The
English Channel is an
armIn geography, an arm is a narrow extension, inlet, or smaller reach, of water from a much larger body of water, like an ocean, sea, or lake. Although different geographically, a sound or bay may be called an arm....
of the
Atlantic OceanThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about 106.4 million square kilometres , it covers approximately one-fifth of the Earth's surface and about one-quarter of its water surface area. The first part of its name refers to the Atlas of Greek...
that separates
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
from northern
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
, and joins the
North SeaThe North Sea is a marginal, epeiric sea on the European continental shelf. The Dover Strait and the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Sea in the north connect it to the Atlantic Ocean. It is more than long and wide, with an area of around...
to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest, to only in the
Strait of DoverThe Strait of Dover or Dover Strait is the strait at the narrowest part of the English Channel. The shortest distance across the strait is from the South Foreland, some 4 miles north east of Dover in the county of Kent, England, to Cap Gris Nez, a cape near to Calais in the French of...
. It is the smallest of the shallow seas around the continental shelf of
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
, covering an area of some .
Geography
The length of the Channel is most often defined as the line between
Land's EndLand's End is a headland on the Penwith peninsula, located near Penzance in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly point of the English mainland; the westernmost point of the island of Great Britain as a whole is Corrachadh Mòr, Ardnamurchan, Scotland which is farther west...
and
UshantUshant is an island in the English Channel which marks the north-westernmost point of European France. It belongs to Brittany and is in the traditional region of Bro-Leon. Administratively, Ushant is a commune in the Finistère department...
at the (arbitrarily defined) western end, and the Strait of Dover at the eastern end. The strait is also the Channel's narrowest point, while its widest point lies between
Lyme BayLyme Bay is an area of the English Channel situated in the southwest of England between Torbay in the west and Portland in the east. The counties of Devon and Dorset front onto the bay....
and the Gulf of Saint Malo near the midpoint of the waterway. It is relatively shallow, with an average depth of about at its widest part, reducing to a depth of about between
DoverDover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; west of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
and
CalaisCalais is a town in northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture...
. From there eastwards the adjoining North Sea continues to shallow to about in the
Broad Fourteens200px|rightThe Broad Fourteens is an area of the southern North Sea that is fairly consistently fourteen fathoms deep . It is located off the coast of the Netherlands and south of the Dogger Bank, roughly between longitude 3°E and 4°30'E and latitude 52°30'N and 53°30'N...
where it lies over the watershed of the former land bridge between
East AngliaEast Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
and the
Low CountriesThe Low Countries, the historical region of de Nederlanden, are the countries on low-lying land around the delta of the Rhine, Scheldt, and Meuse rivers...
. It reaches a maximum depth of in the submerged valley of
Hurds DeepHurd's Deep is a deep underwater valley in the English Channel, north west of the Channel Islands, at position 49 degrees 30 minutes North, 3 degrees 34 minutes West. From marine navigational charts, the maximum depth is 172 metres, and lies to the north of the isle of Alderney.It is most probable...
, west-northwest of
GuernseyThe Bailiwick of Guernsey is a British Crown Dependency in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy.As well as the island of Guernsey itself, it also includes Alderney, Herm, Jethou, Brecqhou, Burhou, Lihou, Sark and other islets. Although the defence of all these islands is the...
.
The eastern region along the French coast between Cherbourg and the mouth of the Seine river at
Le HavreLe Havre is a city in north-western France situated on the right bank of the mouth of the Seine River as it flows into the Bay of the Seine in the English Channel. It is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region. The inhabitants of the city are called Havrais or...
is frequently referred to as the
Bay of the Seine .
Several major islands are situated in the Channel, the most notable being the
Isle of WightThe Isle of Wight is an English island and a county, located 3-5 miles from the south coast of the mainland, in the English Channel. It is separated from mainland England by the Solent and is situated south of the county of Hampshire...
off the English coast and the British crown dependencies the
Channel IslandsThe Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two separate bailiwicks: the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey...
off the coast of France. The
Isles of ScillyThe Isles of Scilly form an archipelago off the southwestern tip of the Cornish peninsula of the British Isles. Traditionally administered as part of the county of Cornwall, the islands have had a unitary authority council since 1889...
off the far southwest coast of England are not generally counted as being in the Channel. The coastline, particularly on the French shore, is deeply indented. The
Cotentin PeninsulaThe Cotentin Peninsula, also known as the Cherbourg Peninsula, is a peninsula in Normandy, forming part of the north-western coast of France...
in France juts out into the Channel, and the Isle of Wight creates a small parallel channel known as the
SolentThe Solent is a stretch of sea separating the Isle of Wight from the mainland of England.The Solent is a major shipping route for passengers, freight and military vessels. It is an important recreational area for water sports, particularly yachting, hosting the Cowes Week sailing event annually...
.
The Channel is of geologically recent origins, having been dry land for most of the
PleistoceneThe Pleistocene is the epoch from 2.588 million to 12 000 years BP covering the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
period. It is thought to have been created between 450,000 and 180,000 years ago by two catastrophic
glacial lake outburst floodA glacial lake outburst flood can occur when a lake contained by a glacier or a terminal moraine dam fails...
s caused by the breaching of the
Weald-Artois AnticlineThe Weald–Artois anticline is a large anticline, a geological structure running between the regions of the Weald in southern England and the Artois in northeastern France. The fold formed during the Alpine orogeny, from the late Oligocene to middle Miocene...
, a ridge which held back a large
proglacial lakeIn geology, a proglacial lake is a lake formed either by the damming action of a moraine or ice dam during the retreat of a melting glacier, or one formed by meltwater trapped against an ice sheet due to isostatic depression of the crust around the ice...
in the
DoggerlandDoggerland is a name given by archaeologists and geologists to the former landmass in the southern North Sea that connected the island of Great Britain to mainland Europe during and after the last Ice Age...
region, now submerged under the North Sea. The flood would have lasted several months, releasing as much as one million cubic metres of water per second. The cause of the breach is not known but may have been caused by an
earthquakeAn earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes are recorded with a seismometer, also known as a seismograph...
or simply the build-up of water pressure in the lake. As well as destroying the isthmus that connected Britain to continental Europe, the flood carved a large bedrock-floored valley down the length of the English Channel, leaving behind streamlined islands and longitudinal erosional grooves characteristic of catastrophic megaflood events.
The
Celtic SeaThe Celtic Sea is the area of the Atlantic Ocean off the south coast of Ireland. It is bounded to the east by Saint George's Channel, the Bristol Channel and the English Channel, as well as adjacent portions of Wales, Cornwall, Devon, and Brittany...
forms its western border.
