On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. At the 2011 rye bread no wheat, Rye had a population of 4,773.

Its historical association with the sea has included providing ships for the service of the Crown in time of war, and being involved in smuggling. Rye has a small fishing fleet, and Rye Harbour has facilities for yachts and other vessels. The name of Rye is believed to come from the West Saxon ieg meaning island. Medieval maps show that Rye was originally located on a huge embayment of the English Channel called the Rye Camber, which provided a safe anchorage and harbour. Rye was to become a limb of the Cinque Ports Confederation by 1189, and subsequently a full member.

The protection of the town as one of the Cinque Ports was very important, due to the commerce that trading brought. Rye received its charter from King Edward I in 1289, and acquired privileges and tax exemptions in return for ship-service for the crown. 1329 in the early years of the reign of King Edward III. It is suitable only for light vehicles.

The River Rother originally took an easterly course to flow into the sea near what is now New Romney. Rye was considered one of the finest of the Cinque Ports, though constant work had to be done to stop the gradual silting up of the river and the harbour. Also, a conflict arose between the maritime interests and the landowners, who gradually “inned” or reclaimed land from the sea on Romney and Walland Marsh, and thus reduced the tidal flows that were supposed to keep the harbour free of silt. Between 1696 and 1948, six ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Rye.

1805 Napoleonic invasion threat, Rye, Dover, and Chatham were regarded as the three most likely invasion ports, and Rye became the western command centre for the Royal Military Canal. From 1838 to 1889, Rye had its own borough police force. It was a small force, often with just two officers. After amalgamation with the county force in 1889 a new police station was provided in Church Square.

In May 1940, during the darkest days of World War II, the Rye fishing fleet was invited to participate in Operation Dynamo, the seaborne rescue of the stranded British Expeditionary Force at Dunkirk, but refused to do so. Rye, being part of the Cinque Ports Confederation and a bastion against invasion on the Channel Coast, has always had close links with the crown. 1899 sketch of John Breads’s Gibbet Iron, Rye, East Sussex. Apart from the Town Council, the majority of local government functions are exercised by Rother District Council, with its headquarters in Bexhill-on-Sea, and East Sussex County Council, based in Lewes. The Rother District Council ward of Rye and Winchelsea returns two councillors.

The East Sussex County Council division of Rye and Eastern Rother returns one councillor. Since 1983, Rye has been part of the parliamentary constituency of Hastings and Rye, prior to which it had its own seat. The current Member of Parliament, since 2019, is Sally-Ann Hart of the Conservative Party. Rye stands at the point where the sandstone high land of the Weald reaches the coast. The original course of the River Rother then reached the sea at Romney to the northeast. Lamb House and many of the houses on Mermaid Street, Watchbell Street, and Church Square. Rye, over the centuries, has successively been an entrepôt port, a naval base, a fishing port, an agricultural centre, and a market town.

The old part of the town within the former town walls has shops, art galleries and restaurants. The great attractiveness of the town has kept it on the tourist trail, especially its “perfect cobbled lanes, like Mermaid Street, which must be one of Britain’s most photographed”. A 2020 report praised the medieval streets “often wonky houses and it is easy to get lost in the town’s history”. Camber Sands beach, “with its moody sand dunes and long sandy beach”, is nearby. Since the Second World War, the town has become a centre for ceramics. Apart from its tourist base, Rye continues to operate as a port. Considerable investment has been made in facilities for both the fishing fleet berthed at Rye and the commercial wharves at Rye Harbour.

Some of the catch is sold at the quayside, though most is sold through the great regional market in Boulogne. Rye also is an important yachting base, offering the only safe haven for many miles in either direction along this section of Channel coast. Yachts may currently moor either at Rye Harbour or at the Strand Quay at the edge of the town. Numerous plans have been proposed for a modern yacht marina to be built at Rye, but each has foundered on economic or planning grounds. At the latter end of the 18th century, Rye was connected to the turnpike trust system of roads. 101 Dover-Hastings Stagecoach long-distance bus service, buses connect Rye with other towns and villages, including Tenterden, Hastings, and Tunbridge Wells. Rye railway station is on the Marshlink line between Hastings and Ashford.