The Solent is a stretch of sea separating the Isle of Wight from the mainland of England. This article is about the body of water For other uses see SEA and Seas. The Isle of Wight is an English Island and county in the English Channel between three and five miles (8 km from the south coast of the The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located It runs through and greatly affects the character of the South Hampshire region, which consists of Greater Portsmouth, Greater Southampton and the Isle of Wight. South Hampshire or Solent City is a term used mainly to refer to the Metropolitan area formed by the cities of Portsmouth and Southampton and The Portsmouth Urban Area, in south-east Hampshire in southern England, includes the following components (as defined by the Office for National Statistics The Southampton Urban Area or Greater Southampton is an unofficial term for the Conurbation surrounding Southampton in Hampshire, England The Isle of Wight is an English Island and county in the English Channel between three and five miles (8 km from the south coast of the
Hampshire's Solent is a great centre for yachting and is renowned as one of the most expensive waters to cross by ferry in the world. Yachting is an activity involving boats It may be racing Sailing boats cruising to distant shores or day-sailing along a coast See also Merchant ship A ferry is a form of transport usually a Boat or Ship, used to carry (or ferry) passengers and It is sheltered by the Isle of Wight and has a very complex tidal pattern, which has greatly benefited Southampton's success as a port. The Isle of Wight is an English Island and county in the English Channel between three and five miles (8 km from the south coast of the Characteristics A tide is a repeated cycle of sea level changes in the following stages Over several hours the water rises or advances up a beach in the flood Southampton ( IPA /ˌsaʊθˈhæmptən/ is the largest city in the county of Hampshire, on the south coast of England ||-||-|-||-||-||-||-||-||-|} A port is a facility for receiving Ships and transferring cargo Portsmouth lies on its shores. History See also History of Portsmouth There have been settlements in the area since before Roman times mostly being offshoots of Portchester, which Spithead, an area off Gilkicker Point near Gosport, is renowned as the place where the Royal Navy is reviewed by the monarch of the day. Spithead is an area of the Solent and a roadstead off Gilkicker Point in Hampshire, England. History The Rowner area of the peninsula was known to have been settled in Saxon times mentioned in the Anglo Saxon Chronicles as Rughenor (Rough bank or slope The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) Fleet Review Royal Navy redirects here This article is on reviews of the Royal Navy
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History
Originally a river valley, the Solent has gradually widened and deepened for many thousands of years. The River Frome was the source of the River Solent and two other rivers called the Itchen and Test were tributaries of it. The River Frome (fruːm is a River in Dorset in the south of England. The River Itchen is a River in Hampshire, England. It flows from mid-Hampshire to join with Southampton Water in the city of Southampton The River Test is a River in Hampshire, England. The river has a total length of 40 miles (64 km and it flows through some beautiful Downland Remains of human habitation have been found from the prehistoric, Roman and Saxon eras, showing that humans retreated towards progressively higher ground over these periods. Roman Britain refers to those parts of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire between AD 43 and 410 For their language see Anglo-Saxon language. Anglo-Saxon is the term usually used to describe the invading Tribes in the south
The Purbeck Ball Clay contains kaolinite and mica, showing that in the Lutetian stage of the Eocene water from a granite area, probably Dartmoor, flowed into the River Solent. Purbeck Ball Clay is a concentration of Ball clay found on the Isle of Purbeck in the English county of Dorset. Kaolinite is a Clay mineral with the chemical composition Al 2 Si 2 O 5( OH)4 The word "mica" is thought to be derived from the Latin word la micare, "glitteren" in reference to the brilliant appearance of this mineral (especially The Lutetian is a stage of the Eocene Epoch. It spans the time between 48 The Eocene epoch (558 ± 02 - 339 ± 01 Ma) is a major division of the Geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Palaeogene period in Dartmoor is an area of Moorland in the centre of Devon, England.
