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The South Downs are a range of chalk hills that extends for about The land area figure cited here relates to the South Downs Environmentally Sensitive Area, as defined by Natural England for its Environmentally Sensitive Area scheme (launched 1987, but now closed to new applicants, having been replaced by the Environmental Stewardship scheme). The South Downs ESA is referred to by Peter Brandon when he defines the extent of the South Downs; see Brandon (1998), p.1. across the south-eastern coastal counties of England. This area of downland extends from the Itchen Valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, in the Eastbourne Downland Estate of East Sussex, in the east. The Downs are bounded on the northern side by a steep escarpment, from whose crest there are extensive views northwards across the Weald (which on its other side is bordered by the North Downs). The South Downs National Park forms a much larger area than the chalk range of the South Downs, and includes large parts of the Weald. The national park is the UK's most visited, attracting an estimated 39 million visitor-days annually.
The South Downs are characterised by rolling chalk downland with close-cropped turf and , and are recognised as one of the most important chalk in England.Source: Natural England, South Downs ESA. The range is one of the four main areas of chalk downland in southern England.The others being the North Downs of Kent and Surrey; the Chilterns to the north-west of London; and the North Wessex Downs of Wiltshire, Dorset, Hampshire and Berkshire.
The South Downs are relatively less populated compared to South East England as a whole, although there has been large-scale urban encroachment onto the chalk downland by major seaside resorts, including most notably Brighton and Hove. The South Downs have been inhabited since ancient times and at periods the area has supported a large population, particularly during Romano-British times. There is a rich heritage of historical features and archaeological remains, including defensive sites, burial mounds and field boundaries. Within the South Downs Environmentally Sensitive Area there are thirty-seven Sites of Special Scientific Interest, including large areas of chalk grassland.Source: Natural England.
The grazing of sheep on the thin, well-drained chalk soils of the Downs over many centuries, and browsing by rabbits, resulted in the fine, short, springy turf, known as old chalk grassland, that has come to epitomise the South Downs today. Until the middle of the 20th century, an agricultural system operated by downland farmers known as 'sheep-and-corn farming' underpinned this: the sheep (most famously the Southdown breed) of villagers would be systematically confined to certain corn fields to improve their fertility with their droppings and then they would be let out onto the downland to graze. However, starting in 1940 with government measures during the Second World War to increase domestic food production – which continued into the 1950s - much grassland was ploughed up for arable farming, fundamentally changing the landscape and ecology, with the loss of much biodiversity. As a result, while old chalk grassland accounted for 40-50% of the eastern Downs before the war, only 3-4% survives.Peter Brandon, The South Downs (Halsgrove, Tiverton, 2003), p. 51. This and development pressures from the surrounding population centres ultimately led to the decision to create the South Downs National Park, which came into full operation on 1 April 2011, to protect and restore the Downs.
The South Downs have also been designated as a National Character Area (NCA 125) by Natural England. It is bordered by the Hampshire Downs, the Wealden Greensand, the Low Weald and the Pevensey Levels to the north and the South Hampshire Lowlands and South Coast Plain to the south. South East and London National Character Area map at www.naturalengland.org.uk. Accessed on 3 April 2013.
The downland is a highly popular recreational destination, particularly for walkers, horseriders and mountain bikers. A long distance footpath and bridleway, the South Downs Way, follows the entire length of the chalk ridge from Winchester to Eastbourne, complemented by many interconnecting public footpaths and bridleways.
The strata of southeast England, including the Chalk, were gently folded during a phase of the Alpine Orogeny to produce the Weald-Artois Anticline, a dome-like structure with a long east-west axis. Erosion has removed the central part of the dome, leaving the north-facing escarpment of the South Downs along its southern margin with the south-facing chalk escarpment of the North Downs as its counterpart on the northern side, as shown on the diagram. Between these two escarpments the anticline has been subject to differential erosion so that geologically distinct areas of hills and vales lie in roughly concentric circles towards the centre; these comprise the Greensand Ridge, most prominent on the north side of the Weald, where it includes Leith Hill, the highest hill in south-east England, the low-lying clay vales of the Low Weald, formed of less resistant Weald Clay, and finally the more highly resistant sandstones of the High Weald at the centre of the anticline, whose elevated forest ridge includes most notably Ashdown Forest.British Geological Survey 1:50K map sheet 318/333 Brighton & Worthing.
The chalk, being porous, allows water to soak through; as a result, there are many winterbournes along the northern edge.
In the west, the chalk ridge of the South Downs merges with the North Downs to form the Hampshire Downs. In the east, the escarpment terminates at the English Channel coast between Seaford and Eastbourne, where it produces the spectacular white cliffs of Seaford Head, the cross-section of dry valleys known as the Seven Sisters and Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Britain at above sea level.
The South Downs may be said to have three main component parts: the East Hampshire Downs, the Western Downs and the Eastern Downs, together with the river valleys that cut across them and the land immediately below them, the scarpfoot. The Western and Eastern Downs are often collectively referred to as the Sussex Downs. The Western Downs, lying west of the River Arun, are much more wooded, particularly on the scarp face, than the Eastern Downs. The bare Eastern Downs – the only part of the chalk escarpment to which, until the late 19th century, the term "South Downs" was usually applied – have come to epitomise, in literature and art, the South Downs as a whole and which have been the subject matter of such celebrated writers and artists as Rudyard Kipling (the "blunt, bow-headed, whale-backed downs") and Eric Ravilious.
