relevant tourism flows,the proximity to London and greatly influenced the population began to grow little by little.In 1845,Queen Victoria left The Royal Pavilion palace in Brighton and moved to the Isle of Wight and the Palace Pavilion was sold to the the city of Brighton which since there owns the palace.At the end of the century there was also a massive construction of many churches a great investment in particular due to the desire of the Rev. Arthur Douglas Wagner.
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the coronation of Queen Victoria,was built the clock tower and there was a development of many parks one of them was the famous Preston Park which was opened in 1874.Some of the tourist iconic symbols of Brighton were built during the Victorian era, including the Grand Hotel, in 1864,the West Pier in 1866 and the Palace Pier in 1899.At the beginning Brighton was much frequented by famous and aristocratic people.Many hotels and buildings were built facing the sea as the famous Bedford Hotel,The Metropole Hotel and the Grand Hotel.
During the First World War the Royal Pavilion was used as military hospital for Indian soldiers and .'The Chattri' is a monument in honor to Indian soldiers who died in the Pavilion,it was the year 1916 when the Pavillion General Hospital admitted 6085 patients.Later,Brighton was the first hospital in Britain to treat shell shock.During the 2nd World War Brighton was bombed 56 times by the Nazis between 1940 and 1944 and on 14 September 1940 was destroyed the famous Odeon Cinema and Kemptown.
As a result, Brighton experienced a fast expansion and rapid population growth reaching 160,000 inhabitants in 1961.The city developed furthermore continuing to preserve with its particular architectonic style it became top destination in England very popular with tourists and vacationers so famous for its beautiful promenade of nearly 8,0 km and currently Brighton receives an average of 8,5 million tourists a year and Brighton received in 2001 the award as the most modern city in England.
Next to the Brighton Tourist Information centre, you can see the Indian Gate, which leads to the beautiful gardens of the Royal Pavilion in Brighton.Since then India was a British colony, had mobilised its soldiers to come to Europe to his side to fight and defend against the enemy.More than 4000 soldiers were cured in Brighton with consideration and respect for religions and beliefs, for example 9 had kitchens preparing food for the British, Hindus,Muslims and Sikhs.The door to the Indian Gate was a gift from the state of India to the people of Brighton,to thank for their help.
One of the Brighton highlight is without doubt The Royal Pavilion.It is a former royal residence built in the mandate of the Prince Regent,who later became King George IV of the United Kingdom.The future king George IV for the first time he visited Brighton in 1783 and three years later ordered the construction of the palace.The beautiful Royal Pavilion in a charming Indian-style exterior with towers and minarets and Chinese style in its interior.
This impressive huge mansion is now the symbol of the city.The Prince Regent,in 1786, rented Brighton House,a farmer.That building in the late 18th century became a sort of symbol in England of romance and a romantic place for couples who took pictures next to this imposing building.In 1787 there were the first operations to improve and enlarge the mansion,which was initially very influenced by French Neo-Classic architecture, this was very different from the idea of a romantic aspect.In those days it was fashionable for rich people to enjoy the Grand tour of Europe,visiting the most iconic and emblematic places of the Continent and the Prince was also influenced by the ruins of the ancient Rome trying to incorporate to the most sophisticated choices also ideas of symmetry, harmony and simplicity.
With those ideas was built the Marina Pavilion. Between 1802 and 1804 the interior was decorated in an Oriental style.All that was very fashionable during the 18th century,it was something exotic,coming from another latitude so far conquering the taste of the Royalty. In 1803 the stables were built and the new exterior was influenced by India and the work was finished in 1823 and became the Royal Pavilion.
Do not miss to visit the gardens surrounding the Royal Pavilion,they were restored to their original state at the time of the regency following the plans of the architect John Nash in 1820.As architect of the Royal pavilion,he designed the building and grounds as a homogeneous group,which was more difficult to maintain over time.The restoration gave the garden its former appearance, as far as possible, with roads which turn around small hills,everything is very natural although that is a park built from scratch for when the Kings came to rest along the British coast.In recent times there was a first phase of renovation of the gardens in the 80's, with the help of the conservation and partnership of the Sussex County and the works were completed in 1992.
The Brighton Museum and Art Gallery Museum are located in the Cultural Quarter with the Royal Pavilion,they contain various treasures of British and European art, as well as other pieces from America and other countries.The Museum and Art Gallery is devoted
to archaeology, history,ceramics and painting in the county. It has
interesting collections of art and design of the 20th century, art Nouveau,Art Deco and indigenous cultures,furthermore the Museum of Natural History has more than half a million of stuffed animals species.
