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The River Arun () is a river in the
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...
county of
West Sussex West Sussex is a county in South East England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the shire districts of Adur, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, and Mid Sussex, and the boroughs of Crawley and Worthing. Covering an ...
. At long, it is the longest river entirely in
Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the Englis ...
and one of the longest starting in Sussex after the
River Medway The River Medway is a river in South East England. It rises in the High Weald, East Sussex and flows through Tonbridge, Maidstone and the Medway conurbation in Kent, before emptying into the Thames Estuary near Sheerness, a total distance ...
,
River Wey The River Wey is a main tributary of the River Thames in south east England. Its two branches, one of which rises near Alton in Hampshire and the other in West Sussex to the south of Haslemere, join at Tilford in Surrey. Once combined the ...
and River Mole. From the series of small streams that form its source in the area of
St Leonard's Forest St Leonard's Forest is at the western end of the Wealden Forest Ridge which runs from Horsham to Tonbridge, and is part of the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It lies on the ridge to the south of the A264 between Horsham and Crawl ...
in the
Weald The Weald () is an area of South East England between the parallel chalk escarpments of the North and the South Downs. It crosses the counties of Hampshire, Surrey, Sussex and Kent. It has three separate parts: the sandstone "High Weald" in the ...
, the Arun flows westwards through
Horsham Horsham is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...
to Nowhurst where it is joined by the North River. Turning to the south, it is joined by its main
tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...
, the western River Rother, and continues through a gap in the
South Downs The South Downs are a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, in the Eastbourne Downland Estate, East Sussex, in the eas ...
to
Arundel Arundel ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Arun District of the South Downs, West Sussex, England. The much-conserved town has a medieval castle and Roman Catholic cathedral. Arundel has a museum and comes second behind much larg ...
to join the
English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" ( Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), ( Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Ka ...
at
Littlehampton Littlehampton is a town, seaside resort, and pleasure harbour, and the most populous civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England. It lies on the English Channel on the eastern bank of the mouth of the River Arun. It is south sout ...
. It is one of the faster flowing rivers in England, and is tidal as far inland as Pallingham Quay, upstream from the sea at Littlehampton. The Arun gives its name to the Arun local government district of West Sussex. The first major improvements to the river were made between the 1540s and the 1570s, when Arundel became a port, and navigation up to Pallingham was improved, but barges had difficulty negotiating the
flash lock A flash lock is a type of lock for river or canal transport. Early locks were designed with a single gate, known as a flash lock or staunch lock. The earliest European references to what were clearly flash locks were in Roman times. Developm ...
s that were installed. The work was carried out by
Henry FitzAlan, 19th Earl of Arundel Henry Fitzalan, 12th Earl of Arundel KG (23 April 151224 February 1580) was an English nobleman, who over his long life assumed a prominent place at the court of all the later Tudor sovereigns, probably the only person to do so. Court caree ...
, who made the upper section toll-free. Harbour commissioners managed the lower river from Arundel to the sea from 1732, and major improvements to keep the estuary free from silt were sanctioned by an
Act of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of parliame ...
obtained in 1793. With the coming of the railways and changes in coastal shipping, Littlehampton superseded Arundel as the port of the Arun, and the Littlehampton harbour commissioners are still responsible for the river up to Arundel, collecting tolls for its use. The river above Arundel was improved after 1785. As the main channel was toll-free, the proprietors of the scheme built two major cuts. One, which included three locks and passed through Hardham Tunnel, was built to avoid a large bend near Pulborough. The other was near the upper terminus, where a cut with three locks and a flood Lock crossed the original channel by an aqueduct to reach wharves at Newbridge. Further improvements were made when the Wey and Arun Canal opened in 1816, joining the Arun Navigation at Newbridge, and after the completion of the
Portsmouth and Arundel Canal The Portsmouth and Arundel Canal was a canal in the south of England that ran between Portsmouth and Ford in the Arundel district, it was built in 1823 but was never a financial success and was abandoned in 1855; the company was wound up in 1888 ...
, which opened soon afterwards. These two canals were an attempt to provide an inland route between London and Portsmouth, but were not as successful as the proprietors hoped. Traffic declined rapidly when the railways offered competition, and the navigation ceased to be maintained from 1888, though some traffic continued on the lower sections. The Wey and Arun Canal is currently being restored, and restoration will eventually include the cut and locks below Newbridge.


