ITIL® Intermediate Level

About Brighton

Brighton is a seaside resort located on the south coast of England. It is part of the historic county of East Sussex, in the great county of Sussex. Historical proof of settlement in the region dates back to the Bronze Age, Roman and Anglo-Saxon periods. The important ancient settlement of "Brighthelmstone" was documented in the book named as Domesday in 1086. The town's importance increases in the Middle Ages as the Old Town established, but it languished in the early modern period, attacks by foreign countries, affected by storms, a decreasing economy and a declining population. It starts attracting more tourists after better-quality road transport to London and becoming a boarding point to travel to France by boats. The town also developed in popularity as a health resort for sea-bathing to cure illnesses.

History

The first settlement happened in the Brighton area was between Whitehawk Camp and a Neolithic encampment at Whitehawk Hill which has been dated to between the year of 3500 BC and 2700 BC. It is among one of the six causewayed enclosures in Sussex. Archaeologists have only partly explored it, but have found numerous burial mounds, tools and bones, suggesting it was a place of some importance. There was also a Bronze Age settlement held at Coldean. In the 7th century BC, Brythonic Celts arrived in Britain, and a vital Brythonic settlement happened at Hollingbury Camp on popular Hollingbury Hill. This Celtic Iron Age encampment happened from the 2^nd or 3^rd  century and is bounded by substantial earthwork outer walls with a diameter of 1,000 ft. (approx 300 m). Cissbury Ring, roughly 10 miles (nearly 16 km) from Hollingbury, is recommended to have been the tribal "capital".

Geography and topography

It is situated between the South Downs and the English Channel to the north and south, respectively. The Sussex coast forms a broad, shallow bay between the headlands of Selsey Bill and Beachy Head; Brighton established near the centre of this bay around a seasonal river, the Wellesbourne (Whalesbone), which streamed from the South Downs above Patcham. This emptied into the English Channel at the beach near the East Cliff, forming "the natural drainage point for Brighton".

Economy

In 1985, the Borough Council termed three "myths" about Brighton's economy. Common beliefs were that most of the working population travelled to London every day; that tourism provided most of Brighton's income and jobs; or that the borough's citizens were "composed entirely of wealthy theatricals and retired business people" rather than workers. Since the 18th century it has been an significant centre for commerce.