Whenever you are out and about in the Dallington and Brightling part of East Sussex, talk always seems to turn to John Fuller, known colloquially as “Mad Jack”. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, he was a politician, patron and benefactor. But he was also known for his follies and his drinking, as well as for being an anti-abolitionist and a slave-owner.
Who was Mad Jack Fuller?
Born in 1757 in Hampshire, he started his career as captain of a light infantry company in the Sussex Militia. Aged 20, he inherited Jamaican plantations from his uncle as well as Rose Hill Estate (presumably named after his uncle Rose Fuller), now known as Brightling Park. The surrounding land was right in the heart of the Wealden iron-making industry. Moving to Brightling, Fuller became an MP in 1780 (first for Southampton and later for Sussex), and he later became Sheriff of Sussex.
Was he honest and good?
Fuller liked to be known as Honest John Fuller and he certainly did much good for the region. In 1822, he provided Eastbourne’s first lifeboat (two years before the RNLI itself was founded) and in 1828, persuaded Trinity House to build a lighthouse (the Belle Tout) whilst providing funds for the project.
In 1829 he bought Bodiam Castle. The castle by then was in a state of ruin, but Fuller carried out repairs and clearance work in an attempt to save it from further degradation and ruin.
Fuller also commissioned J. M. W. Turner and became an important patron of the arts and sciences. At the Royal Institution, he endowed two professorships in the early 1830s, including the chemistry chair held by Michael Faraday. His support helped sustain an institution central to the development and public understanding of science.
Mad?
Perhaps what he is most famous for his a series of follies which he had built around the Brightling area. There are six in total, namely:
The Sugar Loaf: a tall stone cone, this takes its name from the shape in which sugar was once sold. According to local tradition, Fuller built it to win a wager after claiming he could see Dallington church’s spire from his estate. Discovering that he could not, he supposedly supplied a substitute.
Whether the story is true has to be in some doubt, but later the Sugar Loaf became a home to a family of two adults and five children (living there in the 1841 census). These days you will find it set back from the B2096 near Wood’s Corner.
The Pyramid: in Brightling churchyard. 25 feet square and 25 feet high, this is where Mad Jack is buried. Its construction started in 1811, more than twenty years before his death in 1834. Legend used to say that Fuller was buried upright inside, wearing a top hat, with roast chicken and claret beside him. Historic England explicitly records that the legend has been disproved.
The Tower, a short walk from Brightling across the fields. You used to be able to climb to the top and see Bodiam Castle but that is no longer possible.
The Temple. This Rotunda temple is on private land to the South of Brightling Park but visible from the footpath. The story goes that Fuller held wild parties that included ladies and gambling here!
The Observatory. Designed by Sir Robert Smirke and to the west of Brightling, this is now a private home.
The Needle (or Obelisk). Also to the west of Brightling, on private land but visible from the road. Some legends say it was constructed to commemorate the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.
Strictly speaking, the observatory and mausoleum serve a purpose and so are not follies but perhaps that is splitting hairs.
You can now do a folly walking trail:
Or just plan bad?
In February 1810, his conduct during parliamentary proceedings led to his detention by the Serjeant at Arms. He is recorded as using profane language, and his behaviour was described as causing persistent disruption and being violent and disorderly.
In 1790, aged 33, Fuller proposed marriage to Susanna Arabella Thrale, but she refused him. There is a rather unpleasant account that describes how Fuller may then have employed someone to follow Susanna around and cause her distress. Whether the story is true may never be known but if it is, it castes a distinctly unpleasant shadow across the type of man that Fuller was. For more about this tale:
The Missing Women of Belloc’s Sussex: Robertsbridge to Heathfield
A questionable legacy
Some describe Fuller as a kind and good man who provide employment to many locals. However, you cannot ignore the fact that his wealth was built on the exploitation of enslaved labour, and he actively defended plantation interests in Parliament, opposing abolition. His was a political commitment as well as an inherited source of income.
His buildings remain fascinating, but understanding the man requires looking beyond their picturesque outlines to the people whose labour helped make them possible. Was Mad Jack Fuller villain or good guy definitely remains up for debate.
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