History

When
Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importanc ...
wrote his ''
Geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, an ...
'' around 150 AD, the Arun was called the ''Trisantonis'', with later accounts using the same name. Trisantonis is thought to be a
Brythonic Brittonic or Brythonic may refer to: *Common Brittonic, or Brythonic, the Celtic language anciently spoken in Great Britain *Brittonic languages, a branch of the Celtic languages descended from Common Brittonic *Britons (Celtic people) The Br ...
word for 'the trespasser', indicating the river's tendency to flood land near to the river. ''Trisanto'' translates directly as 'one who goes across'. There is also a theory that the Arun may have been known as the ''Trisantonis'' in its lower reaches close to the sea, but known as the ''Arnus'' (from the Brythonic 'Arno' meaning run, go, or flow) in its upper reaches. It is possible that the town of Arundel may mean Arno-dell, or dell of the flowing river. By the Middle Ages the river was known as the river of Arundel, the Arundel river, or the high stream of Arundel. An alternative name, the Tarrant (derived from ''Trisantona''), is, however, attested in 725 and 1270, and is reflected in the road name Tarrant Street, one of the main roads running through the town roughly parallel to the river. The first use of the modern name was recorded in 1577, but the alternative names of Arundel river or great river continued to be used for many years. A further possible translation derived from the Domesday spelling of ''Harundel'' comes from the Anglo Saxon ''hærn dæl'' meaning ''tidal valley'', this would mean that the name of the river ''Arun'' probably also derives from ''Tidal''. Other local rivers such as the ''Rother'' deriving from the Anglo Saxon ''róðer'' which means Rower (as in a long river) are also descriptive of the river and its surrounds. The mouth of the river has not always been at
Littlehampton Littlehampton is a town, seaside resort, and pleasure harbour, and the most populous civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England. It lies on the English Channel on the eastern bank of the mouth of the River Arun. It is south sout ...
. Until the later fifteenth century it joined the
River Adur The Adur ( or ) is a river in Sussex, England; it gives its name to the Adur district of West Sussex. The river, which is long, was once navigable for large vessels up as far as Steyning, where there was a large Saxon port, but by the 11t ...
at Lancing some ten miles to the east before entering the sea. This estuary became blocked with shingle by the eastward drift of the tides, pushing the Adur towards
Shoreham-by-Sea Shoreham-by-Sea (often shortened to Shoreham) is a coastal town and port in West Sussex, England. The town is bordered to its north by the South Downs, to its west by the Adur Valley and to its south by the River Adur and Shoreham Beach on t ...
, while the Arun broke out at
Worthing Worthing () is a seaside town in West Sussex, England, at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of Chichester. With a population of 111,400 and an area of , the borough is the second largest component of the Brighton and Ho ...
, Goring and Ferring at various times, until it formed its present estuary at Littlehampton between 1500 and 1530.{{sfn , Vine , 1986 , p=20


