063 Sussex St Hastings, street view 2017
Reason for the name
This street was named in honour of the Navy. The HMS Sussex was one of the major combatant ships in Force H of the Royal Navy in 1939. The surrender of the Japanese forces in Singapore was accepted aboard the HMS Sussex.
Sussex Street is part of what was once called the Lomas subdivision in the Mayfair suburb of Hastings, near Windsor Park and local attraction Splash Planet. The streets in this area were all named for naval reasons, after Admirals or battleships (Jellicoe, Beatty, Hood, Cunningham, Sussex, Norfolk and Anson).
Council records show the naming of Hood Street (confirming a 1916 decision which also named Jellicoe and Beatty Streets), Cunningham Crescent, Anson Street, Norfolk Street and Sussex Street were decided in 1949, with the subdivision happening from 1951. Hastings Borough Council had a policy in the early 1900s of naming new streets after English generals or admirals. Following on from this, related names were sometimes chosen in the 1940’s and 1950’s after WWII.
About 7000 New Zealand officers and ratings served with the Royal Navy for varying periods during the Second World War. The peak was reached in September 1944 when the total strength of the Royal New Zealand Navy was 10,635, of whom 1242 officers and 3659 ratings, a total of 4901, were serving overseas in ships and establishments of the Royal Navy. New Zealanders saw active service in ships of every type from battleships and aircraft-carriers to submarines, motor-launches, and landing craft and in every sea from Spitzbergen in the Arctic to Cape Horn and from Iceland to the shores of Japan. They took part in every major naval engagement or operation and in countless minor actions, as well as in the ceaseless patrols and sea drudgery that make up so great a part of naval warfare...
It was thus appropriate that several new streets being developed just after WWI, and added to after WWII, were named after important naval leaders and ships. The names for Jellicoe Street, Beatty Street and Hood Street had already been decided in 1916, although Hood Street wasn’t developed until later.
As noted, the names Cunningham, Sussex, Norfolk and Anson were added to the new streets developed after WWII. These were all naval names, for ships or admirals. Admiral Cunningham (nicknamed ABC) in charge of the naval defence forces. The surrender of the Japanese forces in Singapore was accepted aboard the HMS Sussex. HMS Norfolk was one of the battleships that sank the Bismarck. HMS Anson was to have been named HMS Jellicoe, and was one of the important battleships in the defence of the Commonwealth. It was also one of the battleships assigned to the Pacific Fleet.
Authors: Cherie Flintoff, Chris Johnson and Helen Gelletly (Hastings District Council) Madelon van Zijll de Jong and Katrina Barrett (private researchers, formerly at Hastings District Libraries).
The HMS Sussex was one of the major combatant ships in Force H of the Royal Navy in 1939, then deployed elsewhere. This was the fourth HMS Sussex. The original Sussex and Norfolk appear at a time when ships seem to have been named for British towns or counties.
HMS Sussex has earlier ties to New Zealand, as the ship embarked on a round the world tour in August 1934 conveying the Duke of Gloucester via. Ceylon to Sydney, Australia where they finally arrived in February 1935 and then sailed on to New Zealand returning to Australia in time to celebrate the silver jubilee of King George V on May 6th 1935.
A ship manned by a New Zealand crew working with the Royal Navy was relieved by HMS Sussex on the 28th February 1944. At least one New Zealander served on the HMS Sussex (Bruce McLean Wallace).
The HMS Sussex was one of the ships providing the naval escort: 5 January 1940 when the First Echelon of 2 NZEF (354 officers and 6175 other ranks) embarked for the Middle East in Empress of Canada, Strathaird, Orion and Rangitata at Wellington, and in Dunera and Sobieski at Lyttelton…. The naval escorts comprised: … Colombo-Aden-Port Tewfik, Ramillies, HMS Sussex, HMAS Hobart, HMS Westcott and HMS Eagle.
The ship played an important role in WWII, and the surrender of the Japanese forces in Singapore was accepted on board the HMS Sussex.
The HMS Sussex was the flagship of Rear-Admiral Cedric Holland on his arrival in Singapore.
