Pevensey Castle lies on the south coast of England between Bexhill-on-Sea and Pevensey. It is an intriguing place to begin a look at English medieval history as, in one sense, this is where it all started. In 1066 William of Normandy landed at Pevensey. In those days the sea came up right to the castle wall with a natural harbour alongside. It is likely that William landed his ships there and took immediate shelter in the existing fort. This was a mighty Roman fort built at the end of the third century to deter pirate raiders in the English Channel. The Normans used the great curtain walls of the Roman fort for their own castle. It was not until the end of the 12th century that the Normans built their own castle within the existing defensive fortifications. Pevensey became an important location point for embarkation to and return from the continent. The castle endured a number of sieges. The first as early as 1088 when King William Rufus besieged his infamous uncle, Bishop Odo of Bayeux, who had taken refuge at the castle. The most famous was the great siege of 1264-1265 which lasted just over a year and is the longest in English medieval history.

After the medieval period the castle fell into disuse and decay, but during the Second World War (1939-1945) it was refortified and served as an essential part of the coastal defences.