Isle of Portland

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Isle of Portland
Coordinates: 50.550° N 2.44° W
Population	12,630[1]
OS grid reference	SY690721
District	Weymouth and Portland
Shire county	Dorset
Region	South West
Constituent country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Portland
Postcode district	DT5
Dial code	01305
Police	Dorset
Fire	Dorset
Ambulance	South Western
UK Parliament	South Dorset
European Parliament	South West England
List of places: UK • England • Dorset

The Isle of Portland is a 4 miles (6 km) long by 1.5 miles (2.4 km) wide limestone island in the English Channel. The isle is 5 miles south of Weymouth, forming the southernmost point of Dorset, England. The island is connected to the mainland by a large pebble tombolo, Chesil Beach, and by the A354 road bridge to Weymouth.

The island is a central part of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site, with a spectacular landscape and important ecology and bird life. Additionally, the island's name has been used for one of the British Sea Areas, and been exported as the name of several North American cities and Australian towns. High quality Portland limestone, still quarried here, has been used extensively in British architecture, and in war memorials.

Portland is notable for its large, deep artificial harbour which was an important Royal Navy base during World Wars One and Two, and a key Royal Navy and North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) training base through until the 1990s, though now a small civilian port and popular recreation area. England's National Sailing Academy is situated at the harbour and will host all of the sailing events for the London-based 2012 Olympics.

[edit] History

A map of the Isle of Portland from 1937

Portland has been inhabited since at least the Mesolithic period. There is strong evidence of Mesolithic inhabitants near Portland Bill, and of all ages since. The island was occupied by the Romans, who reputedly called the Island "Vindelis".^[2] One of England's best-loved authors Thomas Hardy called Portland "The Isle of Slingers", as it is well documented that the inhabitants were expert stone-throwers in the defence of their island. He also named it "The Gibraltar of the North", as a reference to the island's similarities with Gibraltar; its physical geography, isolation, mild climate and Underhill's winding streets.

Portland is recorded in an Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and the Annals of St. Neots as the site of the earliest Viking raid on mainland England in the year 789. Portland Castle was built by Henry VIII in 1539 in response to attacks by France, and cost £4,964 to construct. The castle is one of the best-preserved castles from this period of British history. It is administered by English Heritage and is open to the public.

The island is an ancient Royal Manor, recorded as "being held by the king" in the Domesday Book, and until the 19th century remained a separate liberty within the county for administrative purposes. It was the crown who opened many of the quarries which make Portland famous. After the Great Fire of London Christopher Wren used six million tons of white Portland limestone to rebuild much of London, and some well-known buildings which are built of Portland stone, including St Paul's Cathedral^[3] and the eastern front of Buckingham Palace^[4] in London, and the headquarters of the United Nations in New York City. After World War I a dedicated quarry was opened to provide stone for the Whitehall Cenotaph and half a million gravestones.^[5] A further 800,000 gravestones were carved after World War II. Portland stone is still used to renovate and expand some of the world's most prestigious buildings, a recent example being the British Museum. The very popular Portland Cement is not manufactured here. The strong cement mix was a German invention, and was named Portland Cement due to its similar colour to the even then famous Portland limestone when mixed with lime and sand.

One of Portland's disused quarries at Tout is now an internationally known sculpture park and nature reserve, with an amazing variety of sculptures. Many famous sculptors including Antony Gormley have produced work there.

Portland harbour, at 2130 acres (9 km²), is one of the largest man-made harbours in the world, and the second deepest. The harbour and Weymouth Bay have an unusual feature: a double low tide, caused by the time it takes for high tide to round the island, and its tidal race at the Bill. The first stone of the Breakwaters was laid by Prince Albert in 1849, and the last stone of the first phase by Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, in 1872. The breakwaters were constructed mainly civilian contractors but all the stone was quarried by convicts. 22 men lost their lives during its construction. The breakwaters contain 5,731,376 tons of stone and cost, in 1871, £1,167,852. The final cost was much higher.

The island and its harbour were home to much of the Royal Navy during World War II, and because of this the island was heavily bombed. To protect the harbour from torpedo and submarine attack, HMS Hood (1891) was sunk in the Southern Ship Passage between the southern two breakwaters. Much of the naval base closed at the end of the Cold War in 1995, and the Royal Naval Air Station closed in 1998. The island is still home to HM Prison the Verne and HMYOI Portland, and the harbour contains Britain's only prison ship, HMP Weare, closed during 2005, but still berthed in the port.

[edit] Settlements

Terraced Portland Stone houses in Fortuneswell, Underhill

The island of Portland comprises several distinct settlements, the largest being Fortuneswell and Easton. The other villages are Weston, Southwell, Castletown, Chiswell, Wakeham and the Grove. Fortuneswell, Chiswell and Castletown are at the north end of the island and occupy a steeply-sloping area of land called Underhill. Easton, Weston, Southwell, the Grove and Wakeham are relatively flat, as they occupy the top of the island, atop the slab of Portland limestone. This area is known as Tophill.

