St. Clements Caves

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St. Clements Caves are located on the West Hill in Hastings, East Sussex. The caves were named after a nearby parish church and is now a tourist attraction, about smuggling on the South Coast 200 years ago. [1]

[edit] History

The earliest written reference about the caves was about an old man and woman who lived in the caves from 1783, because they were discharged from the town workhouse for misbehaviour. The couple lived at the bottom of 'Monks Walk', a 140 feet (44 metres) long tunnel which is now the start of the cave tour.

In the 1820s, the caves were rediscovered by a local grocer named Joseph Golding. He was cutting a garden seat into the side of the cliff and he broke through to the vast cavern. They became a tourist attraction in 1864 and had a visit from the Prince and Princess of Wales and in 1873 another royal visit from Prince Albert and Prince George Frederick.

In 1940 the caves became an air raid shelter and a temporary home for up to 600 people. Even once when the West Hill received a direct hit from a bomb, the caves remained undamaged.

[edit] Modern tourist attraction

Nowadays the caves are home to The Smugglers Adventure; this attractions allows visitors to tour around the caves, with interactive activities, life-sized wax models and videos with fictional smuggler 'Hairy Jack'. The Ballroom is now a converted gift shop and main entrance to the attraction.