Improvements

The lower portion of the river, from the sea to Ford, was navigable in the eleventh century at the time of the
Norman conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conq ...
. In the sixteenth century,
Henry FitzAlan, 19th Earl of Arundel Henry Fitzalan, 12th Earl of Arundel KG (23 April 151224 February 1580) was an English nobleman, who over his long life assumed a prominent place at the court of all the later Tudor sovereigns, probably the only person to do so. Court caree ...
built wharves at Ford, and improved the river channel below there, so that the town became a port. Over the 30 years from 1544, he also improved the river as far upstream as Pallingham Quay. Although the work involved a number of
flash lock A flash lock is a type of lock for river or canal transport. Early locks were designed with a single gate, known as a flash lock or staunch lock. The earliest European references to what were clearly flash locks were in Roman times. Developm ...
s, which were not very successful, no tolls were charged for its use, and vessels of around 15 tons were used to carry timber. Attempts to make the river navigable up to Newbridge in the early sixteenth century were not successful.{{sfn , Hadfield , 1969 , pp=124-125 An
Act of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of parliame ...
was obtained in 1732, the main emphasis of which was the improvement of "the harbour of Littlehampton, called Arundel Port", but improvements to the first {{convert, 5.75, mi, km of the river, from the sea to Arundel, were also authorised. Commissioners were appointed, with powers to erect piers and to cut a new channel to the sea through a sand bar. The Act allowed them to charge tolls for use of the facilities, and once the initial costs had been repaid, one half of the tolls were to be used to maintain the harbour and the river channel up to Arundel.{{sfn , Priestley , 1831 , p=28 Although most ships were of 30 or 40 tons, ships of up to 100 tons could reach Arundel as a result of the work, and trade improved.{{harvnb , Hudson , 1977 , loc=pp. 10-101, "Port and River Traffic" The next Act to affect the river was obtained by a group of local men in 1785. Under the Act, the proprietors were empowered to make the river navigable for 30-ton barges up to Newbridge. They had no jurisdiction over the river from Arundel to Houghton bridge, and could not charge tolls for use of the river up to Pallingham.{{harvnb , Hadfield , 1969 , p=125 There were 31 members of the proprietors, who could raise £10,000 by issuing 100 shares worth £100 each. Day-to-day oversight of the affairs of the navigation were managed by three proprietors, with a half-yearly meeting of the larger group.{{sfn , Priestley , 1831 , pp=26-27 The purpose of the navigation was to carry coal, chalk and lime upstream, and agricultural produce in the other direction. Rather than improve the river channel, the navigation upstream of Pallingham consisted of a separate channel, containing three locks, and an aqueduct which carried the navigation over the river at Orfold. The journey below Pallingham was made {{convert, 3, mi, km shorter by cutting a new channel between Coldwaltham and Hardham. This involved the construction of three more locks and a {{convert, 375, yd, m, adj=on tunnel. The Pallingham to Newbridge section opened on 1 August 1787, while the Hardham cut was completed in mid-1790. The cost of the work was around £16,000.{{sfn , Hadfield , 1969 , p=125 There were two proposals to extend the navigation at this time. The first was for a canal to North Chapel, to the north of
Petworth Petworth is a small town and civil parish in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England. It is located at the junction of the A272 east–west road from Heathfield to Winchester and the A283 Milford to Shoreham-by-Sea road. Some twe ...
, in 1791, and the second was for a canal to
Horsham Horsham is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...
in the following year. The route was surveyed by John Rennie, who estimated that it would cost £18,133 to build, but negotiations with the existing proprietors failed, and the scheme was dropped in 1794. Meanwhile, a second Act of Parliament was obtained by the harbour commissioners in 1793, as there was serious silting of the estuary.
Groyne A groyne (in the U.S. groin) is a rigid hydraulic structure built perpendicularly from an ocean shore (in coastal engineering) or a river bank, interrupting water flow and limiting the movement of sediment. It is usually made out of wood, concr ...
s were constructed and the existing piers were made longer. In addition, a
towpath A towpath is a road or trail on the bank of a river, canal, or other inland waterway. The purpose of a towpath is to allow a land vehicle, beasts of burden, or a team of human pullers to tow a boat, often a barge. This mode of transport w ...
was built from the mouth of the river up to Arundel. The Act stated that the
capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...
borrowed to finance the harbour under the previous act had been repaid, and that tolls would all be used for maintenance of the harbour and river up to Arundel, once further borrowings had been repaid. Because the inhabitants of Arundel had spent £28,300 on the harbour, boats which belonged to the port of Arundel did not have to pay any tolls.{{sfn , Priestley , 1831 , pp=28-29 As a result of the works, the port of Arundel enjoyed its most prosperous period for the next thirty years, with ships of 200 and 300 tons able to reach the town on
spring tides Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tabl ...
. Facilities improved, and there were four docks by 1840.


Operation

Payment of
dividend A dividend is a distribution of profits by a corporation to its shareholders. When a corporation earns a profit or surplus, it is able to pay a portion of the profit as a dividend to shareholders. Any amount not distributed is taken to be re-i ...
s to
shareholder A shareholder (in the United States often referred to as stockholder) of a corporation is an individual or legal entity (such as another corporation, a body politic, a trust or partnership) that is registered by the corporation as the legal o ...
s began in 1792, and over the next five years, tolls raised an average of £893 per year and the dividend was 3.1 per cent. At this time, George Wyndham, 3rd Earl of Egremont was buying shares and having obtained one third of them, he became chairman of the company. He then stopped the payment of dividends so that the borrowed capital could be paid off more quickly. Apart from an interim payment in 1821, dividends were not reinstated until 1830. In the 1790s Wyndham was responsible for the canalisation of the River Rother which joins the Arun at Stopham,{{sfn , Hadfield , 1969 , p=127 and he also promoted the Wey and Arun Canal, which was seen as part of a larger scheme to link
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
to
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most d ...
, an idea which had been contemplated several times since 1641. He chaired a meeting held at
Guildford Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, around southwest of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The name "Guildf ...
on 1 June 1811, at which it was decided to press ahead with the canal, and put up £20,000 of the initial £90,500 estimated cost. The canal opened in September 1816, but the estimated 100,000 tons of traffic passing between London and the dockyards at Portsmouth, and the 30,000 tons of local traffic, were far too optimistic, with actual traffic averaging around 15,000 tons per year throughout its life.{{sfn , Hadfield , 1969 , pp=132-134 The London to Portsmouth route was to be completed by the
Portsmouth and Arundel Canal The Portsmouth and Arundel Canal was a canal in the south of England that ran between Portsmouth and Ford in the Arundel district, it was built in 1823 but was never a financial success and was abandoned in 1855; the company was wound up in 1888 ...
, in which Wyndham and the Cutfields, who also held many shares in the Arun Navigation, were both significant subscribers. This was authorised by Act of Parliament in 1817, and an agreement was reached that the Arun would be improved to aid through traffic. Nevertheless, no work commenced on the Arun until the proprietors were sure that the Ford section of the new canal would actually be built. Once they were convinced, they obtained an Act of Parliament in May 1821, and the engineer James Hollingworth oversaw the improvements, which were completed in mid-1823. The work involved improving the depth and width of the channel, and some alterations to bridges and locks to make their size more uniform. The company borrowed £3000 to finance the work, which cost around £5000 in total. The loans had been repaid by 1831, and the work allowed barge sizes to be increased from 30 tons to 40 tons, with the result that business improved.{{sfn , Hadfield , 1969 , pp=136-138 Traffic increased, as shown by the number of boats belonging to residents of Arundel. There were 13 in 1801, which had increased to 15 by 1803, with a total tonnage of 266. A timber merchant called John Boxold owned barges in 1815 and 1832, while in 1820, a company began running regular freight services to London, using three barges based near the town quay. By 1823 they had ten barges, which had reduced to seven by 1830, and barges ran twice-weekly to
Chichester Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ...
, London, Midhurst, and
Petworth Petworth is a small town and civil parish in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England. It is located at the junction of the A272 east–west road from Heathfield to Winchester and the A283 Milford to Shoreham-by-Sea road. Some twe ...
. The company was variously called Seward and Co., The Arundel Barge Co., and several other names.


