At the start of the 14th century the area of coastal Sussex in which Hangleton was situated was one of the wealthiest regions in England.  The primary crops were wheat and barley but this part of Sussex was also the country’s leading legume producer, grown both as an animal feed and as part of the peasants’ staple diet.  More intensive agriculture made possible by the elimination of a fallow period on the best arable fields meant that sowing rates were higher than elsewhere in England.  A system of sheep-corn husbandry allowed sheep farming to coexist with the extensive cultivation of grains.  The sheep were penned in folds on arable overnight so that their dung and urine would ‘tathe’ (i.e. manure) the ground before being returned to their sheep walks during the day.  As a food animal sheep were kept more for their milk than meat but it was as a source of wool that they gave their best returns.  The majority of Sussex wool and wool-fells were exported through Shoreham, Chichester and Seaford, with more eastern ports such as Pevensey and Winchelsea playing a lesser role.  The Hangleton flock may have been relatively small in comparison with other coastal Sussex manors – possibly about 400.  In contrast we know that in 1340 the neighbouring communities of West Blatchington and Patcham were pasturing 1000 and 2000 sheep respectively.  The chalk downland above the village is covered with a mantle of clay with flints making it difficult to cultivate, and indeed excavations carried out there in 1989 and 1990 in advance of the construction of the A27 Brighton bypass found no evidence of medieval cultivation.  It is probable that this area was used as sheep pasture with crops grown on the light chalk soils to the south of the village (Gardiner, 2002).  

Sheepfold from the Luttrell Psalter.  England, before 1340 
Reproduced by permission of The British Library, further reproduction prohibited.

A fairly crude estimate of the average size of peasant holdings in Hangleton can be made on the basis of the number of peasant-owned plough teams recorded in the Domesday Survey of 1086 (five plough teams ploughing an average of 100 acres each a year).  On this basis each householder held approximately 11-12 acres of land, a figure which correlates almost exactly with the amount of land needed to feed a peasant family of five (estimated at between 10-12 acres). In practice of course the size of individual peasant holdings would have varied widely depending on wealth.  Production on the peasant holding, whilst inevitably on a small scale, could nevertheless be quite diverse.  Peasant livestock in Hangleton included cows, sheep, chickens, geese, pigs and bees.  We know that the villagers of Hangleton grew flax used in the manufacture of linen cloth and hemp, used to make canvas, coarse cloth and cordage.  Based on what is known about crop production on peasant holdings elsewhere it is probable that they also grew onions, leeks, peas, beans and vetches. 

Whilst most of this would have been for household and livestock consumption any excess would have been available for sale, boosting the peasants’ cash income.  Peasants were only partly self-sufficient and what they were unable to produce themselves – things such as ironwork, pottery and textiles - had to be bought.  In addition they needed money to pay rent and taxes.  Income could also be generated from by-employment such as some sort of craft or industry.  The main evidence for by-employment in Hangleton is the ovens which were almost certainly used for baking bread for sale outside the village and may in addition have been used for drying barley malt for ale brewing.  In the late 13th and 14th century ale production was largely a domestic activity undertaken by women to supplement the household income.   

Mills were vital in early communities for producing flour for breadmaking.
From the Luttrell Psalter.  England, before 1340
Reproduced by permission of The British Library, further reproduction prohibited.