The purpose of this work is to challenge the lack of contemporary discussion on Sussex
during the British Civil Wars, and to explain why the Royalist invasion of 1643 and Arundel
campaign of 1643-44 are both crucially important to any national narrative on the Civil
Wars. To do that the two chapters of this dissertation will look at two different areas. The
first chapter is focused upon showing the reader the nature of Sussex by 1643, its industries,
infrastructure, the administrative and religious divisions that were embedded within the
county, and how those divisions were highlighted through the struggle for Chichester in
November-December 1642. In the second chapter the campaigns of 1643-44 will come
under scrutiny. This analysis will focus on several areas. Firstly, the events of 1643 will be
reviewed, from Waller’s initial successes to his defeats and the situation prior to November
1643. Secondly, it will examine the Royalist invasion and the Arundel campaign to create a
timeline of events for the reader to understand how the conflict evolved. Thirdly, the
chapter will look at the role and conduct of the soldiers and their commanders amidst the
harsh privations of the battlefield and siege during a harsh winter. Fourthly, the
Parliament’s response to the invasion will be discussed; whilst battles and sieges might be
won by the generals and their soldiers, it is the resources that they’re given that can spell
the difference between victory and defeat.