Decline

From the 1840s, use of the river declined, as a result of competition from the railways, and changes in coastal shipping. Littlehampton grew in importance as a port and after years of resistance by the people of Arundel, the customs house was moved there in 1864. The Mid-Sussex Railway opened their line from Horsham to Pulborough and Petworth in 1859, which was extended to Ford and Littlehampton in 1863. Receipts from tolls had peaked at £2044 for the five years from 1835 to 1840, when a dividend of 11.8 percent was paid, but dropped quickly, raising just £389 for years between 1870 and 1875, when the dividend was 1 percent.{{sfn , Hadfield , 1969 , pp=125-126 By 1852, the barge service to London only ran once a week, and it had ceased altogether three years later. Most vessels reaching Arundel were coasters rather than barges by 1886, and just 20 ships used the facilities that year. The Wey and Arun Canal closed in 1871. The proprietors of the upper river ceased to maintain the navigation from 1 January 1888, and the last barge passed through Hardham Tunnel on 29 January 1889.{{harvnb , Hadfield , 1969 , p=126 The river was abandoned as a navigation by a warrant issued as part of the Railway and Canal Traffic Act of 1888. The River Lark in Suffolk was the only other river navigation abandoned at that time.{{sfn , Boyes , Russell , 1977 , p=182 The Board of Trade issued a closing order in 1896, and after that, there was no navigation authority responsible for the upper river. However, traffic did not cease entirely. Fifteen or twenty barges were still using the river in the 1880s, although the upper reaches were no longer accessible. Arundel docks silted up between 1875 and 1896. In 1898, the
London, Brighton and South Coast Railway The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR; known also as the Brighton line, the Brighton Railway or the Brighton) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1922. Its territory formed a rough triangle, with London at its ...
, who by this time were the owners of the railway from Horsham to Littlehampton, drilled down into the tunnel where the main line and the branch to Midhurst crossed its course, and poured tons of chalk into the tunnel to stabilise it.{{sfn , Marshall , Norris , 1953 , pp=128, 257 A trade in
chalk Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. C ...
and lime extracted from Amberley chalk pits continued into the early twentieth century. Some ships were towed to Arundel by paddle tugs, and imports of
salt Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quant ...
, timber and coal for the
gasworks A gasworks or gas house is an industrial plant for the production of flammable gas. Many of these have been made redundant in the developed world by the use of natural gas, though they are still used for storage space. Early gasworks Coal ...
continued. Arundel was visited by its last steamer in 1914, and the last sailing vessel to reach the port did so three years later. Passage of larger craft upstream was hindered by the construction of a swing bridge at Littlehampton in 1908, and prevented by a fixed railway bridge at Ford built in 1938. As freight traffic disappeared from the river, Edward Slaughter, who later became part of the company of Buller and Slaughter, was hiring pleasure craft by 1903, and the company was still doing so in the 1990s.