The vast majority of houses and buildings (almost all older buildings) on the island are built out of Portland Stone blocks, so Portland houses tend to all look similar, and have similar layouts, and have quite thick (30-60cm) walls, which were governed by the culture and living standards at the time in which they were built. Some houses have been painted, whilst most retain the yellow-grey colour of the stone, giving the Island a unique character.

[edit] Politics and Demographics

Weymouth and Portland shown within Dorset

The island is an ancient Royal Manor, and until the 19th century remained a separate liberty within the county for administrative purposes. The entire Isle constituted a single urban district from 1894 to 1974, when it became part of the Weymouth and Portland borough. The district of Weymouth and Portland was formed on April 1, 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, and was a merger between the nearby borough of Weymouth and Melcombe Regis and the Portland urban district.

The Mayor of Weymouth and Portland is Howard Legg, with David Harris as Deputy Mayor, who are both members of the Liberal Democrats.^[6] Weymouth and Portland and Purbeck districts are in the Dorset South constituency, created in 1885. The constituency elects one Member of Parliament. The current MP for Dorset South is Jim Knight (Labour), who is currently Minister of State for Schools.

In 2004 Portland's population was 12,630; the island population has remained between twelve and thirteen thousand since the 1970s.^[1] In 2005 there were 5,390 dwellings on the entire island. The population is almost entirely of native English origin, with 96.8% of residents being of White British background.^[1] Portland house prices are lower than in Weymouth, but still relatively high by UK standards, and around average for most of the south of England. The average price of a detached house in 2005 was £215,196, with an average terraced house costing £149,825.^[1]

The island’s crime rates are below that of nearby Weymouth, and the United Kingdom average – with 8.7 burglaries per 1000 people in 2004 and 2005. The equivalent rate in Weymouth is 13.4 per 1000, which is slightly higher than that of South West England (10.7 per 1000) but lower than the England and Wales average of 14.4 per 1000. The island's unemployment rate is also very low, at 1.1% of the economically active population in 2005.^[1]

[edit] Climate

Satellite view of Portland and south Dorset - Portland is surrounded by the sea, with the prevailing wind from the south west.

Portland has a rather milder and sunnier climate compared to most of Britain. This is because the prevailing wind is from the southwest, which brings warm air from the tropics, and clear skies from over the sea.

In summer, the area around Weymouth and Portland receives little rain and has few clouds compared to the rest of Britain, being in the "rain shadow" of Dartmoor, with the prevailing southwesterly wind bringing clearer skies from over the sea. It is far enough east to be less affected by the Atlantic storms that Devon and Cornwall experience.

Due to the ameliorating effect of the warm seas which surround the island, in winter frost is rare: on average 8 times a year.^[7] Days with snow lying are equally rare: on average 0 to 6 days a year.^[8] Almost all winters have 0 or 1 days with snow lying; it may snow or sleet a few times in a winter, yet snow almost never settles on the ground. The island, along with other coastal areas in the south west, experience the mildest winters in the UK.^[9] The borough's growing season lasts from 9 to 12 months a year.

Due to its location in the south west of England, Portland has a temperate climate with a small variation in daily and annual temperatures. The average annual mean temperature on Portland from years 1971 to 2000 was 10.2 to 12°C. The warmest month is July, with a maximum average temperature range of 12°C to 21.7 °C. The coolest month is February, with a maximum average temperature range of 1.9°C to 9.9°C.^[10] The borough of Weymouth and Portland, along with the rest of the South Coast, often has has the sunniest weather in Britain.^[11] The island averaged 1768 hours of sunshine annually between the years 1971 and 2000, and between 1990 and 2005 there were five years in which Portland had over 2000 hours, a rare event in the UK.^[12] Portland's average annual rainfall is below UK average at 774mm (see rainfall in the United Kingdom for comparisons).

[edit] Portland Bill and the Race

The island is unusual in that it is connected to the mainland by the Chesil Beach tombolo, and Portland is therefore often incorrectly referred to as a peninsula or tombolo - it is properly referred to as an island, as Chesil Beach is the tombolo, not Portland.

Portland Bill lighthouse and Visitors Centre

Portland Bill should not be confused with the Isle of Portland. Portland Bill is a narrow promontory (or bill) of Portland stone which forms the most southerly part of Tophill. The Bill has a lighthouse, as it is an important waypoint for coastal traffic passing the navigation obstacle caused by the Isle and its Race. Refurbished in 1996, the lighthouse is now entirely computer controlled. There is a visitor centre with information about the lighthouse and its history, and guided tours of the lighthouse are available. Two earlier lighthouses stand slightly further inland, one of which is now an important bird observatory used by ornithologists, providing a long term (over 50 years) record of bird migration and accommodation for visiting birdwatchers.

