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Hastings is a town in southeastern EnglandEngland is the largest, the most populous, and the most densely populated of the four " Home Nations" which make up the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK). Occupying the south-eastern portion of the island of Great Britain, England, in the county of East Sussex. Population (2000) about 84,000. Now known as a seaside resortTorquay, a seaside resort in Devon, England. A seaside resort is a resort located on the coast. Where a beach is the primary focus for tourists, it may be called a beach resort . The first seaside resorts developed with the improvements in transportation and education centre (Hastings College and University College Hastings), it is near the site of the Battle of HastingsThe Battle of Hastings was the decisive Norman victory in the Norman conquest of England in 1066. Prelude On September 28, 1066, William of Normandy, bent on asserting by arms his claim to the English crown, landed unopposed at Pevensey. On hearing the ne, fought in 1066Events January 6 Harold II is crowned King of England the day after Edward the Confessor dies. Tostig Godwinson and Harald Hardraada of Norway invade England. September 25 Harold II defeats Tostig and Harold Hardraada at the Battle of Stamford Bridge, kil. In this battle, William the Conqueror defeated and killed Harold Godwinson, the last Saxon King of England, and destroyed his army, opening England to the Norman conquest. Hastings was one of the Cinque Ports, but its significance as a port declined after the Middle Ages and its main industry became fishing It still has the largest beach-based fishing fleet in England.

Hastings forms a single urban centre with the more suburban area of St Leonards-on-Sea to the west; the eastern part of the town is the former village of Ore. Hastings Old Town is in a sheltered valley to the east of the town centre. It has long been known as a retreat for artists and painters. For example, the pre-Raphaelite painters including Dante Gabriel Rossetti and William Holman Hunt admired the town for its light and clear air. In the 19th century the towns became prosperous on the basis of the tourist trade from London and the Midlands, with the rise of international tourism from England it has declined substantially. It is now one of the most economically disadvantaged districts in south-east England.

However, it is easy to overplay the disadvantage argument. There is, at first glance, no immediate clear reason why Hastings should suffer from disadvantage when compared, for example, to its large neighhbour to the east, Brighton. It has a very attractive setting, many very fine houses and a remarkably conserved Old Town, and contains within its Borough boundaries a major clifftop country park. It has a well-documented depth of history. The a key work is Historic Hastings by former curator of Hastings Museum John Manwaring Baines. Another major work of scholarship and affection is Steve Peak's monumental Fishermen of Hastings - 200 years of the Hastings Fishing Community (1985), available from the town's museums. The opening paragraph gives a flavour of the subject -

"The Hastings fishing industry has a long and unusual history. Fishing boats similar to those used at Hastings today have worked from almost the same beach under the Hastings cliffs for at least 400, and quite probably 600 or more years. Despite the exposed landing site the Hastings fleet has survived many difficult times because the town lies next to one of Britain's most prolific fishing grounds, Rye Bay."

Hastings is linked to London by two railway lines, to Victoria via Lewes and to Charing Cross via Tunbridge Wells, Kent.The former journey is via Eastbourne along the coast. There is also a further line via Rye, East Sussex to Ashford, Kent.

Hastings is currently the site of major redevelopment work, otherwise known as 'regeneration', which is not without controversy. The change in status of the former College of Further Education into a University College, through an arrangement with the University of Brighton, is funded as part of this process. Currently, one of the most notable architectural changes has been the demolition of the 1930s railway station and its replacement by a modernist glass and steel stucture opened in 2004.