Present

Authority for the river remains much as it was after 1896, with the Littlehampton Harbour Board responsible for the section from the mouth up to Arundel Bridge, and no navigation authority for the river above that, although the
Environment Agency The Environment Agency (EA) is a non-departmental public body, established in 1996 and sponsored by the United Kingdom government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with responsibilities relating to the protection and en ...
have responsibility for its drainage functions. There are nine bridges with a minimum navigable headroom of between {{convert, 8, ft, m and {{convert, 5, ft, m at high water. The river is tidal to Pallingham Quay, {{convert, 25.5, mi, km upstream from the sea at Littlehampton, and flows at {{convert, 4, to, 6, knot, kph, making it one of the fastest flowing rivers in the country. The tidal range at Littlehampton is {{convert, 17, ft, m at spring tides and {{convert, 8.8, ft, m at neap tides. High tide occurs 15 minutes later than high water at
Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maids ...
, and high water at Pulborough is four hours later than at Littlehampton.{{sfn , Cumberlidge , 2009 , pp=58-59


Charitable organisations

The ''Arun & Rother Rivers Trust'' (ARRT) is a charity set up in 2011 with objectives around education, fisheries, biodiversity, access and pollution amongst other issues. The Wey and Arun Canal is being restored by the ''Wey and Arun Canal Trust'', which was set up in the 1970s. The Wey and Arun Canal technically ended at Newbridge, but the restoration will include the Arun Navigation section down to Pallingham to reach the River Arun.{{sfn , Cumberlidge , 2009 , pp=328-330 For many years, the Solent and Arun Branch of the Inland Waterways Association organised an annual cruise on the river to ensure that the navigation rights were maintained. Responsibility for its organisation has now been passed to the Wey and Arun Canal Trust.