For the UK
Shipping ForecastThe Shipping Forecast is a four-times-daily BBC radio broadcast of weather reports and forecasts for the seas around the coasts of the British Isles. It is produced by the UK Meteorological Office and broadcast by BBC Radio 4 on behalf of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency...
the English Channel is divided into the areas of (from the West):
- Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
- Portland
The Isle of Portland is a limestone tied island, long by wide, in the English Channel. Portland is south of the resort of Weymouth, forming the southernmost point of the county of Dorset, England. Chesil Beach connects it to the mainland, and the A354 road bridge connects it to Weymouth....
- Wight
The Isle of Wight is an English island and a county, located 3-5 miles from the south coast of the mainland, in the English Channel. It is separated from mainland England by the Solent and is situated south of the county of Hampshire...
- Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; west of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
Etymology
The name "English Channel" has been widely used since the early 18th century, possibly originating from the designation "
Engelse Kanaal" in
DutchThe Netherlands is a country in Northwestern Europe, constituting the major portion of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east...
sea maps from the 16th century onwards. It has also been known as the "British Channel". Prior to then it was known as the British Sea, and it was called the "
Oceanus Britannicus" by the 2nd century geographer
PtolemyClaudius Ptolemaeus , known in English as Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Greek ancestry. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer and a poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under the Roman Empire, and is believed to have been born in the town of...
. The same name is used on an Italian map of about 1450 which gives the alternative name of "
canalites Anglie"—possibly the first recorded use of the "Channel" designation.
The French name "
La Manche" has been in use since at least the 17th century. The name is usually said to refer to the Channel's sleeve (French: "
manche") shape. However, it is sometimes claimed to instead derive from a
CelticThe Celtic languages are descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic", a branch of the greater Indo-European language family. The term "Celtic" was used to describe this language group by Edward Lhuyd in 1707, having much earlier been used by Greek and Roman writers to describe tribes in...
word meaning "channel" that is also the source of the name for
The MinchThe Minch , also called The North Minch, is a strait in north-west Scotland, separating the north-west Highlands, and the northern Inner Hebrides, from Lewis and Harris in the Outer Hebrides...
, in
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. In Spain and most Spanish speaking countries the Channel is referred to as
"El Canal de la Mancha". In Portuguese it is known as "
O Canal da Mancha". (This is not a translation from French: in Portuguese, as well as in Spanish,
"mancha" means "stain", while the word for sleeve is
"manga".) Other languages also use this name, such as
GreekGreek , an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, is the language of the Greeks. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. In its ancient form, it is the language of classical...
(Κανάλι της Μάγχης) and
ItalianItalian is a Romance language spoken by about 60 million people in Italy, and by a total of around 70 million in the world. In Switzerland, Italian is one of four official languages. It is also the official language of San Marino, as well as the primary language of Vatican City...
(
la Manica).
In
BretonThe Breton language is a Celtic language spoken in Brittany , France.-History:Breton is a Brythonic language, descended from the Celtic British language brought from Great Britain to Armorica by migrating Britons during the Early Middle Ages. Like the other Brythonic languages, Welsh and Cornish,...
it is known as "Mor Breizh" (the Sea of
BrittanyBrittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Brittany was previously a kingdom and then as a duchy it was a fief of the Kingdom of France. It was at one time called Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
), tied to the Latin and indicative in origins for the name
ArmoricaArmorica or Aremorica is the name given in ancient times to the part of Gaul that includes the Brittany peninsula and the territory between the Seine and Loire rivers, extending inland to an indeterminate point and down the Atlantic coast...
.
History
The channel has been the key natural defence for Britain, halting invading armies while in conjunction with control of the North Sea allowing her to blockade the continent. The most significant failed invasion threats came when the Dutch and Belgian ports were held by a major continental power, e.g. from the
Spanish ArmadaThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England.Philip II of Spain had been co-monarch of England until the death of his wife Mary I in 1558...
in 1588,
NapoleonNapoleon Bonaparte later known as Napoleon I, and previously Napoleone di Buonaparte, was a military and political leader of France whose actions shaped European politics in the early 19th century.Born in Corsica and trained as an artillery officer in mainland France, Bonaparte rose to prominence...
during the
Napoleonic WarsThe Napoleonic Wars were a series of conflicts declared against Napoleon's French Empire and changing sets of European allies by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionized European armies and played...
, and
Nazi GermanyNazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany between 1933 and 1945, while it was led by Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Worker's Party . The name Third Reich refers to the state as the successor to the Holy Roman Empire of the Middle Ages and the German...
during
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Successful invasions include the
Roman conquest of BritainBy AD 43, the time of the main Roman invasion of Britain, Great Britain had already frequently been the target of invasions, planned and actual, by forces of the Roman Republic and Roman Empire...
, the Norman Conquest in 1066 and the invasion and conquest of Britain by Dutch troops under
William IIIWilliam III was a sovereign Prince of Orange by birth. From 1672 he governed as Stadtholder William III of Orange over Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel of the Dutch Republic. From 1689 he reigned as William III over England and Ireland, and as William II over Scotland...
in 1688, while the concentration of excellent harbours in the Western Channel on Britain's south coast made possible the largest invasion of all time: the Normandy landings in 1944. Channel
naval battles include the
Battle of Goodwin SandsThe naval Battle of Goodwin Sands , fought on 29 May 1652 , was the first engagement of the First Anglo-Dutch War between the navies of the Commonwealth of England and the United Provinces of the Netherlands.- Background :The English Parliament had passed the first of the Navigation...
(1652), the
Battle of PortlandThe naval Battle of Portland, or Three Days' Battle took place during 28 February-2 March, 1653 , during the First Anglo-Dutch War, when the fleet of the Commonwealth of England under General at Sea Robert Blake was attacked by a fleet of the Dutch Republic under Lieutenant-Admiral Maarten Tromp...
(1653), the Battle of La Hougue (1692) and the engagement between
USS KearsargeUSS Kearsarge, a Mohican-class sloop-of-war, is best known for her defeat of the Confederate commerce raider CSS Alabama during the American Civil War. The Kearsarge was the only ship of the United States Navy named for Mount Kearsarge in New Hampshire...
and
CSS AlabamaCSS Alabama was a screw sloop-of-war built for the Confederate States Navy at Birkenhead, United Kingdom, in 1862 by John Laird Sons and Company...
(1864).
In more peaceful times the channel served as a link joining shared cultures and political structures, particularly the huge
Angevin EmpireThe term Angevin Empire is a neologism describing the collection of states once ruled by the Angevin Plantagenet dynasty. The Plantagenets ruled over an area stretching from the Pyrenees to Ireland during the 12th and early 13th centuries. Their 'empire' was roughly half of medieval France as well...
from 1135–1217.
