Worthing: A peaceful coastal resort town. Situated 10 miles west of Brighton and 62 from London on the South coast of England The area has been inhabited since the Stone Age, when Cissbury Ring was one of the most important flint mines in England. The Saxons settled nearby Goring and Sompting and by the 13th Century the hamlet, known as Wortinge. Was populated by farmers and mackerel fishermen. Following the Norman conquest, William de Braose gave the manor of Worthing (then known as Ordinges) to Robert le Sauvage. In the 13th century, Easebourne Priory owned the manor of Worthing until the dissolution of the monasteries in 1539. It then became the property of Anthony Browne, 1st Viscount Montague, whose family held the manor of Worthing for over 200 years.
Worthing grew with the patronage of George III in around 1760, visits from Princess Amelia in 1798 Princess Charlotte in 1807 and Princess Augusta in 1829 did much to increase the popularity. With a warm climate and calm seas, it benefited from the Edwardian fashion for sea cures. From a poor fishing village it rose to become a popular holiday resort. Surrounded by the Downs: Highdown Hill to the west, West Hill to the north-west, Cissbury Ring to the north and Steep Down to the north-east.
In 1803 Worthing\'s population was approximately 2,500 and the hamlet was given town status. Cross Lane was renamed Montague Street and went on to become one of the new town\'s main shopping centres.
Worthing contains some ancient woodland at Titnore Woods, which is some of the last remaining ancient woodland in Sussex
Over the years Worthing has merged with outlying villages including Broadwater, Tarring, Salvington, Goring, Heene and Durrington, as well as parts of Findon and Sompting.
Worthing is twinned with Le Pays des Olonnes (in the Vendee, France) and the Elztal region (in the Black Forest, Baden Wurttemberg, Germany).