Route

At {{convert, 37, mi, km from its source to the sea, the Arun is the longest of the rivers flowing entirely within Sussex.{{sfn , Vine , 2007 , p=7 It rises as a series of streams, known locally as ''ghylls'' or ''gills'', to the east of Horsham, in
St Leonard's Forest St Leonard's Forest is at the western end of the Wealden Forest Ridge which runs from Horsham to Tonbridge, and is part of the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It lies on the ridge to the south of the A264 between Horsham and Crawl ...
. It flows westwards, along the southern boundary of Horsham and turns briefly to the north to skirt
Broadbridge Heath Broadbridge Heath is a village and civil parish in the Horsham district of West Sussex, England. It is about two miles (3 km) west from the historic centre of Horsham. The population of Broadbridge Heath has increased considerably in the fir ...
. Continuing westwards, it is joined by the North River, which is also known as the River Oke,{{sfn , Goodsall , 1962 whose headstreams are the heights of
Leith Hill Leith Hill in southern England is the highest summit of the Greensand Ridge, approximately southwest of Dorking, Surrey and southwest of central London. It reaches above sea level, and is the second highest point in southeast England, after ...
and Holmbury Hill in Surrey.{{sfn , Hillier , 1951 After the junction, it passes under the
A29 road A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes'' ...
, which follows the route of the Roman Stane Street at this point, and timber piles of a Roman bridge have been found in the riverbed.{{cite web, url=http://www.romansinsussex.co.uk/level3/search/detail.asp?maj_cat_search=communication&objectnumber=251, title=Bridge Piles, work=Romans in Sussex, publisher=Sussex Archaeological Society, access-date=26 December 2012, url-status=dead, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120221224103/http://www.romansinsussex.co.uk/level3/search/detail.asp?maj_cat_search=communication&objectnumber=251, archive-date=21 February 2012 The earthworks from a Roman station are close by. To the south of Rudgwick it is crossed by a disused railway line, and at this point it crosses the {{convert, 66, ft, m, adj=on contour. Its course is marked by winding
meander A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank ( cut bank) and deposits sediments on an inner, convex ban ...
s as it turns towards the south, and the county boundary briefly follows its course, the River Lox / Loxwood Stream joins the Arun at Drungewick just before it is joined by the partially restored Wey and Arun Canal. Its former course to the west of the canal can be clearly seen, and is followed by the boundary, but the main flow of the river follows a new straight cut just to the east of the canal. Once the boundary crosses back over the canal, the river resumes its meandering course on the eastern side of the canal.Ordnance Survey, 1:25,000 map A little further to the south is another straight cut, with the old course still visible on the other side of the canal. Soon it reaches Newbridge on the A272 road near Wisborough Green. The location of the wharf which was the northern terminus of the Arun Navigation was just to the south of the bridge. Wharf Farm was nearby, and the modern 1:2500
Ordnance Survey Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of 1745. There was a ...
map shows buildings named "The Old Wharf". Brockhurst Brook joins from the east before the river turns briefly westwards. Soon it is crossed by Orfold Aqueduct, which carried the Arun Navigation over the river channel. The River Kird joins it, flowing from the north, and it turns southwards again. At Pallingham the remains of Pallingham Manor are on the north bank, next to Pallingham Manor Farm, a 17th-century timber-framed farmhouse, which is
Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern I ...
. Pallingham Quay Farmhouse, another Grade II listed building dating from the 18th century, is on the west bank of the river just before its junction with the Arun Navigation cut. Below the junction, the river is tidal. Continuing southwards, the river passes the gallops which are part of Coombelands Racing Stables, situated on the eastern bank, and Park Mount, a
motte and bailey A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy t ...
dating from the time of the
Norman conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conq ...
. It is one of the best-preserved monuments of this type in south east England. The river is crossed by Stopham Bridge, a fine medieval stone bridge built in 1422–23. The centre arch was raised as part of the improvements made to the navigation in 1822. It is a
Grade I listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern I ...
structure, and also a
Scheduled Ancient Monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...
. It was damaged by army lorries in the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
, but has been repaired, and the heavy traffic on the A283 road was diverted onto a new bridge just upstream of it in the 1980s. Below the bridge is a small island, after which an artificial cut built to avoid the circuitous route of the River Rother Navigation heads westwards. The river now discharges over a weir at the site of the former Hardham corn mill to join the Arun a little further downstream, and the junction is followed by another small island. Hardham lock was necessary because of the drop in levels caused by the mill, and the branch through Hardham tunnel headed due south a little further up the Rother. Exploration of the tunnel was described by an article in ''Sussex County Magazine'' in 1953, when both ends were accessible, and again in 2012, when only the southern end was explored. A waterworks has been built over the bed of the canal at the northern end, and the tunnel mouth is within the site.{{sfn , Whittington , 2012 , pp=78-79 The river continues in a large loop to the east. The Arun Valley railway line crosses it to reach Pulborough railway station. There is another island, with the
A29 road A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes'' ...
crossing both channels. Pulborough Brooks nature reserve is to the east of the loop, and the course then meanders westwards to Greatham Bridge. The bridge consists of eight low elliptical arches, two taller arches, a cast iron span over the navigable channel, and a solid ramp to the east. Although its construction suggests that it is medieval, most of the arches were erected in 1827. On the west bank of the river below the bridge is Waltham Brooks nature reserve. Coldwaltham lock, on the branch through the Hardham Tunnel, is still marked on modern maps, and the section from the lock to the river still holds water. Just to the north of
Amberley Amberley may refer to: Places Australia *Amberley, Queensland, near Ipswich, Australia *RAAF Base Amberley, a Royal Australian Air Force military airbase United Kingdom * Amberley, Gloucestershire, England * Amberley, Herefordshire, Englan ...
, the river is crossed by the Arun Valley line again at Timberley Bridge. At the village of Bury, the West Sussex Literary Trail joins the western bank and another footpath joins the eastern bank. The next bridge is Houghton Bridge, close to
Amberley railway station Amberley railway station is a railway station in West Sussex, England. It serves the village of Amberley, about half a mile away, and was opened by the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway. The Amberley Working Museum – a museum of indu ...
. The river splits into two channels here, and the bridge spans both. Similar to Greatham Bridge, it looks medieval, but was built in 1875. There is a solid section on the island between the channels, with a single arch over the eastern channel and four arches over the main river. The chalk pits which provided trade to the navigation are now the location of
Amberley Museum & Heritage Centre Amberley Museum is an open-air industrial heritage museum at Amberley, near Arundel in West Sussex, England. The museum is owned and operated by Amberley Museum and Heritage Centre, a not-for-profit company and registered charity, and has the s ...
, a {{convert, 36, acre, ha, adj=on site with many items of industrial heritage on display. The river follows an "S"-shaped course, the northern loop encircling the village of North Stoke and the south one encircling South Stoke. Immediately to the south, the old course passes under the railway line, but a new channel was cut to the west of the railway. On the west bank is the hamlet of Offham and Arundel Wetland Centre, a {{convert, 65, acre, ha, adj=on haven for birds which is run by the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust. The market town of Arundel is to the west of the river. It has a castle build on a motte, the construction of which was started in 1068. It is owned by the Duke and Duchess of Norfolk. The present building consists of many different components, dating from the late eleventh century through to the nineteenth, and is Grade I listed. Two bridges span the river here, the first on the original road through the town, while the second carries the A284 Arundel Bypass. The final section is crossed by a railway bridge, built in 1908, and the A259 road bridge, which carries the road into Littlehampton on the east bank. It discharges into the
English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" ( Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), ( Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Ka ...
between the East and West Piers. Littlehampton and its harbour were guarded from naval attack by Littlehampton Redoubt on the western bank at the mouth of the river, completed in 1854, which is now screened from the open sea by Climping sand dunes. This fort replaced a seven-gun battery on the east bank, which was built in 1764.