For nearly a thousand years, the Channel also provided a link between the
Modern CelticModern Celts are those peoples who are speakers of Celtic languages, or who consider themselves, or have been considered by others, to participate in a Celtic culture deriving from communities that have formerly been Celtic-speaking....
regions and languages of
CornwallCornwall is a county of England in the United Kingdom, forming the tip of the south-western peninsula of Great Britain. It is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Taken with the...
and
BrittanyBrittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Brittany was previously a kingdom and then as a duchy it was a fief of the Kingdom of France. It was at one time called Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
. Brittany was founded by Britons who fled
CornwallCornwall is a county of England in the United Kingdom, forming the tip of the south-western peninsula of Great Britain. It is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Taken with the...
and
DevonDevon is a large county in England. The county is also referred to as Devonshire, although that is an unofficial name, rarely used inside of the county itself and often indicating a traditional or historical context. The county shares borders with Cornwall to the west and Dorset and Somerset to...
after Anglo-Saxon encroachment. In Brittany, there is a region known as "
CornouailleCornouaille is a historic region in Brittany, in northwest France. The name is identical to the french name for the Duchy of Cornwall, since the area was settled by princes migrants from Cornwall...
" (Cornwall) in French and "Kernev" in
BretonThe Breton language is a Celtic language spoken in Brittany , France.-History:Breton is a Brythonic language, descended from the Celtic British language brought from Great Britain to Armorica by migrating Britons during the Early Middle Ages. Like the other Brythonic languages, Welsh and Cornish,...
Anciently there was also a "
DomnoniaDomnonée is the modern French version of the Latin name Dumnonia , which denoted a kingdom in northern Brittany founded by migrants from Dumnonia in Great Britain...
" (Devon) in Brittany as well.
Route to the British Isles
Diodorus SiculusDiodorus Siculus , was a Greek historian who flourished in the 1st century BC. According to Diodorus' own work, he was born at Agyrium in Sicily . With one exception, antiquity affords no further information about Diodorus' life and doing than is to be found in his own work, Bibliotheca historica...
and Pliny both suggest trade between the rebel celtic tribes of
ArmoricaArmorica or Aremorica is the name given in ancient times to the part of Gaul that includes the Brittany peninsula and the territory between the Seine and Loire rivers, extending inland to an indeterminate point and down the Atlantic coast...
and
Iron AgeIn archaeology, the Iron Age is the prehistoric period in any area during which cutting tools and weapons were mainly made of iron or steel. The adoption of this material coincided with other changes in society, including differing agricultural practices, religious beliefs and artistic styles.The...
Britain flourished. In 55 BC
Julius CaesarGaius Julius Caesar , , was a Roman military and political leader. He played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
invaded claiming that the Britons had aided the
VenetiThe Veneti were a seafaring Celtic people who lived in the Brittany peninsula , which in Roman times formed part of an area called Armorica...
against him the previous year. He was more successful in 54 BC, but Britain was not fully established as part of the Roman Empire until completion of the invasion by
Aulus PlautiusAulus Plautius was a Roman politician and general of the mid-1st century. He led the Roman conquest of Britain in 43, and became the first governor of the new province, serving from 43 to 47.-Career:...
in 43 AD. A brisk and regular trade began between ports in Roman
GaulGaul is a historical name used in the context of the Roman Empire in references to the region of Western Europe approximating present day France and Belgium, but also sometimes including the Po Valley, western Switzerland, and the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the west bank of the River...
and those in Britain. This traffic continued until the
Roman departure from BritainThe Roman departure from Britain was completed by 410. The archaeological records of the final decades of Roman rule in Britain show undeniable signs of decay. Urban and villa life had grown less intense by the fourth quarter of the fourth century, pottery shards are not present in levels dating...
in 410 AD, after which we enter
early Anglo-SaxonsThe history of Anglo-Saxon England covers the history of England from the end of Roman Britain and the establishment of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in the fifth century until the Norman Conquest of England in 1066...
rendered less clear historical records.
In the power vacuum left by the retreating Romans, the Germanic
AnglesThe Angles is a modern English word for a Germanic-speaking people who took their name from the ancestral cultural region of Angeln, a district located in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany...
,
SaxonsThe Saxons were a confederation of Old Germanic tribes. Their modern-day descendants in Lower Saxony and Westphalia and other German states are considered ethnic Germans ; those in the eastern Netherlands are considered to be ethnic Dutch; those in north...
, and
JutesThe Jutes, Iuti, or Iutae were a Germanic people who, according to Bede, were one of the three most powerful Germanic peoples of their time...
began the next great migration across the North Sea. Having already been used as mercenaries in Britain by the Romans, many people from these tribes migrated across the North Sea during the
Migration PeriodThe Migration Period, also called the Barbarian Invasions or Völkerwanderung , was a period of human migration that occurred roughly between the years 300 to 700 CE in Europe, marking the transition from Late Antiquity to the Early Middle Ages...
, conquering and perhaps displacing the native
CeltCelts is a modern term used to describe any of the European peoples who spoke, or speak, a Celtic language...
ic populations.
Norsemen and Normans
The attack on
LindisfarneLindisfarne is a tidal island off the north-east coast of England also known as Holy Island, the name of the civil parish. The name Lindisfarne derives from Farne meaning "retreat" and Lindis, a small tidal river adjacent to the island. It has a population of 162...
in 793 is generally considered the beginning of the
Viking AgeViking Age is the term for the period in European history, especially Northern European and Scandinavian history, spanning the eighth to eleventh centuries. Scandinavian Vikings explored Europe by its oceans and rivers through trade and warfare. The Vikings also reached Iceland, Greenland,...
. For the next 250 years the Scandinavian raiders of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark dominated the North Sea, raiding monasteries, homes, and towns along the coast and along the rivers that ran inland. According to the
Anglo-Saxon ChronicleThe Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a collection of annals in Old English chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The annals were initially created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alfred the Great. Multiple manuscript copies were made and distributed to monasteries...
they began to settle in Britain in 851. They continued to settle in the
British IslesThe British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include Great Britain, Ireland and numerous smaller islands. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Ireland...
and the continent until around 1050.
The
fiefdom of NormandyThe Duchy of Normandy stems from various Danish, Hiberno-Norse, Orkney Viking and Anglo-Danish invasions of France in the 8th century...
was created for the
VikingA Viking is one of the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided and colonized wide areas of Europe from the late eighth to the early eleventh century. These Norsemen used their famed longships to travel as far east as Constantinople and the Volga River in Russia, and as far...
leader
RolloRollo , baptised Robert, was the founder and first ruler of the Viking principality in what soon became known as Normandy.The name Rollo is a Frankish-Latin name probably taken from the Old Norse name Hrólfr Rollo (c. 860 – c. 932), baptised Robert, was the founder and first ruler of the...