The Town Hall of Brighton is in the centre of the city near the waterfront.It was built in 1830, and its design included the first Commissary of Police of the city.That office had a very bad reputation, because the Chief was murdered in his own office,something never happened in all Great Britain..Inside there is a museum which tells the story of the people with a great collection with documents as the first map of Brighton dated 1545.There are also some photos and illustrations of what the city looked in the past for a total of 260,000 postcards and photos, especially of the 20th century.An interesting section is also in the Brighton Films,which is about the various movies which included the city as a backdrop.
The Piers of Brighton are emblematic symbols of the city.Brighton originally had two piers: The Royal Suspension Chain Pier, which was replaced by the Brighton Marina and the Palace Pier and the West Pier Today, Brighton has a pier for tourist purposes: The Brighton Pier Palace Pier and Brighton Marina officially, hence the inscription on the sun loungers BMPP was built in May 1899.
The 2000 Palace Pier in Brighton is a pier entertainment venue is renamed now mainly for a carnival with restaurants, bars,amusement arcades,carousels, stalls and rides.Marina and the Brighton Palace Pier,called Brighton Pier was built between1891 and 1899, after the old erected 1823.The designers were obliged to demolish the old pier, what they saved, however, a storm that ripped away most of the old piers.
The Brighton Pier is approximately 525 m long and it was officially opened in May 1899. It is also one of the world's most visited and photographed piers in the world.A great amusement park is located on the pier,Ii was designed by Richard Moore, an engineer made other piers, but probably this was the greatest during his career. The complex was begun in 1891 by the Company Marine Palace & Pier, but the project was too big for this small company,who could not get the necessary permits to complete it and. in 1896, the old pier was destroyed by a storm, but at the last minute it was saved by a resident of Brighton, and finally the Palace Pier was opened in May 1899 with a grand ceremony.
The West Pier is no longer accessible from the shore due to the collapse of the bridge which connected it to the land. Built in 1866 it has been closed since 1975, its renovation has been postponed again and again.In 2002 the pier was broken partially ans in March 2003 there was a fire and another one occurred in May of the same year.After a major storm in June 2004 which broke the middle part of the pier which completely collapsed and sank into the sea but as the West Pier is a listed building, it can not be demolished.
Near the sea there is a big variety of restaurants,clubs, bars and other attractions.Brighton Beach has a small nudist section in the south area of the district of Kemptown.The rest of the coast is open to all types of swimmers.Unlike most beaches, Brighton beach has no sand,but it is a favourite destination for many British tourists.
Brighton Sea Life Aquarium was opened in 1991 and it was the sixth after the opening of the first aquarium in Scotland.The peculiarity of the Sea Life Aquarium is undoubtedly its architecture.Unlike other marine centres,Sea Life features tunnels,varying heights and different view points few traditional common facilities.Another important feature is that Sea Life began to publicise the British marine fauna populations,until then the tanks were well known and TV started to transmit and show all the colourful tropical species,although Sea Life originally the sanctuary of Scotland introduced species around all the United Kingdom and which inhabit the cold northern waters.
The Marina promenade of Brighton is probably the largest meeting point of the city,it is over 10,0 km long and offering an endless list of local shops, bars and restaurants,it is a huge maritime avenue focuses on the Brighton Pier,downtown entertainment and dining excellence.
The area occupied by the old and original original fishing village is now The Lanes a complex of narrow alleys,which currently houses antique shops,restaurants, bistros and pubs.Its name derived from Laine,which was an old unit of Anglo-Saxon territory.The area consists of Regent Lane,Arcade, Nile Street, House Lane and Steine Lane. The famous Brighton Lanes are the popular shopping district for tourists
and locals,this area connect the main streets of the Old Town with its Art galleries,designer shops and luxurious fashion boutiques.
The Church of St. Nicholas dated 11th century is the oldest Church of Brighton.The current aspect is after a restoration dated 14th century.The Church, consists in an impressive tower,a central nave and aisles. In addition a choir dated 15th century while the chapels were relatively common at that time.The Norman tower was built before using some carved Caen stones from Northern France.Several French raiders landed on the British coast devastated the villages and part of the current Brighton including the Church was severely damaged but although that devastating attack dated 1514 the Church survived.
The Church also suffered damages by severe storms which caused significant destruction and loss of life with the terrible storms of 1703 and 1705. In 1853 started new works of reconstruction and today the Church has a splendid aspect respecting the original construction.
St Bartholomew's Church is another important religious building of Brighton,dedicated to the Apostle Barholomew.This Neo-Gothic Church is located in Ann Street between Brighton Railway Station and the A23 London Road.It was built in 1872 and opened in 1874 when the building was still in phase of construction and it became the first Church in Brighton to offer universal free entrance.The exterior appearance is very sober with high walls of reddish-brown brick, now aged to a purplish-brown colour and it is topped by a steeply pitched roof with dark tiling.A mixture of red and black tiles were originally applied, but the roof was re-tiled in its present monochrome form in the year 1930.The interior is really impressing for the vast space and the highl arches well integrated with the nave.
