22/03/2025
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- an ancient symbol of local freedom, independence and strength
The Martlets of Sussex have famously represented the county since around the 14th Century, however, did you know there is another, much older, symbol which personified, and embodied the spirit of the people of Sussex since evidently ancient times? - this is the story of the โSussex Pigโ!
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๐๐๐ - โ๐พ๐ผ๐ต๐ป ๐ฉ๐ฌ ๐ซ๐น๐ผ๐ฝโ
For some, the pig may be viewed as an animal representing gluttony, greed and filth, a creature which in the modern world is often the target for ridicule and amusement. However, traditionally in Sussex, this fine specimen is a symbol of freedom, independence, local pride, strong mindedness and resilience, and one worth celebrating.
A pig shown at rest laying down (or โcouchantโ in heraldic terminology) is a symbol long associated with the common folk of the County of Sussex and has for centuries been used as a pictorial representation of the countyโs motto โWe Wunt be Druvโ! - Sussex dialect meaning โWe wonโt be drivenโ, affirming that the people of Sussex have their own mind and cannot be forced against their will or told what to do. - maintaining and protecting local customs and values.
โHighways and Byways in Sussexโ by Edward Verrall Lucas, published in 1904 states; โSome old satirist of the county had it that the crest of the true Sussex peasant is a pig couchant, with the motto "I wunt be druv."โ. This is again repeated in โKiplingโs Sussexโ, by Robert Thurston Hopkins, published in 1921, explains; โIt has been said that the true crest of the Sussex men is a pig couchant, with the motto, " I wunt be druv," and we have all heard of the following couplet:
"You may push and you may shuv
But I'm ------ if I'll be druv."โ
Selmestonโs Reverend Douglas Parishโs โA Dictionary of the Sussex Dialectโ, published in 1875 by states that "I wunt be druv" is a "favourite maxim with Sussex people". It is believed that "I wunt be druv" originates from the Weald of Sussex where in medieval times this part of Sussex was freer from control from the ruling classes than other parts of Sussex. This came to fruition in the Peasant's Revolts of 1381 and 1450 where the Wealdsmen lower classes rose twice in revolt against the ruling Kings. Considering a swineโs classic temperament as being โstubborn as a pigโ or โpig headedโ it is easy to understand how a pig became proudly synonymous with this beloved local phrase.
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The connection between pigs and being โdruvโ enjoys a well established and evidenced pedigree. Indeed, conventionally, the collective noun for a group of pigs is a โdroveโ. One such early example of this can be located within โThe New Bath Guideโ, published in 1762, a swineherd in โCainลฟhamโ - Keynsham, Somerset, is described as a โdrove of pigsโ.
However this 'company term' is markedly much older than the mid 18th Century, and can be traced all the way back to the late 15th Century - coincidentally the year following the death of Richard III. โBoke of Seynt Albansโ (The Book of Saint Albans), published in 1486, is the main original source of many collective nouns - many of which are still in use today! These are listed inside the book's โHuntingโ section, written by Dame Juliana Berners. Within the chapter, she sets out many groupings of animals and articles, including โa Gagle of geesโ, โa Pride of Lionysโ, and โfflocke of Shepeโ. We also find a record for domesticated pigs amongst the catalogue; โa Dryft of tame Swyneโ. The word โdryftโ is a Middle English term derived from the Old English โdriftโ meaning โto be drivenโ - thus highlighting the longstanding link between hogs being โdruvโ, or not (!) as the case may be.
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The attempted driving of pigs in the county is a long-standing one, and goes back to the days of โpannageโ. The High Weald of Sussex, to this day, still enjoys a unique network of deep-sunken historic routeways and tracks (or โhollowaysโ) which derive from this practice. These routes were first formed when early settlers from the surrounding territories began to make use of the Wealdโs woodland as a seasonal source of food for their animal, in particular acorns, as well as timber and fuel.
Domesticated pigs, being descended from wild boar, enjoyed acorns as a natural food. From as far back as the Neolithic period (c.4300 โ 1400BC) or even earlier, farmers from the South Downs, North Downs and coastal plains would drive their pigs into the woods each year to fatten them on acorns and beech mast. This happened in late summer or early autumn and is known as pannage and was a custom continued right through to Saxon and Medieval times.
The โDomesday Bookโ of 1086 highlights that around 150,000 pigs would have been driven back and forth to the Weald - a huge number when one considers that the human population of all of Sussex was approximately 66,000. Farmers from any particular village returned with their pigs to the same woodland place annually. These woodland pig pastures were called โdensโ, and gives us a number of place names in Sussex, such as Iden, Playden and Danehill.
