About Rye

Rising majestically from the flatlands of the surrounding marshes, the historic town of Rye sits atop a knoll of land that was once washed by the sea. Rye was first chartered by Edward the Confessor, later fortified against French attack by Stephen, made a Cinque Port during the reign of Henry III and furnished nine of the ships which lay siege to Calais under Edward III. By the early 14th Century, when it was designated as a head Cinque Port, Rye was one of the most important ports on the south coast.

Major medieval landmarks include The Ypres Tower, dating to the beginning of the 13th Century; The Landgate Tower, dating to the late 14th Century and the only remaining of the four gates which once led into the town; The Mermaid Inn, Rye's largest medieval building; and the Church of St Mary's, sitting atop the town. Seen from afar the outline of Rye still has the appearance of a walled medieval town rising from the marshes.

In later years Rye became a centre of Kent and Sussex smuggling, sometime home to the infamous Hawkhurst Gang, a ruthless group of over 600 smugglers who, in the mid 18th Century, made the still standing Mermaid Inn their local haunt.

Rye continued its connection with sea trade, both legal and illegal, well into the 19th Century, by which time it had become a centre of the ship building industry with warships for the Crimea setting sale from its harbour.

Rye has played it's part for the cultural life of Great Britain too. Renaissance playwright John Fletcher was born in Rye. Russell Thorndike based his Dr Syn books in the Rye area. Rumer Godden and EF Benson (Mapp & Lucia) both lived in Rye. Perhaps the town's most famous inhabitant was the novelist Henry James who made his home at Lamb House, nestled away just off Mermaid Street. James wrote here between 1897-1914 and Lamb House is today a National Trust property, something of a literary shrine adorned with portraits of James as well as of a host of other distinguished late 19th and early 20th Century visitors.

Today Rye is a thriving market town, a place that brings the past right into the present day.

The Knoll Bed and Breakfast is proud to be the latest addition to many visitor amenities in Rye and we look forward to introducing you to the delights of Rye in the near future.