(also known as Robert of Normandy). Rollo had besieged
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
but in 911 entered
vassalA vassal in the terminology that both preceded and accompanied the feudalism of medieval Europe, is one who enters into mutual obligations with a monarch, usually of military support and mutual protection, in exchange for certain guarantees, which came to include the terrain held as a fief. By...
age to the
kingA monarch is the person who heads a monarchy, a form of government in which the country or entity usually ruled or controlled by an individual who usually rules for life or until abdication...
of the
West FranksWest Francia or the West Frankish Kingdom was a short-lived kingdom encompassing the lands of the western part of the Carolingian Empire that came under the undisputed control of Charlemagne's grandson, Charles the Bald, as a result of the Treaty of Verdun of 843.The Frankish Empire, the great...
Charles the SimpleCharles III , called the Simple or the Straightforward , was the undisputed King of France from 898 until 922 and the King of Lotharingia from 911 until 919/23...
through the Treaty of St.-Claire-sur-Epte. In exchange for his
homageHomage is pronounced variously as , , or . The last reflects the modern French pronunciation, although the word entered Middle English many centuries ago. In traditional usage it is analogous to praise; one properly speaks of homage or the homage, rather than a homage or an homage...
and
fealtyAn oath of fealty, from the Latin fidelitas , is a pledge of allegiance of one person to another. Typically the oath is made upon a religious object such as a Bible or saint's relic, thus binding the oath-taker before God....
, Rollo legally gained the territory he and his Viking allies had previously conquered. The name "Normandy" reflects Rollo's Viking (i.e. "Northman") origins.
The descendants of Rollo and his followers adopted the local Gallo-Romantic language and intermarried with the area’s previous inhabitants and became the
NormansThe Normans were the people who gave their names to Normandy, a region in northern France. They descended from Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of mostly Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
– a
Norman FrenchNorman is a Romance language and one of the Oïl languages. Norman can be classified in the northern Oïl languages with Picard and Walloon. The name Norman-French is sometimes used to describe not only the modern Norman language, but also the administrative languages of Anglo-Norman and Law French...
-speaking mixture of
ScandinaviaScandinavia is a geographical region in northern Europe that includes, and is named after, the Scanian Province. It consists of the kingdoms of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark...
ns, Hiberno-Norse, Orcadians,
Anglo-DanishThe Danelaw, as recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , is a historical name given to the part of England in which the laws of the "Danes" held sway and dominated those of the Anglo-Saxons. It is contrasted with "West Saxon Law" and "Mercian law". The term has been extended by modern historians to...
, and indigenous
FranksThe Franks or Frankish people were a West Germanic tribal confederation first attested in the 3rd century as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul...
and
GaulsThe Gauls were a Celtic people living in Gaul, the region roughly corresponding to what is now France and Belgium, from the Iron Age through the Roman period. They spoke the Continental Celtic language called Gaulish....
.
Rollo's descendant
William, Duke of NormandyWilliam I , better known as William the Conqueror, was Duke of Normandy from AD 1035 and King of England from late 1066 to his death. William is sometimes also referred to as "William II" in relation to his position as the second Duke of Normandy of that name...
became king of England in 1066 in the Norman Conquest culminating at the
Battle of HastingsThe Battle of Hastings was the decisive Norman victory in the Norman Conquest of England. It was fought between the Norman army of Duke William of Normandy, and the English army led by Harold II...
while retaining the fiefdom of Normandy for himself and his descendants. In 1204, during the reign of
King JohnJohn , King of England, reigned from 6 April 1199 until his death. He acceded to the throne as the younger brother of King Richard I, who died without issue...
, mainland Normandy was taken from England by France under
Philip IIPhilip II Augustus was the King of France from 1180 until his death. A member of the House of Capet, Philip Augustus was born at Gonesse in the Val-d'Oise, the son of Louis VII and his third wife, Adela of Champagne...
while insular Normandy (the
Channel IslandsThe Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two separate bailiwicks: the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey...
) remained under English control. In 1259,
Henry III of EnglandHenry III was the son and successor of John as King of England, reigning for fifty-six years from 1216 to his death. His contemporaries knew him as Henry of Winchester. He was the first child king in England since the reign of Æthelred the Unready...
recognized the legality of French possession of mainland Normandy under the
Treaty of ParisThe Treaty of Paris was a treaty between Louis IX of France and Henry III of England, agreed to on December 4, 1259....
. His successors, however, often fought to regain control of mainland French Normandy.
With the rise of William the Conqueror the North Sea and Channel began to lose some of its importance. The new order oriented most of England and Scandinavia's trade south, toward the Mediterranean and the Orient.
Although the British surrendered claims to mainland Normandy and other French possessions in 1801, the monarch of the United Kingdom retains the title Duke of Normandy in respect to the Channel Islands. The Channel Islands (except for
ChauseyChausey is a group of small islands, islets and rocks off the coast of Normandy, in the English Channel. It lies from Granville, and forms a quartier of the Granville commune, in the Manche département...
) remain a
Crown dependencyThe Crown Dependencies are possessions of The Crown in Right of the United Kingdom, as opposed to overseas territories or colonies of the United Kingdom. They comprise the Channel Island bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey and the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea....
of the
British CrownThe Crown is a corporation sole that in certain countries of the Commonwealth of Nations, as well as in any provincial or state sub-divisions thereof, represents the legal embodiment of executive government...
in the present era. Thus the
Loyal ToastA loyal toast is a salute given to the head of state of the country in which a formal gathering is being given, or by expatriates of that country, whether or not the particular head of state is present. It is usually a matter of protocol at state and military occasions, and a display of patriotic...
in the Channel Islands is
La Reine, notre Duc ("The Queen, our Duke"). The British monarch is understood to
not be the Duke of Normandy in regards of the French region of Normandy described herein, by virtue of the
Treaty of Paris of 1259The Treaty of Paris was a treaty between Louis IX of France and Henry III of England, agreed to on December 4, 1259....
, the surrender of French possessions in 1801, and the belief that the rights of succession to that title are subject to
Salic LawSalic law was an important body of traditional law codified for governing the Salian Franks in the early Middle Ages during the reign of King Clovis I in the 6th century...
which excludes inheritance through female heirs.
French Normandy was occupied by English forces during the
Hundred Years' WarThe Hundred Years' War was a prolonged conflict lasting from 1337 to 1453 between two royal houses for the French throne, which was vacant with the extinction of the senior Capetian line of French kings. The two primary contenders were the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet, also known...
in 1346–1360 and again in 1415–1450.