There is an early Norman period report that much land on the south of Hayling Island was lost to sea flood. Norman dynasty is the usual designation for the English monarchs which immediately followed the Norman conquest and lasted until the Plantagenet dynasty Hayling Island is an Island off the south coast of England, in the borough of Havant in the county of Hampshire. South of Hayling Island in the Solent is a deposit of stones, which scuba divers found to be the remains of a stone building, probably a church. Hayling Island is an Island off the south coast of England, in the borough of Havant in the county of Hampshire. Scuba diving is swimming underwater, or taking part in another activity while using a Scuba set. There is an old report that this church was formerly in the middle of Hayling Island. If similar amounts of land have been lost on other parts of the Solent shore, the Solent was likely much narrower in Roman times, and it is possible to believe Julius Caesar's report in De Bello Gallico that in his time men could wade to the Isle of Wight at low tide. Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC Commentarii de Bello Gallico is Julius Caesar 's third-person account of his nine years of war in Gaul. Similarly, it is known that Selsey was once a port town, with an Abbey and Cathedra recorded until 1075, when the see of the Diocese of Sussex was moved inland to Chichester. Selsey is a seaside town and Civil parish, about 7 miles (11 kilometres south of Chichester, in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England Selsey Abbey was an Abbey at Selsey, Sussex England It was founded in 681, and became the seat of the Sussex bishopric (later moved to Chichester A cathedra ( Latin, "chair" from Greek, kathedra, "seat" is the Chair or Throne of a Bishop
The southeast of England, like the Netherlands, has been steadily slowly sinking through historic time due to forebulge sinking. The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands In Geology, a quickly-accumulating heavy weight such as an Icecap causes Isostatic sinking
During the late Middle Ages, Henry VIII of England built an extensive set of coastal defences at each end of the Solent, part of his Device Forts, effectively controlling access to east and west. Henry VIII (28 June 1491 &ndash 28 January 1547 was King of England and Lord of Ireland, later King of Ireland and claimant to the Kingdom of In some jurisdictions the terms sea defense and coastal protection are used to mean respectively defence against flooding and erosion The Device Forts are a series of Artillery Fortifications built in England by Henry VIII. More forts were built on land and at sea in the 19th century. The 19th century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1801 and ended on December 31, 1900, according to the Gregorian calendar These were generally known as Palmerston Forts
In 1982 Henry VIII's flagship, the Mary Rose was lifted off the sea bed of the Solent, 437 years after it sank. The Palmerston Forts that encircle Portsmouth were built in response to the 1859 Royal Commission dealing with the perceived threat of a French invasion The Mary Rose was an English Tudor Carrack warship and one of the first to be able to fire a full Broadside of cannons
A bank in the centre of the Solent, Bramble Bank, is exposed at low water springs. The Bramble Bank, otherwise known simply as "The Brambles" is an arrowhead-shaped sandbar in the central Solent which is uncovered at low Characteristics A tide is a repeated cycle of sea level changes in the following stages Over several hours the water rises or advances up a beach in the flood This, combined with the unique tidal patterns in the area, makes navigation challenging. There is an annual cricket match on Bramble Bank during the lowest tide of the year - although it usually ends fairly quickly when the wicket is flooded!
Sea bed survey shows that when the sea level was lower in the Ice Age the Solent River continued the line of the eastern Solent (Spithead) to a point roughly due east of the east end of the Isle of Wight and due south of a point about 3 km west of Selsey Bill, and then south-south-west for about 30 km, and then south for about 14 km, and then joined the main river flowing down the dry bed of the English Channel. Cricket is a bat-and-ball team Sport that originated in England and is now played in more than 100 countries An ice age is a period of long-term reduction in the Temperature of the Earth 's surface and atmosphere resulting in an expansion of continental Ice sheets Spithead is an area of the Solent and a roadstead off Gilkicker Point in Hampshire, England. Selsey Bill is a headland into the English Channel on the south coast of England in the county of West Sussex.
Geology
Ten thousand years ago a band of relatively resistant Chalk rock, part of the Southern England Chalk Formation ran from the Isle of Purbeck area of south Dorset to the eastern end of Isle of Wight, parallel to the South Downs. Geological resistance is a measure of how well Minerals resist erosive factors and is primarily based on hardness, Chemical reactivity and cohesion Chalk (ʧɔːk is a soft white porous Sedimentary rock, a form of Limestone composed of the Mineral Calcite. KentGeologyWealdenDomeSimplesvg|thumb|The Wealden Anticline]] The Chalk Formation of Southern England is a system of Chalk Downland in The Isle of Purbeck, not a true island but a Peninsula, is in the county of Dorset, England. Dorset ( (or archaically, Dorsetshire) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast The Isle of Wight is an English Island and county in the English Channel between three and five miles (8 km from the south coast of the The South Downs is one of the four areas of Chalk Downland in southern England. Inland behind the Chalk were less resistant sands, clays and gravels. Through these weak soils and rocks ran many rivers, from the Dorset Frome in the west and including the Stour, Beaulieu River, Test, Itchen and Hamble, which created a large estuary flowing west to east and into the English Channel at the eastern end of the present Solent. The River Frome (fruːm is a River in Dorset in the south of England. The River Stour is a 605 Mile (97 Km) long River which flows through Wiltshire and Dorset in southern England, and The Beaulieu River (pron /ˈbjuːli/ is a small river flowing south through the New Forest in the county of Hampshire in southern England. The River Test is a River in Hampshire, England. The river has a total length of 40 miles (64 km and it flows through some beautiful Downland The River Itchen is a River in Hampshire, England. It flows from mid-Hampshire to join with Southampton Water in the city of Southampton The River Hamble is a River in Hampshire, England. It rises near Bishop's Waltham and flows for some 7 An estuary is a semi-enclosed Coastal body of Water with one or more Rivers or Streams flowing into it and with a free connection to the open This great estuary ran through a wooded valley and is now referred to as the Solent River.
