Battle of Mercredesburne

The legendary foundation of the Kingdom of the South Saxons is provided by the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, that states that in the year 477 Ælle arrived at a place called Cymenshore with his three sons Cymen, Wlenking, and Cissa.

[4][5] The historian and archaeologist, Martin Welch suggests that the area between the Ouse and Cuckmere valleys in Sussex was ceded to the Anglo-Saxons by the British in a treaty settlement.

[12] However their culture was largely of an oral tradition and they did not really start writing down legal and historical events until they were evangelised; this would have been the late 7th century for the South Saxons.

In 1896 members of The Sussex Archaeological Society investigated this claim, and subsequently published a paper concluding that the earthwork was a possible location for the battle of Mercredsburn, and that the modern name, Town Creep, could have an etymology derived from the latter part of "Mercrede", whilst the "burn" (or stream) may refer to The Ashburn stream running beneath the earthwork.

[18][19] There is also a possibility that "Mearcredesburnan stede"  was at modern Binstead based on the etymology "mære cærses burnan steðe"  meaning "the sea landing stage at the watercress stream".