England & Britain: The naval superpowers
From the reign of Elizabeth I, English foreign policy concentrated on preventing invasion across the Channel by ensuring no major European power controlled the potential Dutch and Flemish invasion ports. Her climb to the pre-eminent sea power of the world began in 1588 as the attempted invasion of the
Spanish ArmadaThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England.Philip II of Spain had been co-monarch of England until the death of his wife Mary I in 1558...
was defeated by the combination of outstanding naval tactics by the English under command of
Charles Howard, 1st Earl of NottinghamCharles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham , known as Howard of Effingham, was an English statesman and admiral....
with Sir Francis Drake second in command, and the following stormy weather. Over the centuries the
Royal NavyThe Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of HM Armed Forces . From the beginning of the 18th century until well into the 20th century, it was the most powerful navy in the world, playing a key part in establishing the British Empire as the dominant world power from 1815 until the early...
slowly grew to be the most powerful in Europe.
The building of the
British EmpireThe British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom, that had originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height it was...
was possible only because the
Royal NavyThe Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of HM Armed Forces . From the beginning of the 18th century until well into the 20th century, it was the most powerful navy in the world, playing a key part in establishing the British Empire as the dominant world power from 1815 until the early...
exercised unquestioned control over the seas around Europe, especially the Channel and the North Sea. One significant challenge to British domination of the seas came during the
Napoleonic WarsThe Napoleonic Wars were a series of conflicts declared against Napoleon's French Empire and changing sets of European allies by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionized European armies and played...
. The
Battle of TrafalgarThe Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars . The battle was the most decisive British naval victory of the war...
took place off the coast of Spain against a combined French and Spanish fleet and was won by Admiral
Horatio NelsonVice Admiral Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronté, KB was a British flag officer famous for his service in the Royal Navy, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars...
, ending
NapoleonNapoleon Bonaparte later known as Napoleon I, and previously Napoleone di Buonaparte, was a military and political leader of France whose actions shaped European politics in the early 19th century.Born in Corsica and trained as an artillery officer in mainland France, Bonaparte rose to prominence...
's plans for a cross-Channel invasion and securing British dominance of the seas for over a century.
First World War
The exceptional strategic importance of the Channel as a tool for blockade was recognised by the First Sea Lord
Admiral FisherAdmiral of the Fleet John Arbuthnot "Jacky" Fisher, 1st Baron Fisher of Kilverstone, GCB, OM, GCVO was a British admiral known for his efforts at naval reform...
in the years before
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
. "Five keys lock up the world!
SingaporeSingapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island city-state located at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, lying north of the equator, south of the Malaysian state of Johor and north of Indonesia's Riau Islands. At , Singapore is a microstate and the smallest nation in Southeast...
, the Cape,
AlexandriaAlexandria , with a population of 4.1 million, is the second-largest city in Egypt, and is the country's largest seaport, serving about 80% of Egypt's imports and exports...
, Gibraltar, Dover." However on July 25 1909
Louis BlériotLouis Blériot was a French aviator, inventor and engineer. In 1909 he completed the first flight across a large body of water in a heavier-than-air craft, when he crossed the English Channel. For this achievement, he received a prize of GB£. He also is credited as the first person to make a...
successfully made the first Channel crossing from
CalaisCalais is a town in northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture...
to
DoverDover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; west of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
in an airplane. Blériot's crossing immediately signalled the end of the Channel as a barrier-moat for England against foreign enemies.
Because the
Kaiserliche MarineThe Kaiserliche Marine or Imperial Navy was the German Navy created by the formation of the German Empire. It existed between 1871 and 1919, growing out of the Prussian Navy and Norddeutsche Bundesmarine. Kaiser Wilhelm II greatly expanded the Navy, causing a naval arms race between the German...
's surface fleet could not match the British Grand Fleet, the
GermansGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
developed
submarine warfareNaval warfare is divided into three operational areas: surface warfare, air warfare and underwater warfare. The latter may be subdivided into submarine warfare and anti-submarine warfare as well as mine warfare and mine countermeasures...
which was to become a far greater threat to Britain. The
Dover PatrolThe Dover Patrol was a Royal Navy command of the First World War, notable for its involvement in the Zeebrugge Raid on 22 April 1918. The Dover Patrol formed a discrete unit of the Royal Navy based at Dover and Dunkirk for the duration of the First World War...
was set up just before war started to escort cross-Channel troopships and to prevent submarines from accessing the Channel, thereby obliging them to travel to the Atlantic via the much longer route around
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
On land, the German army attempted to capture Channel ports (see "
Race to the SeaThe Race to the Sea is a name given to the period early in World War I when the two sides were still engaged in mobile warfare on the Western Front. With the German advance stalled at the First Battle of the Marne, the opponents continually attempted to outflank each other through north-eastern...
") but although the trenches are often said to have stretched "from the frontier of Switzerland to the English Channel" in fact they reached the coast at the North Sea. Much of the British war effort in
FlandersFlanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France, and the Netherlands...
was a bloody but successful strategy to prevent the Germans reaching the Channel coast.
On 31 January 1917, the Germans restarted
unrestricted submarine warfareUnrestricted submarine warfare is a type of naval warfare in which submarines sink merchant ships without warning, as opposed to attacks per prize rules...
leading to dire Admiralty predictions that submarines would defeat Britain by November, the most dangerous situation Britain faced in either World War.
The Battle of Passchendaele in 1917, was fought to reduce the threat by capturing the submarine bases on the Belgian coast though it was the introduction of
convoyA convoy is a group of vehicles traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval convoys have been used for hundreds...
s and not capture of the bases that averted defeat. In April 1918 the Dover patrol carried out the famous
Zeebrugge Raid||-||-||}The Zeebrugge Raid, which took place on 23 April 1918, was an attempt by the British Royal Navy to neutralize the key Belgian port of Bruges-Zeebrugge...
against the
U-boatU-boat is the anglicized version of the German word , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
bases. The Naval blockade effected via the Channel and North Sea was one of the decisive factors in the German defeat in 1918.
Second World War
During the Second World War, naval activity in the
European theatreThe European Theatre of World War II was a huge area of heavy fighting across Europe from Nazi Germany's invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939 until the end of the war with the German unconditional surrender on May 8, 1945...
was primarily limited to the Atlantic. The early stages of the
Battle of BritainThe Battle of Britain is the name given to the air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940. The objective of the campaign was to gain air superiority over the Royal Air Force , especially Fighter Command...
featured air attacks on Channel shipping and ports, and until the Normandy landings with the exception of the
Channel DashThe Channel Dash was a major naval engagement during World War II in which a German Kriegsmarine squadron consisting of Scharnhorst, Gneisenau, Prinz Eugen, supported by a number of smaller ships, ran a British blockade and successfully sailed from Brest in Brittany to their home bases in Germany...
the narrow waters were too dangerous for major warships. However, despite these early successes against shipping, the Germans did not win the air supremacy necessary for a cross Channel invasion.
