The churches did not escape the ruthless havoc of these French marauders; and scarcely a stone is left to tell of St. Leonards, St. Margarets, St. Peters, St. Michaels, St. Andrews, and St. George.
It is pretty certain that St. Clements and All Saints met with no better fate ; for they are both "perpendicular," and therefore must have been rebuilt subsequently to 1360, earlier than which no specimens of "perpendicular" are to be found . The Chapel in the Castle would also seem to have been now used as a parish church, in lieu of those that had been ruined , (and more particularly in place of St. Andrew sub Castro, the ruins of which were met with some years ago, just to the north of Wellington Square, within the modern St. Mary 's parish, and a few yards beyond the present boundary of St. Andrew 's parish .) The seafaring population , expelled from their ancient homes, and clustering round the Castle Hill, formed a new quarter or parish ; and on the rebuilding of the town in 1380, it was subdivided into three parishes - St. Clement, All Saints, and St. Mary's in the Castle (Barry 's Guide, 1794,) which latter parish we now hear of for the first time.
In the previous century Old Winchelsea, which stood on low ground, and was dependant on artificial defences against the sea , had its walls destroyed by Prince Edward, when he took it by storm after the battle of Evesham . The consequence was, that within ten years, the town was overwhelmed by the waters ; and the townsmen having made their peace with the Prince, now King Edward I.,he granted them lands on -