When glaciers covering the north of Britain melted at the end of the last ice age, two things happened to create the Solent. "Glacial" and "Glaciation" redirect here For the geological periods see Glacial period. An ice age is a period of long-term reduction in the Temperature of the Earth 's surface and atmosphere resulting in an expansion of continental Ice sheets Firstly, a great amount of flood water ran into the Solent River and its tributaries, carving the estuary deeper. Secondly, post-glacial rebound after the removal of the weight of ice over Scotland caused the island of Great Britain to tilt about an east-west axis, because isostatic rebound in Scotland and Scandinavia is pulling mantle rock out from under the Netherlands and south England: this is forebulge sinking. Post-glacial rebound (sometimes called continental rebound, isostatic rebound, isostatic adjustment or post-ice-age isostatic recovery) Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. See also Kingdom of Great Britain Great Britain (Breatainn Mhòr Prydain Fawr Breten Veur Graet Breetain is the larger of the two main islands Post-glacial rebound (sometimes called continental rebound, isostatic rebound, isostatic adjustment or post-ice-age isostatic recovery) Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. Terminology and usage As a cultural term "Scandinavia" has no official definition and is subject to usage by those who identify with the culture in question as well The mantle is a part of an Astronomical object. The interior of the Earth, similar to the other Terrestrial planets, is Chemically divided The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland In Geology, a quickly-accumulating heavy weight such as an Icecap causes Isostatic sinking Over thousands of years, the land sank in the south (a process still continuing) to submerge many valleys creating today's characteristic rias, such as Southampton Water and Poole Harbour, as well as submerging the Solent. A ria is a Landform, often referred to as a drowned river valley. Southampton Water is a stretch of the sea north of the Isle of Wight and the Solent, in England. Poole Harbour is a large natural Harbour in Dorset, southern England, with the town of Poole on its shores The estuary of the Solent River was gradually flooded, and eventually the Isle of Wight became separated from the mainland as the chalk ridge between The Needles on the island and Old Harry Rocks on the mainland was eroded. The Isle of Wight is an English Island and county in the English Channel between three and five miles (8 km from the south coast of the Chalk (ʧɔːk is a soft white porous Sedimentary rock, a form of Limestone composed of the Mineral Calcite. The Needles is a row of three distinctive stacks of Chalk that rise out of the Sea off the western extremity of the Isle of Wight, Old Harry Rocks are Chalk stacks located directly east of Studland and to the north of Swanage in Dorset. This is thought to have happened about 7,000 years ago.
The process of coastal change is still continuing, with the soft cliffs on some parts of the Solent, such as Fort Victoria, constantly eroding, whilst other parts, such as Ryde Sands, accreting. Fort Victoria was a single tier battery with defensible barracks west of Yarmouth Isle of Wight, England, built in the 1850s later used as a submarine mining
Other uses of the name
- The Short Solent, often simply called a Solent, is a type of flying boat. The Short Solent was a passenger Flying boat produced by Short Brothers in the late 1940s. A flying boat is a specialised form of Aircraft that is designed to take off from and land on water using its Fuselage as a floating hull.
- A Solent jib is a non-overlapping jib, smaller than a genoa. A jib (also spelled jibb) is a triangular Staysail set ahead of the foremost mast of a sailing boat The genoa or jenny was originally referred to as the 'overlapping jib' or the Genoa jib, being named after the city of Genoa as explained below
- Two ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Solent. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) Two ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Solent, after the Solent, a stretch of water between the Isle of Wight and mainland
- The Solent is an English/Aromatic pipe tobacco blend sold by MacBaren Tobacco of Denmark
See also
- Southampton Water
- Portsmouth Harbour
- Ports and harbours of the Solent
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