The Middle Street Synagogue is the Brighton's second most important historic building behind the Royal Pavilion.A Jewish community existed in Brighton area for nearly a century before Middle Street synagogue was built in 1874..A Bavarian settler,Emanuel Hyam Cohen, established a Jewish school on the Brighton waterfront in 1780 and a place of worship in the late 18th century.
The exterior was executed in pale Sussex brick by George Cheesman.The building has the form and aspect of a basilica and it is an eclectic blend of Italian Renaissance and Neo-Byzantine Revival using yellow bricks in an English bond pattern,while the other walls have a brown brick colour.There is a huge rose window in the front facade which consists of five bays while on the ground floor the layout of windows is two in each end bay and one each in the two recessed bays, with the wooden doorway in the centre between two pink columns with capitols..
The arched windows are surmounted by contrasting red and blue tiles,and are flanked by red coloured columns.The beautiful ornate interior was built mostly of iron but the surfaces which meet the eye are lavishly stencilled, gilded or made of brass,marble, and mosaics.The Torah Ark sits on a marble-stepped lies in the centre of the apse below an arch supported by elaborate columns.
In Trafalgar Road there is the Brighton Toy and Model Museum,it is an exhibition of toys from all ages with models of trains running and working.There are also dolls,aeroplanes and models of cars.It is a good place to go with children and to enjoy something of alternative in Brighton.
St Peter Church is an Anglican religious building situated at the exit of Brighton.It is a Parish Church built in the 19th century by architect Charles Barry.It is a pre-Victorian Gothic example of architecture and it has been the main Church of Brighton since 1873. It is a historic monument, with a very refined design,replacing an early church which was a simple chapel,associated to St Nicholas Church, the oldest in the city.Barry was inspired by late Gothic style of the 14th and 15th centuries and he decided to develop a splendid revival of that charming architectonic medieval style.The Church was consecrated in 1828 and in the eastern side there is a memorial to Queen Victoria,a gift from the people of Brighton.
Churchill Square is the most important shopping city-centre of Brighton.It was built in 1960,the building is arranged over three floors with only the food court on the uppermost; some of the largest stores occupy two floors,with bars,restaurants,85 shops and a vast parking area.
The vibrant and lively nightlife of Brighton is well known and famous all around England.The city is packed by cafes,bars,clubs and restaurants,there are over 50 clubs, for every musical taste.In the centre of Brighton near the pier and the promenade there are
almost 200 bars,there are many places to go,The Walkabout is one it is
an Australian-themed pub very famous for music is live for the nights
of the
weekends. ,Bar 76,The Legends and many others.
The so-called "What's on in Brighton?" is the guide which say everything,what to do when and where the visitor can spend the lively nights in the city..Brighton also has many high quality theatres like the Royal Theatre, which often hosts productions of the West End of London, the Gardner Arts Centre in Sussex University and the Comedy Arts Centre in North Lane. The largest cinema is the 'Odeon situated on West Street.
Other places of interest are the Brighton Dome Theatre and also other smaller theatres such as the Marlborough Theatre and Nightingale Theatre.A good number of venues perform live music,especially the Concorde 2, Brighton Centre and Brighton Dome, where the famous Swedish band ABBA received a great success when the Scandinavian group won the Eurovision contest in 1974..
Brighton is a very lively city,hosting several concerts,events and festivals,Festival Summer Brighton is well known worldwide.It is a Festival with 10 hours of music on the beaches and concerts.It is the largest Festival in Great Britain performing this kind of festivals with the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland.The festival offers almost everything to offer the art scene in Britain and it attracts over 550,000 visitors.
In the so-called Artist Open House concept artists open their own houses for the public and exhibit their works of art.Brighton Festival Fringe runs alongside Brighton Festival, and it has grown with a consolidation as the second largest fringe festival in the world.Other festivals in Brighton areThe Great Escape consisting in three nights of live music in venues across the city and Soundwaves Festival which is celebrated in June which offers classical music composed in the 21st Century.Brighton received in 2001 the award as the most modern city in England.
Brighton is a very lovely destination if you visit Southern England and you wish to enjoy beautiful coastal landscapes,excellent restaurants,events, music a cosmopolitan atmosphere and nightlife Brighton is for its history,attractions and leisure a great destination.
Francesco Mari
Recommended Hotels in Brighton
The Granville Hotel
Hotel De Vere Grand Brighton
Myhotel Brighton
Hotel Legends
Hotel Mercure Brighton
Hotel Pelirocco
Hotel Una Brighton
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