LIntels in East Sussex
What is a Lintel?
A lintel is a simply a beam that is placed across gaps or openings such as doors and windows. Lintels are included in building projects to support the load from the building materials above. The width of a lintel beam should be equal to the width of the wall it is fitted into and the ends of the lintel is built into the wall itself.
Types of lintel used most often
Although today most lintels are manufactured from concrete and steel, other materials can sometimes be used.
Timber lintels
Many years ago, the construction industry used timber for lintels. The main disadvantages with timber is the cost, they are less durable and are more vulnerable to rot and fire.
Steel lintels
These are used when the superimposed loads are heavy and openings are large. These consist of channel sections or rolled steel joists.
Concrete lintels
Concrete lintels are probably the most common lintel in use today. The lintel made of reinforced concrete and are widely used to span the openings for doors and windows. The concrete lintel is popular because of their strength, rigidity, fire resistance, low cost and ease of use. The concrete lintel is suitable for all the loads and for any span.
East Sussex: A historic area
The Kingdom of the South Saxons, today referred to as the Kingdom of Sussex, was one of the seven traditional kingdoms of the heptarchy of Anglo-Saxon England, heptarchy literally meaning, ‘seven autonomous regions’. On the south coast of the island of Great Britain, it was originally a sixth-century Saxon colony and later an independent kingdom. The kingdom remains one of the least known of the Anglo-Saxon polities, with no surviving king-list, several local rulers and less centralisation than other Anglo Saxon kingdoms. The South Saxons were ruled by the kings of Sussex until the country was annexed by Wessex, probably in 827, in the aftermath of the Battle of Ellendun.
The beginnings of East Sussex
The foundation legend of the kingdom of Sussex is that in 477 Ælle and his three sons arrived in three ships, conquering what is now Sussex. Ælle became overlord, or Bretwalda, over the other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms south of the Humber. Historians remain divided over whether or not Ælle really existed, however archaeological evidence supports the view that a short-lived expansion of South Saxon authority as far as the Midlands may have taken place in the fifth century.
War in East Sussex
For the majority of the seventh and eighth centuries, Sussex was engaged in a long and ongoing conflict with the kingdom of Wessex to its west. King Æðelwealh formed an alliance with Christian Mercia against Wessex, becoming Sussex’s first Christian king. With support from St Wilfrid, Sussex became the last major Anglo Saxon kingdom to become Christian. South Saxon and Mercian forces took control of what is now east Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.
Caedwalla of Wessex killed Aeoelwealh and inflicted a savage slaughter and devastation on East Sussex. The South Saxons forced Cædwalla to leave East Sussex and were able to lead a campaign into Kent, replacing its king. At this time East Sussex could have re-emerged into a regional power. Shortly afterwards, Cædwalla returned to East Sussex, killing its king and putting its people into a state of slavery. The South Saxon clergy were put under the control of West Saxon Winchester. Only around the year 715 was Eadberht of Selsey made the first bishop of the South Saxons, after which further invasion attempts from Wessex ensued.
Following a period of rule by King Offa of Mercia, East Sussex regained its independence but was annexed by Wessex in around 827 and was fully absorbed into the crown of Wessex in 860.