The Channel subsequently became the stage for an intensive coastal war, featuring submarines,
minesweepersA minesweeper is a small naval warship designed to counter the threat posed by naval mines. Minesweepers generally detect then neutralize mines in advance of other naval operations...
, and
Fast Attack CraftA Fast Attack Craft is a small , fast , ship for offensive tasks, mainly equipped with surface-to-surface missiles and/or torpedoes....
.
The town of
DieppeDieppe is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in France. In 1999, the population of the whole Dieppe urban area was 81,419.A port on the English Channel, famous for its scallops, and with a regular ferry service from the Gare Maritime to Newhaven in England, Dieppe also has a popular pebbled...
was the site of the ill-fated
Dieppe RaidThe Dieppe Raid, also known as The Battle of Dieppe, Operation Rutter or later on Operation Jubilee, during the Second World War, was an Allied attack on the German-occupied port of Dieppe on the northern coast of France on 19 August 1942. The assault began at 5:00 AM in the morning and by 9:00 AM...
by
CanadianCanada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and
BritishThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
armed forces. More successful was the later
Operation OverlordOperation Overlord was the code name for the invasion of western Europe during World War II by Allied forces. The operation began on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy Landings when an airborne assault preceded an amphibious assault...
(also known as
D-DayD-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
), a massive invasion of
GermanNazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany between 1933 and 1945, while it was led by Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Worker's Party . The name Third Reich refers to the state as the successor to the Holy Roman Empire of the Middle Ages and the German...
-occupied France by
AlliedThe Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . The involvement of the Allies in World War II was either natural and inevitable they were invaded or under the direct threat of invasion by the Axis or compelled by concerns that the Axis powers...
troops.
CaenCaen is a commune in north-western France. It is the prefecture of the Calvados department and the capital of the Basse-Normandie region...
, Cherbourg,
CarentanCarentan is a small rural town near the north-eastern base of the French Cotentin Peninsula in Normandy in north-western France near the port city of Cherbourg-Octeville...
,
FalaiseFalaise is a commune in the Calvados département in the Basse-Normandie region in Normandy, north-western France. Population 8,820; 8,387; 8,797.-Geography:...
and other Norman towns endured many casualties in the fight for the province, which continued until the closing of the so-called
Falaise gapThe battle of the Falaise Pocket, fought during the Second World War from 12–21 August 1944, was the decisive engagement of the Battle of Normandy...
between
ChamboisChambois is a commune in the Orne department in north-western France.The city is remarkable for its Norman keep and was part of the Falaise pocket in 1944.-Norman keep:It was built in the 12th century...
and Montormel, then liberation of
Le HavreLe Havre is a city in north-western France situated on the right bank of the mouth of the Seine River as it flows into the Bay of the Seine in the English Channel. It is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region. The inhabitants of the city are called Havrais or...
.
The Channel Islands were the only part of the
British CommonwealthThe Commonwealth of Nations, often referred to as the Commonwealth and previously as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-three independent member states. Most of them were formerly part of the British Empire. They co-operate within a framework of common values...
occupied by GermanyThe Occupation of the Channel Islands refers to the military occupation of the Channel Islands by Germany during World War II which lasted from 30 June 1940 until the Liberation on 9 May 1945...
(excepting the part of
EgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia...
occupied by the
Afrika KorpsThe German Afrika Korps was the German expeditionary force in Libya and Tunisia during the North African Campaign of World War II...
at the time of the
Second Battle of El AlameinThe Second Battle of El Alamein marked a major turning point in the Western Desert Campaign of World War II. The battle lasted from 23 October to 5 November 1942. The First Battle of El Alamein had stalled the Axis advance...
, which was a protectorate and not part of the Commonwealth). The German occupation 1940–1945 was harsh, with some island residents being taken for
slave labourUnfree labour is a generic or collective term for those work relations, especially in modern or early modern history, in which people are employed against their will by the threat of destitution, detention, violence , or other extreme hardship to themselves, or to members of their families.Many of...
on the Continent; native Jews sent to concentration camps;
partisanA partisan is a member of an irregular military force formed to oppose control of an area by a foreign power or by an army of occupation. The term can apply to the field element of resistance movements that opposed German rule in several countries during World War II .- History :As early as the...
resistance and retribution; accusations of
collaborationCollaborationism describes the treason of cooperating with enemy forces occupying one's country. As such it implies criminal deeds in the service of the occupying power, including complicity with the occupying power in murder, persecutions, pillage, and economic exploitation as well as...
; and slave labour (primarily
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
ns and eastern Europeans) being brought to the islands to build
fortificationFortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defense in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs...
s. The
Royal NavyThe Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of HM Armed Forces . From the beginning of the 18th century until well into the 20th century, it was the most powerful navy in the world, playing a key part in establishing the British Empire as the dominant world power from 1815 until the early...
blockadeA blockade is an effort to cut off the communications of a particular area by force. It is distinct from a siege in that a blockade is usually directed at an entire country or region, rather than a fortress or city. Also, a blockade historically took place at sea, with the blockading power seeking...
d the islands from time to time, particularly following the liberation of mainland Normandy in 1944. Intense negotiations resulted in some Red Cross humanitarian aid, but there was considerable hunger and privation during the five years of
GermanGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
occupation particularly in the final months when the population was close to starvation. The German troops on the islands surrendered on 9 May 1945 only a few days after the final surrender in mainland Europe.
Population
The English Channel is densely populated on both shores, on which are situated a number of major ports and resorts possessing a combined population of over 3.5 million people. The most significant towns and cities along the Channel (each with more than 20,000 inhabitants, ranked in descending order; populations are the
urban areaAn urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.Urban areas are created and further...
populations from the 1999 French census, 2001 UK census, and 2001 Jersey census) are as follows:
British side
- Brighton
Brighton is a town in the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex on the south coast of Great Britain...
–WorthingWorthing is a large seaside town with borough status in West Sussex, forming part of the Brighton/Worthing/Littlehampton conurbation. It is situated at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of the county town of Chichester...
–LittlehamptonLittlehampton is a seaside resort town and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England, located on the east bank at the mouth of the River Arun. It lies south southwest of London, west of Brighton, and east of the county town of Chichester....
: 461,181 inhabitants, made up of:
- Brighton
Brighton is a town in the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex on the south coast of Great Britain...