Water quality

The Environment Agency measure the water quality of the river systems in England. Each is given an overall ecological status, which may be one of five levels: high, good, moderate, poor and bad. There are several components that are used to determine this, including biological status, which looks at the quantity and varieties of
invertebrate Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chorda ...
s,
angiosperm Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants ...
s and fish. Chemical status, which compares the concentrations of various chemicals against known safe concentrations, is rated good or fail.{{cite web , url=http://environment.data.gov.uk/catchment-planning/help/glossary , website=Catchment Data Explorer , title=Glossary (see Biological quality element; Chemical status; and Ecological status) , publisher=Environment Agency , access-date=15 May 2017 The water quality of the River Arun system was as follows in 2019. {, class="wikitable" , - ! Section !! Ecological Status !! Chemical Status !! Length !! Catchment !! Channel , - , {{waterqual_title , desc=Arun Source , asset=GB107041012920 , access-date=27 November 2021 , {{waterqual_poor , {{waterqual_fail , {{convert, 9.8, mi , {{convert, 16.72, sqmi , , - , {{waterqual_title , desc=Boldings Brook , asset=GB107041012910 , access-date=27 November 2021 , {{waterqual_poor , {{waterqual_fail , {{convert, 6.9, mi , {{convert, 12.59, sqmi , , - , {{waterqual_title , desc=Arun Horsham , asset=GB107041012310 , access-date=27 November 2021 , {{waterqual_poor , {{waterqual_fail , {{convert, 4.5, mi , {{convert, 7.01, sqmi , , - , {{waterqual_title , desc=North River , asset=GB107041017990 , access-date=27 November 2021 , {{waterqual_mod , {{waterqual_fail , {{convert, 15.5, mi , {{convert, 21.49, sqmi , , - , {{waterqual_title , desc=Loxwood Stream , asset=GB107041017970 , access-date=27 November 2021 , {{waterqual_poor , {{waterqual_fail , {{convert, 12.1, mi , {{convert, 18.66, sqmi , , - , {{waterqual_title , desc=Kird , asset=GB107041012300 , access-date=27 November 2021 , {{waterqual_poor , {{waterqual_fail , {{convert, 16.5, mi , {{convert, 26.91, sqmi , , - , {{waterqual_title , desc=Arun (U/S Pallingham) , asset=GB107041017950 , access-date=27 November 2021 , {{waterqual_mod , {{waterqual_fail , {{convert, 21.1, mi , {{convert, 33.75, sqmi , , - , {{waterqual_title , desc=Arun downstream Pallingham Weir , asset=GB107041013350 , access-date=27 November 2021 , {{waterqual_mod , {{waterqual_fail , {{convert, 2.6, mi , {{convert, 4.64, sqmi , , - , {{waterqual_title , desc=Chilt , asset=GB107041012140 , access-date=27 November 2021 , {{waterqual_mod , {{waterqual_fail , {{convert, 3.3, mi , {{convert, 4.19, sqmi , , - , {{waterqual_title , desc=Stor , asset=GB107041012100 , access-date=27 November 2021 , {{waterqual_mod , {{waterqual_fail , {{convert, 3.1, mi , {{convert, 7.75, sqmi , , - , {{waterqual_title , desc=Black Ditch (W Sussex) , asset=GB107041012890 , access-date=27 November 2021 , {{waterqual_poor , {{waterqual_fail , {{convert, 5.4, mi , {{convert, 17.94, sqmi , , - , {{waterqual_title , desc=Ryebank Rife , asset=GB107041006620 , access-date=27 November 2021 , {{waterqual_mod , {{waterqual_fail , {{convert, 4.6, mi , {{convert, 5.09, sqmi , , - , {{waterqual_title , desc=Arun , asset=GB540704105000 , access-date=27 November 2021 , {{waterqual_mod , {{waterqual_fail , , , heavily modified The reasons for the quality being less than good include sewage discharge affecting most of the river, physical modification of the channel, and run-off of nutrients from agriculture and land management. Like many rivers in the UK, the chemical status changed from good to fail in 2019, due to the presence of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE), perfluorooctane sulphonate (PFOS) and mercury compounds, none of which had previously been included in the assessment.


Points of interest

{{geoGroup {{PoIgb start, type=collapsed {{PoIgb, Source of Pyefall Gill, 51.0755, -0.2391, TQ234321, one of several tributary streams {{PoIgb, Railway bridge in Horsham, 51.0576, -0.3294, TQ171300} {{PoIgb, Junction with North River, 51.0794, -0.4048, TQ118323} {{PoIgb, Course diverted when canal built, 51.0636, -0.4812, TQ065304} {{PoIgb, Newbridge Wharf, 51.0221, -0.4772, TQ069258, Terminus of Arun Navigation {{PoIgb, Lording's Aqueduct, 51.0110, -0.4927, TQ058245, carried navigation over river {{PoIgb, Start of Arun Navigation, 50.9824, -0.5235, TQ037213} {{PoIgb, Junction with River Rother Navigation, 50.9535, -0.5326, TQ031181} {{PoIgb, North end of Hardham Tunnel branch, 50.9504, -0.5314, TQ032177} {{PoIgb, Pulborough loop, 50.9533, -0.5033, TQ052181} {{PoIgb, South end of Hardham Tunnel branch, 50.9302, -0.5452, TQ023155} {{PoIgb, Amberley Quarry wharf, 50.8965, -0.5441, TQ024117} {{PoIgb, Arundel wharfs, 50.8531, -0.5551, TQ018069} {{PoIgb, Littlehampton Harbour piers, 50.8001, -0.5418, TQ028010, Jn with English Channel {{PoIgb end