Four river valleys cut through the South Downs, namely those of the rivers Arun, River Adur, Ouse and River Cuckmere, providing a contrasting landscape. Chalk and to a lesser extent winterbourne streams supply much of the water required by the surrounding settlements. , artificial ponds for watering livestock, are a characteristic feature on the downland.
The highest point on the South Downs is Butser Hill, whose summit is above sea level. The plateau-like top of this irregularly shaped hill, which lies just south of Petersfield, Hampshire, was in regular use through prehistory. It has been designated as a national nature reserve.
Within the boundary of the South Downs National Park, which includes parts of the western Weald to the north of the South Downs, the highest point is Blackdown, West Sussex, which rises to above sea level. However, Blackdown geologically is not part of the South Downs but instead forms part of the Greensand Ridge on the Weald's western margins.
A list of those points on the South Downs above , going from west to east, is given below.
| Butser Hill | Petersfield | 270 m (886 ft) | Highest point in the South Downs proper. |
| West Harting Down | South Harting | 229 m (751 ft) | |
| Beacon Hill | South Harting | 242 m (793 ft) | |
| Linch Down | Bepton | 248 m (814 ft) | |
| Littleton Down | East Lavington | 255 m (836 ft) | The summit, Crown Teglease, is the highest point on the Sussex Downs. |
| Glatting Beacon | Sutton | 245 m (803 ft) | |
| Chanctonbury Hill | Washington | 238 m (782 ft) | Site of Chanctonbury Ring hill fort |
| Truleigh Hill | Upper Beeding | 216 m (708 ft) | |
| Ditchling Beacon | Ditchling | 248 m (814 ft) | |
| Firle Beacon | Firle | 217 m (713 ft) | |
It has been estimated that the tree cover of the Downs was cleared over 3000 years ago, and the present closely grazed turf is the result of continual grazing by sheep.
The South Downs National Park has replaced two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB)s: East Hampshire AONB and Sussex Downs AONB. During the enquiry process a number of boundary questions were considered, so that the National Park contains areas not in the former AONBs, and vice versa.
The NNRs on the Sussex Downs comprise Kingley Vale, near Chichester, said by Natural England to contain one of the finest yew forests in Europe, including a grove of ancient trees which are among the oldest living things in Britain (the reserve is also one of the most important archaeological sites in southern England, with 14 scheduled monuments); Castle Hill, between Brighton and Lewes, an important example of ancient, traditionally managed grassland; Lewes Downs (Mount Caburn), a traditionally managed chalk downland (and also an important archaeological site); and Lullington Heath, on the northern fringe of Friston Forest north-west of Eastbourne, one of the largest areas of chalk heath in Britain.
The NNRs on the East Hampshire Downs comprise Butser Hill, near Petersfield, a large area of chalk grassland on the highest point in the South Downs (a large area is also designated as a scheduled monument reflecting its historical significance, particularly in the Bronze and Iron Ages); Old Winchester Hill, a lowland grassland on the west and south facing scarp slopes of the Meon valley; and Beacon Hill, a high quality chalk grassland 5 km west of Old Winchester Hill.
The South Downs are a popular area for ramblers with a network of over of well-managed, well-signed and easily accessible trails. The principal bridleway, and longest of them, is the South Downs Way. South Downs Way: description of the route . The Monarch's Way, having originated at Worcester, crosses the South Downs and ends at Shoreham-by-Sea..
Sports undertaken on the Downs include paragliding, mountain-biking, horse riding and walking.. The popular Beachy Head Marathon (formerly Seven Sisters Marathon), a hilly cross-country marathon, takes place each autumn on the eastern Downs, starting and finishing in Eastbourne. The South Downs Trail Marathon starts in the village of Slindon (near Arundel) and ends at the Queen Elizabeth Country Park (to the south of Petersfield.)
Longer events that take place in the South Downs Way include a 100-mile running 'ultramarathon' and a 75-mile mountain biking night time race from Beachy Head to Queen Elizabeth Country Park.
The naturalist-writer William Henry Hudson wrote that "during the whole fifty-three mile length from Beachy Head to Harting the ground never rises above a height of 850 feet, but we feel on top of the world"..
Poet Francis William Bourdillon also wrote a poem "On the South Downs".. The South Downs have been home to several writers, including Jane Austen who lived at Chawton on the edge of the Downs in Hampshire. The Bloomsbury Group often visited Monk's House in Rodmell, the home of Virginia Woolf in the Ouse valley. Alfred, Lord Tennyson, had a second home at Aldworth, on Blackdown; geologically part of the Weald, Blackdown lies north of the South Downs but is included in the South Downs National Park.
In the introduction to Arthur Conan Doyle's short story collection His Last Bow, Dr. Watson states that Sherlock Holmes has retired to a small farm upon the Downs near Eastbourne. In the story "His Last Bow" itself, Holmes states that he "lives and keeps bees upon the South Downs". Furthermore, the short story "The Lion's Mane" is about a case that Holmes solves whilst living there.
The author Graham Greene's first published novel, The Man Within (1929), is set largely on and around the South Downs. The book's principal character, Andrews, travels by foot across the Downs to reach Lewes and attend the Assizes. Greene provides a detailed description of both the landscape and its 'feel'.
The author H. G. Wells published a book called The Invisible Man in 1898, and in it says "He fled to South Down".
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