Bramber, West Sussex
A classic downland village, Bramber boasts the remains of a Norman motte and bailey castle built in 1070 by the powerful de Braose family. Today only the gatehouse survives to any great extent. The village was once a busy seaport on the River Adur, but the silting of the estuary left Bramber well inland.
Apart from the castle, the most interesting historic building in Bramber is St Mary's House, a medieval dwelling built around 1470 by Bishop William Wayneflete. The house was intended to serve as a residence for four monks who served as bridge wardens for an important crossing of the Adur.
The building was extended to include panelled chambers and Elizabethan paintings. Queen Elizabeth I is known to have stayed here, as did Charles II. More recently, St Mary's House was used by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle as the setting for his Sherlock Holmes mystery, The Musgrave Ritual.
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