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The South Downs is the most recent addition to the National Parks of England, having been awarded National Park status in 2010. The 600 square miles of countryside stretch from Winchester in Hampshire to Beachy Head in East Sussex, and the Downs is characterised by green rolling hills, pretty villages and is in fact, is the most visited National Park in the UK. One of the most striking and iconic landmarks is the range of dramatic chalk hills running all the way through the three counties of Hampshire, West Sussex and East Sussex, which become the famous white cliffs when they reach the English Channel; the stunning Seven Sisters Country Park being one of the most visited. The South Downs National Park is also an extraordinary museum in itself; the land has been lived and worked on by tribes of people since ancient times; Stone Age and Iron Age settlers, Romans, Saxons, Normans and Victorians have all played a role in shaping the landscape which is now so wonderfully preserved by the National Parks authority. There are a number of archaeological sites and buildings to be explored such as the Cissbury Ring, the Devils Humps and the impressive Bignor Roman Villa, where you are able to walk through the excavated mosaic floors and treasure trove of Roman artefacts. Walk, cycle or horseride along the many trails of the South Downs Way, through countryside that author Bill Bryson described as: "some of England's finest".