Brede Place

Brede Place is a 15th-century manor house, rebuilt by Robert Oxenbridge, constructed from sandstone ashlar or stone rubble with ashlar dressings. Later, in the 16th century, red brick additions and alterations were made by Sir Goddard Oxenbridge. The main west front features eight windows, with two dormers and three attic windows set within gables. The original layout included a central hall and a chapel at the south end. The front is characterized by three projecting sections. The southernmost projection, dating to the 15th century, houses the chapel and contains a square-headed window with two cinquefoil-headed lights on both the ground and first floors. The other two projections are 16th-century red brick additions; the central one has splayed angles and a hipped roof and originally had doorways leading into it from both the hall and the solar, though one is now blocked. The northernmost projection serves as the entrance and has a gable facing both west and south, with a four-centred doorway and a brick hood mould above. A buttress is located at the northwest angle of the front. Most windows are modern casements. The south front displays a pointed 15th-century window, with three cinquefoil-headed lights and tracery above, which illuminates the chapel, alongside two chimney breasts. The east front has four windows and three large, two small dormers, with a large, crow-stepped brick gable in the centre. The house was owned by the Frewen family from 1712 to 1936. Brede Place was once considered one of the finest historic buildings in Sussex, but suffered extensive fire damage and was subsequently reconstructed and extended.