See also

{{Portal, United Kingdom, Transport {{Commons category, River Arun * Rivers of the United Kingdom * Geography of Sussex


Bibliography

{{Refbegin *{{cite book , first1=John , last1=Boyes , first2=Ronald , last2=Russell , title=The Canals of Eastern England , year=1977 , publisher=David and Charles , isbn=978-0-7153-7415-3 *{{Cite book , first=Jane , last=Cumberlidge , title=Inland Waterways of Great Britain (8th Ed.) , publisher=Imray Laurie Norie and Wilson , year=2009 , isbn=978-1-84623-010-3 *{{cite book , first=Eilert , last=Ekwall , title=English River-Names , publisher=Oxford University Press , year=1968 , isbn=978-0198691198 *{{cite book , first=Robert H , last=Goodsall , title=The Arun and Western Rother , publisher=Constable {{No ISBN , location=London , year=1962 *{{Cite book , first=Charles , last=Hadfield , title=The Canals of South and South-East England , publisher=David and Charles , year=1969 , isbn=0-7153-4693-8 *{{Cite book , first=J , last=Hillier , title=Old Surrey Watermills , location=London , publisher=Skeffington and Son {{No ISBN , year=1951 *{{cite book , url=https://archive.org/details/victoriahistoryo06page , title=A History of the County of Sussex: Volume 5 Part 1: Arundel Rape: south-western part, including Arundel , editor1-first=T P , editor1-last=Hudson , year=1977 , publisher=Victoria County History , isbn=978-0-19-722781-7 , url-access=registration *{{Cite web , url=http://www.romanmap.com/htm/nomina/Armis.htm , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130908024612/http://www.romanmap.com/htm/nomina/Armis.htm , archive-date=8 September 2013 , url-status=dead , first=Thomas G. , last=Ikins , title=The Roman Map of Britain , year=2007 , access-date=22 January 2013 , df=dmy-all *{{cite journal , url=http://arun.inthepast.org.uk/navigation_hardham_tunnel.htm , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140104204608/http://arun.inthepast.org.uk/navigation_hardham_tunnel.htm , archive-date=4 January 2014 , url-status=dead , title=Canoeing under Sussex , first1=A G , last1=Marshall , first2=W , last2=Norris , journal=Sussex County Magazine , volume=128 , year=1953 , df=dmy-all *{{cite web , url=http://www.jim-shead.com/waterways/sdoc.php?wpage=PNRC0039#PNRC028 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160313060932/http://jim-shead.com/waterways/sdoc.php?wpage=pnrc0039#PNRC028 , archive-date=13 March 2016 , url-status=usurped , title=Historical Account of the Navigable Rivers, Canals and Railways of Great Britain , first=Joseph , last=Priestley , year=1831 *{{cite book , first=P.A.L. , last=Vine , title=London's Lost Route to the Sea , publisher=David and Charles , year=1986 , isbn=978-0-7153-8778-8 *{{cite book , first=P.A.L. , last=Vine , title=London's Lost Route to Midhurst, The Earl of Egremont's Navigation , publisher=Sutton Publishing , year=1995 , isbn=978-0-7509-0968-6 *{{cite book , first=P.A.L. , last=Vine , title=The Arun Navigation , publisher=Tempus Publishing , year=2007 , isbn=978-0-7524-4323-2 *{{cite book , first=Jim , last=Whittington , title=Going Underground - Hardham Tunnel , publisher=Waterways World , date=January 2012 , issn=0309-1422 {{Refend


References

{{Reflist, 2


External links

**{{cite journal , url=http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/archive/palaeoarun_eh_2007/ , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306033839/https://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archives/view/palaeoarun_eh_2007/ , archive-date=6 March 2016 , url-status=live , first=Sanjeev , last=Gupta , display-authors=etal , title=Submerged Palaeo-Arun River: Reconstruction of Prehistoric Landscapes , publisher=Archaeology Data Service for
Imperial College London Imperial College London (legally Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom. Its history began with Prince Albert, consort of Queen Victoria, who developed his vision for a cu ...
and
English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...
, year=2008 , doi=10.5284/1000025 {{Coord, 50, 48, 05, N, 0, 32, 31, W, display=title, region:GB_type:river_source:GNS-enwiki {{Use dmy dates, date=November 2018 {{authority control Arun Arun Ramsar sites in England