: 155,919
- Worthing
Worthing is a large seaside town with borough status in West Sussex, forming part of the Brighton/Worthing/Littlehampton conurbation. It is situated at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of the county town of Chichester...
: 96,964
- Hove
Hove is a town on the south coast of England, immediately to the west of its larger neighbour Brighton, with which it forms the unitary authority Brighton and Hove. It forms a single conurbation together with Brighton and some smaller towns and villages running along the coast...
: 72,335
- Littlehampton
Littlehampton is a seaside resort town and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England, located on the east bank at the mouth of the River Arun. It lies south southwest of London, west of Brighton, and east of the county town of Chichester....
: 55,716
- Lancing
Lancing is a village and civil parish in the Adur district of West Sussex, England, on the western edge of the Adur Valley. It lies on the coastal plain between Sompting to the west, Shoreham-by-Sea to the east and the parish of Coombes to the north...
–SomptingSompting is a village and civil parish in the Adur District of West Sussex, England, located between Lancing and Worthing, at the foot of the southern slope of the South Downs. Twentieth century development has linked it to Lancing. The civil parish covers an area of 10.35 square kilometres and has...
: 30,360
- Portsmouth
Portsmouth is a city located in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is the United Kingdom's only island city and is located on Portsea Island. The City of Portsmouth and Portsmouth Football Club are both nicknamed Pompey...
: 442,252, including
- Gosport
Gosport is a town, district and borough in Hampshire with around 79,000 resident inhabitants, with a further 5-10,000 during the summer months, situated on the south coast of England...
: 79,200
- Bournemouth
Bournemouth is a large coastal resort town in the Borough of Bournemouth, England. The town has a population of 163,444 according to the 2001 Census, making it the largest settlement in Dorset. It is the largest town on the south coast and the largest settlement between Southampton and Plymouth...
& PoolePoole is a large coastal town and seaport in Dorset on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester, and Bournemouth adjoins Poole to the east. The Borough of Poole was made a unitary authority in 1997, gaining administrative independence from Dorset County Council...
: 383,713
- Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire, on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
: 304,400
- Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
: 243,795
- Torbay
Torbay is an east-facing bay and natural harbour, at the western most end of Lyme Bay in the south-west of England, situated roughly midway between the cities of Exeter and Plymouth. Part of the ceremonial county of Devon, Torbay was made a unitary authority on April 1, 1998...
(TorquayTorquay is a town in the unitary authority area of Torbay and ceremonial county of Devon, England. It lies miles south of Exeter along the A380 on the north of Torbay, north-east of Plymouth and adjoins the neighbouring town of Paignton on the west of the bay. Torquay’s population of 63,998...
): 129,702
- Hastings
Hastings is a town and Borough on the coast of East Sussex in England. It includes originally separate settlements, as well as the inevitable growth of the town through the building of new estates....
–BexhillBexhill-on-Sea is a town and seaside resort in the county of East Sussex, in the south of England, within the District of Rother. It has a population of approximately 40,000. It is also the home of Rother Swim Academy...
: 126,386
- Eastbourne
Eastbourne is a large town and borough of East Sussex, on the south coast of England, with an estimated population of 106,652 as of 2009. The area has seen human activity since the stone age and it remained one of small settlements until the 19th century when its four hamlets gradually merged to...
: 106,562
- Bognor Regis
Bognor Regis is a seaside resort town and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, on the south coast of England. It lies south southwest of London, west of Brighton, and southeast of the county town of Chichester. Other nearby towns include Littlehampton east northeast and Selsey to...
: 62,141
- Folkestone
Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site lay in a stream valley in the cliffs here; and its subsequent development was through fishing and its proximity to the Continent as a landing place and trading port...
–HytheHythe is a small coastal market town on the edge of Romney Marsh, in the District of Shepway on the south coast of Kent. The word Hythe or Hithe is an Old English word meaning Haven or Landing Place....
: 60,039
- Weymouth: 56,043
- Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; west of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
: 39,078
- Exmouth
Exmouth is a port town and seaside resort in East Devon, England, sited on the east bank of the mouth of the River Exe. It has a population of 32,972 .-Geography and administration:...
: 32,972
- Falmouth
Falmouth is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It has a total resident population of 21,635.The name Falmouth comes from the river Fal but the origin of the river's name is unknown....
–PenrynPenryn is a town in Cornwall, England, UK on the Penryn river. Although now the area is largely dominated by Falmouth, in the medieval period it was an important harbour in its own right, exporting granite and tin. There are 7,166 people living in Penryn. Penryn is twinned with Audierne in...
: 28,801
- Ryde
Ryde is a British seaside town, civil parish and the most populous town and urban area on the Isle of Wight, with a population of approximately 30,000. It is situated on the north-east coast. The town grew in size as a seaside resort following the joining of the villages of Upper Ryde and Lower...
: 22,806
- St Austell
St Austell is a town in Cornwall, UK. The population of St Austell is 22,658 , larger than any other town in Cornwall ....
: 22,658
- Seaford
Seaford is a coastal town in the county of East Sussex, England, on the south coast, east of Newhaven and Brighton and west of Eastbourne. It has a population of about 23,000....
: 21,851
- Falmouth
Falmouth is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It has a total resident population of 21,635.The name Falmouth comes from the river Fal but the origin of the river's name is unknown....
: 21,635
- Penzance
Penzance is a town, civil parish, and port in Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom.Granted various Royal Charters from 1512 onwards and incorporated in 1614, it has a population of 20,255....
: 20,255
French side
- Le Havre
Le Havre is a city in north-western France situated on the right bank of the mouth of the Seine River as it flows into the Bay of the Seine in the English Channel. It is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region. The inhabitants of the city are called Havrais or...
: 248,547 inhabitants
- Calais
Calais is a town in northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture...
: 104,852
- Boulogne-sur-Mer
Boulogne-sur-Mer is a city in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department of Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city was 44,859 in the 1999 census, whereas that of the whole metropolitan area was 135,116.-Name:...
: 92,704
- Cherbourg: 89,704
- Saint-Brieuc
Saint-Brieuc is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor Department in Bretagne in north-western France. It has a cathedral.-History:...
: 85,849
- Saint-Malo
Saint-Malo is a walled port city in Brittany in north-western France on the English Channel. It is a sub-prefecture of the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-Demographics:...
: 50,675
- Lannion
Lannion is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department of Bretagne in north-western France. It is a sous-préfecture of Côtes-d'Armor, the capital of Trégor and the center of an urban area of almost 60,000 inhabitants. Inhabitants of Lannion are called Lannionnais.-History:The old quarter of Lannion...
–Perros-GuirecPerros-Guirec is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Bretagne in north-western France.-Breton language:In 2007, there was 3% of the children attended the bilingual schools in primary education.-Tourism:...
