Eastbourne may be best known as a genteel Victorian resort, but long before the grand hotels and the pier, this stretch of coast was home to the Romans. Beneath the modern seafront lie the buried remains of a lost Roman villa and bath house — and up on the Downs, one Roman resident is telling a remarkable story. Here’s a look at Roman Eastbourne.
Before the seaside resort
Modern Eastbourne is a relatively young town, largely built by the Dukes of Devonshire in the 19th century. But people have lived here for far longer — there’s evidence of occupation stretching back to the Stone Age, and by Roman times this fertile coastal spot beneath the Downs was clearly a place worth settling. Buried beneath the streets and seafront of today’s town are the remains of a genuine Roman presence: a villa, a bath house and stretches of Roman flooring, hidden just below the surface of the resort we know today.
The lost Roman villa
Eastbourne’s most intriguing Roman relic is its “lost villa,” which once stood close to the entrance of the pier, near the site of the present Queens Hotel. Finds from the site — including flue tiles from a hypocaust, the Romans’ underfloor heating system — point to a large and well-appointed building, quite possibly the home of a wealthy local dignitary. Local archaeologists have studied it for years, comparing it with grander Sussex villas such as Fishbourne Roman Palace and Bignor, and recent research on those distinctive flue tiles has even helped pin down where they were made. It’s a tantalising glimpse of comfortable Romano-British life on the Eastbourne coast.
The Roman bath by the sea
The villa wasn’t the only Roman structure here. Remains of a Roman bath, along with a section of Roman pavement, are recorded beneath the seafront between the pier and the Redoubt Fortress. Bathing was central to Roman daily life, so the presence of a bath house reinforces the idea that this was no minor outpost but an established settlement with real status — people enjoying warm baths beside the English Channel nearly two thousand years ago.
Beachy Head Woman
Perhaps the most remarkable Roman-era discovery came not from the seafront but from the Downs above: the skeleton of a young woman, said to have been found near Beachy Head in the 1950s and rediscovered in a box in Eastbourne Town Hall in 2012, during a major study of the town’s ancient bones. Radiocarbon dating showed she lived in the Roman period, dying at around the age of 30. Nicknamed “Beachy Head Woman,” her identity has since become famous for being reinterpreted more than once — early analysis suggested African, then Mediterranean origins, before a major DNA study in 2025 concluded she was most likely of local British ancestry: a woman who had grown up on this very coast.
Good to know: the science of identifying ancient remains has advanced rapidly, and Beachy Head Woman’s story has been rewritten several times as techniques improved. We tell the full, fascinating tale in our dedicated guide to Beachy Head Woman.
What you can see today
Roman Eastbourne is very much a hidden history: the villa and bath house lie buried beneath the modern town, so there’s little to see above ground on the seafront itself. To connect with this era, it’s better to head just along the coast to Pevensey, where the mighty Roman Saxon Shore fort of Anderitum still stands as the walls of Pevensey Castle. Closer to home, Eastbourne’s long-running archaeological society keeps the story of the lost villa alive through talks, research and its care of local finds.
Roman Eastbourne: FAQs
Was there a Roman settlement in Eastbourne?
Yes. Although modern Eastbourne is a Victorian town, Roman remains lie buried beneath it, including a substantial villa near the pier and a Roman bath house along the seafront — evidence of an established Roman-era settlement on this coast.
Where was Eastbourne’s Roman villa?
The lost Roman villa stood near the entrance to the pier, close to where the Queens Hotel is today. Finds such as hypocaust flue tiles suggest it was a large, high-status building.
Can you visit Roman remains in Eastbourne?
Not really — Eastbourne’s Roman villa and bath house are buried beneath the modern town and aren’t on public display. For visible Roman remains nearby, head to Pevensey Castle, built within a Roman Saxon Shore fort.
Who was Beachy Head Woman?
A young woman who lived in the Eastbourne area during the Roman period, whose skeleton was rediscovered in Eastbourne Town Hall in 2012. Her origins have been reinterpreted several times; the latest DNA analysis, published in 2025, indicates she was of local British ancestry. See our full guide to Beachy Head Woman for the whole story.
Dig deeper into local history: read the full history of Eastbourne, explore Roman-founded Pevensey Castle, and the story of Eastbourne Pier.