Rye is one of England's best-preserved medieval towns, crowned by the 12th-century church of St Mary the Virgin with its ancient clock. Cobbled Mermaid Street winds past wonky timber-framed houses that have barely changed in centuries. The town was once a Cinque Port when the sea lapped at its walls, though the harbour now sits two miles away. Literary connections include Henry James, who lived at Lamb House, and E.F. Benson who used Rye as the model for Tilling in his Mapp and Lucia novels.