The heavy employment of swines, in times gone by, underlines why Sussex folk looked to, and made use of these animals as a symbol, they were integral, for many, to day-to-day life in the county.
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Another example of the well established long-lived connection between Sussex and the beloved hog can be demonstrated by means of Iron Age and Roman figurines, seemingly portraying porcines, discovered in the county since the 1980s. Many figurines of various animals can be found across Britain from this period, however in Sussex, those discovered almost exclusively appear to be that of pigs! Thus giving evidence that the pig was highly associated with local identity at this time, and opening up the question whether there was a Cult of the Boar/Pig in the area during the Late Iron Age?
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It has been pointed out that remarkably the shape of Sussex itself is akin to the shape of a pig, as outlined in โSilly Sussexโ, by Judy Moore, 2004. Using the countyโs historic bounds, the motif of a swine can be perceived with the snout at Broomhill, by Camber Sands, its pointy ears towards Lamberhurst and Ashurst near Tunbridge Wells, its curly tail at Griggs Green in the extreme north-west of the county, and its front and hind trotters at Beachy Head and Selsey Bill respectively.
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It was also once traditional at country weddings in the county for a porcelain โSussex Pigโ jug to be gifted to the bride and groom in the 19th Century, a time when it was customary for a brideโs father to give all the guests a โHogsheadโ (old measure) of ale. The head โlidโ to the jug served as a cup and the body of the pig served as a jug containing the ale to toast the happy couple, and again these โSussex Pigsโ were inscribed along the beastโs back or shoulders with the phrase โWe Wunt be Druvโ, celebrating the character of men and women from Sussex as being pig-like. These are still made by Rye Pottery today.
Sussex Pigs can also be found in the form of souvenir porcelain models, produced between the mid-19th and early-20th centuries by china manufacturers such as W.H. Goss, Carlton Works, and Arkinsall & Sons. These china swines mostly featured idioms decorated upon them, incorporating the local phrase โWunt be Druvโ or similar associated slogans.
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Into the 21st Century, and the Sussex Pig is making a bit of a revival into local consciousness. One such example is in the form of the Chiddingly Parish Bonfire Society (also known as the โPig Armyโ) whom have adopted a hybrid of a Sussex Pig and the unrelated โChiddingly Boarโ as its symbol since forming in October 2020. The โChiddingly Boarโ - a 1480s silver livery badge lost or discarded by an esteemed supporter of the Yorkist, King Richard III, and later found in the Parish of Chiddingly in 1999. The badge is now kept in the British Museum. The Society also carries a taxidermy wild sowโs head on a tall stick within its ranks at local bonfire processions.
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The Sussex Pig is an ancient creature which has deep-rooted origins and proudly encapsulated the nature of the people of our home since time immemorial โ it is a part of who we are, our strong local cultural identity of freedom, independence and strong mindedness - We Wunt be Druv!
"๐๐ญ๐ญ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ญ๐ฌ๐ด ๐ข๐ด ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ด๐ฆ๐น
๐๐ถ๐ด๐ต ๐ง๐ฐ๐ญ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ด๐ฆ๐น ๐ธ๐ข๐บ๐ด -
๐๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฏ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บ'๐ท๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ฌ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐ถ๐ด ๐ธ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ญ,
๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ'๐ด ๐ฏ๐ฐ ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ข๐ค๐ฆ ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ด๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บ'๐ญ๐ญ ๐ธ๐ช๐ด๐ฉ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ฅ๐ธ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ญ
๐๐ฏ ๐ข๐ญ๐ญ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ช๐ณ ๐ฃ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ด๐ด๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ฅ๐ข๐บ๐ด -
๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ต ๐ฏ๐ฐ ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ข๐ค๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ช๐ฌ๐ฆ ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ด๐ฆ๐น,
๐๐ฏ๐ต๐ช๐ญ ๐บ๐ฆ ๐จ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ด ๐ข๐ฃ๐ฐ๐ท๐ฆ,
๐๐ฐ๐ณ ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ด๐ฆ๐น ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ฃ๐ฆ ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ด๐ฆ๐น,
๐๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ด๐ฆ๐น ๐ธ๐ฐ๐ฏ'๐ต ๐ฃ๐ฆ ๐ฅ๐ณ๐ถ๐ท."
W. Victor Cook, 1914
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