The tidal race to the south of Portland Bill is caused by the Portland Ledge (the Shambles), a 10 metre / 33 foot deep, 1.3 nautical mile long, underwater extension of the island into the English Channel at a place where the general depth of Channel is 20 metres / 65 feet to 40 metres / 130 feet. The current only stops for brief periods during the twelve and half hour tidal cycle and can reach 7 knots at the spring tide of around 2 metres.

[edit] Sport and Recreation

Fortuneswell and Portland Harbour, seen from The Verne. The Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy is on the left.

In 2000, the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy was constructed in Osprey Quay on the northern tip of Portland as a centre for sailing in the United Kingdom. Weymouth and Portland's waters have been credited by the Royal Yachting Association as amongst the best in Northern Europe.^[13] Weymouth and Portland regularly host local, national and international sailing events in its waters. These events include the J/24 World Championships in 2005, staging trials for the 2004 Athens Olympics, the ISAF World Championship 2006, the BUSA Fleet Racing Championships, and the RYA Youth National Championships.^[14]

In 2005, the WPNSA was selected to host sailing events at the 2012 Olympic Games. The main reason that the island was chosen to host these events was the fact that the Sailing Academy had only recently been built, so no new venue would need to be provided. However, as part of the South West of England Regional Development Agency's plans to redevelop Osprey Quay, in which the Academy is built, a new 600 berth marina and an extension with more on-site facilities will be built by around 2008.^[15]

In addition to sailing, the waters of Weymouth Bay and Portland Harbour are frequently a venue for other water sports. The reliable sailing wind is also very useful for windsurfing and kitesurfing. The more sheltered waters of Portland Harbour and nearer Weymouth are used regularly for angling, diving to several shipwrecks, snorkelling, canoeing, jet skiing, water skiing, and swimming.^[16]

[edit] Trivia

Locally rabbits are associated with bad luck, and as such use of the name is taboo with them often being referred to as "Underground Mutton", "bunnies" or "Long-Eared Furry Things". The fear of the word rabbit is popularly believed to derive from workers in the Isle's famous quarries, as they would often see rabbits emerging from their burrows immediately before a rock fall, and that the rabbits' burrowing was often blamed for increasing the risk of such dangerous (and sometimes deadly) landslides. In past times when the quarrying was done by hand, if a rabbit was seen in the area, the quarry man would pack up and go home for the day, until the safety of the area had been confirmed. There were instances of cave-ins, and once a crane-operator died when his crane toppled due to weak ground over rabbit burrows. Even today Portlanders will be offended or go quiet at the mention of the rabbit. The less heard of theory is that of the word 'Rabbits!' being shouted through the streets upon imminent fear of invasion by the French, meaning 'every man and woman for themselves'.

This superstition came to national attention in October 2005 when a special batch of advertisement posters were made for the Wallace and Gromit film, The Curse of the Were-Rabbit. In respect of the local belief the promoters omitted the word 'rabbit' and replaced the film's title with the phrase, "Something bunny is going on". [1] [2]

[edit] In literature

There is another piece of trivia that relates to this small island, the literary conjecture that Portland was once the Isle of the Dead, a place of internal exile hundreds of years ago, where the causeway was guarded to keep the 'dead' (some of them being insane) from crossing the Fleet and returning back to Britain. This is not archaeological fact, but mere conjecture based on Bernard Cornwell's 1990s books The Warlord Chronicles.

In Thomas Hardy's fictionalised version of Wessex, the Isle of Portland was known as the Isle of Slingers. The "Isle of Slingers" is heavily based on Portland, with Street of Wells representing Fortuneswell and The Beal as Portland Bill.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Map sources for grid reference SY 690 721.
• Weymouth & Portland borough council
• History of Portland
• Portland Sculpture & Quarry Trust
• Dr Ian West's Dorset geology pages (Southampton University)
• Geoff Kirby's exploring Portland pages
• Broadcroft Quarry Nature Reserve
• Portland Castle Museum
• Portland Bird Observatory and Field Centre
• Archive photographs of lighthouses at Portland Bill

[edit] Photographs

• More from the photographer of the images on this page
• Pictures of England: Portland
• A panorama taken from Portland Bill
• Pictures of Portland Bill
• Old Portland pictures from the Steps in Time Archive

[edit] Further reading

Stuart Morris, 1985 "Portland, an Illustrated History":.[3]. The Dovecote Press, Wimborne, Dorset: ISBN 0-946159-34-3

Stuart Morris, 1998 "Portland" (Discover Dorset Series).[4]: The Dovecote Press, Wimborne, Dorset :ISBN 1-874336-49-0.

Stuart Morris, 2002 "Portland: A Portrait in Colour":.[5] The Dovecote Press, Wimborne, Dorset: ISBN 1-874336-91-1.

Stuart Morris, 2006 "Portland, Then and Now":.[6] The Dovecote Press, Wimborne, Dorset: ISBN 1-904349-48-X.