: 48,990
- Dieppe
Dieppe is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in France. In 1999, the population of the whole Dieppe urban area was 81,419.A port on the English Channel, famous for its scallops, and with a regular ferry service from the Gare Maritime to Newhaven in England, Dieppe also has a popular pebbled...
: 42,202
- Morlaix
Morlaix is a commune in Finistère department in Bretagne in north-western France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.-Leisure and tourism:...
: 35,996
- Dinard
Dinard is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department in Bretagne in north-western France.Dinard is on the Côte d'Émeraude of Brittany. Its beaches and mild climate make it a popular holiday destination, and has resulted in the town having a variety of famous visitors and residents...
: 25,006
- Étaples
Étaples or Étaples-sur-Mer is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. It is a fishing and leisure port on the Canche river.-History:...
–Le Touquet-Paris-PlageLe Touquet-Paris-Plage, commonly referred to as Le Touquet, is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France.Le Touquet has a reputation as the most elegant holiday resort of northern France, the playground of rich Parisians, with many luxury hotels.Since the mid-1990s, Le Touquet’s...
: 23,994
- Fécamp
Fécamp is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute Normandie region in northern France.-Geography:Fécamp is situated in the valley of the river Valmont, at the heart of the Pays de Caux, on the Albaster Coast.-Origin of the name:...
: 22,717
- Eu
Eu is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.Eu is located near the coast in the eastern part of the department, near the border with Picardie.Its inhabitants are known as the Eudois.-Geography:...
–Le TréportLe Tréport is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.-Geography:A small fishing port and light industrial town situated in the Pays de Caux, some northeast of Dieppe at the junction of the D940, the D78 and the D1015 roads...
: 22,019
- Trouville-sur-Mer
Trouville-sur-Mer, commonly referred to as Trouville, is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northern France. It is the administrative seat of the canton of Trouville-sur-Mer.Trouville-sur-Mer borders Deauville...
–DeauvilleDeauville is a town and a commune in the Calvados département in the Basse-Normandie region of France. With its racecourse, harbour, international film festival, marinas, conference centre, villas, Grand Casino and sumptuous hotels, Deauville is regarded as the "queen of the Norman beaches"...
: 20,406
- Berck
Berck, sometimes referred to as Berck-sur-Mer, is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France.-Etymology:"Berck" is the most southerly town in the Pas-de-Calais to have a name with Germanic roots...
: 20,113
Channel Islands
- Saint Helier
Saint Helier is one of the twelve parishes of Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands in the English Channel. St. Helier has a population of about 28,000, roughly 31.2% of the total population of Jersey, and is the capital of the Island...
: 28,310 inhabitants
- Saint Peter Port: 16,488 inhabitants
Shipping
The Channel, with traffic in both the UK-Europe and North Sea-Atlantic routes, is one of the world's busiest seaways carrying over 400 ships per day. Following an accident in January 1971 and a series of disastrous collisions with wreckage in February, the Dover Traffic Separation System (TSS) the world's first
radarRadar is an object detection system that uses electromagnetic waves to identify the range, altitude, direction, or speed of both moving and fixed objects such as aircraft, ships, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The term RADAR was coined in 1941 as an acronym for RAdio Detection And...
controlled TSS was set up by the
International Maritime OrganizationThe International Maritime Organization , formerly known as the Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization , was established in Geneva in 1948, and came into force ten years later, meeting for the first time in 1959...
.
In December 2002 the
MV TricolorMV Tricolor was a 50,000 tonne Norwegian-flagged vehicle carrier built in 1987, notable for having been involved in three English Channel collisions within a fortnight.-Collision and sinking, 14 December 2002:...
, carrying £30m of luxury cars sank 32 km (20 mi) northwest of Dunkirk after collision in fog with the container ship
Kariba. The cargo ship
Nicola ran into the wreckage the next day. However, there was no loss of life.
The shore-based long range traffic control system was updated in 2003. Though the system is inherently incapable of reaching the levels of safety obtained from aviation systems such as the
Traffic Collision Avoidance SystemThe Traffic alert and Collision Avoidance System is an aircraft collision avoidance system designed to reduce the incidence of mid-air collisions between aircraft...
, it has reduced accidents to one or two per year.
Marine GPS systemsThe Global Positioning System is a U.S. space-based global navigation satellite system. It provides reliable positioning, navigation, and timing services to worldwide users on a continuous basis in all weather, day and night, anywhere on or near the Earth.GPS is made up of three parts: between 24...
allow ships to be preprogrammed to follow navigational channels accurately and automatically, further avoiding risk of running aground, but following the fatal collision between Dutch Aquamarine and Ash in October 2001, Britain's
Marine Accident Investigation BranchThe Marine Accident Investigation Branch established in 1989 following the Herald of Free Enterprise disaster is a branch of the United Kingdom Department for Transport which can investigate any accident occurring in UK waters, regardless of the nationality of the vessel involved, and accidents...
(MAIB) issued a safety bulletin saying it believed that in these most unusual circumstances GPS use had actually contributed to the collision. The ships were maintaining a very precise automated course, one directly behind the other, rather than making use of the full width of the traffic lanes as a human navigator would.
A combination of radar difficulties in monitoring areas near cliffs, a failure of a CCTV system, incorrect operation of the anchor, the inability of the crew to follow standard procedures of using a GPS to provide early warning of the ship dragging the anchor and reluctance to admit the mistake and start the engine led to the MV
Willy running aground in Cawsand bay,
CornwallCornwall is a county of England in the United Kingdom, forming the tip of the south-western peninsula of Great Britain. It is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Taken with the...
in January 2002. The Marine Accident Investigation Branch report makes it clear that the harbour controllers were actually informed of impending disaster by shore observers even before the crew were themselves aware. The village of
KingsandKingsand and Cawsand are twin villages on the Rame Peninsula located in South East Cornwall, United Kingdom, across the sound from Plymouth. Until 1844 Kingsand was in Devon, but Cawsand was always in Cornwall. On the old county boundary between the two villages there is still a house called...
was evacuated for 3 days because of the risk of explosion, and the ship was stranded for 11 days.
The swimming organizations CS&PF and CSA have successfully lobbied to confine swimmers to their costly pilot boats ($4000 USD per trip). The result of this political lobbying is expressed in this document. . Despite this lobbying effort swimmers will note from this document that "However, in exceptional cases the French Maritime Authorities may grant authority for unorthodox craft to cross French territorial waters within the Traffic Separation Scheme when these craft set off from the British coast, on condition that the request for authorisation is sent to them with the opinion of the British Maritime Authorities". It is therefore possible to hire a non CSA or CS&PF pilot boat when swimming the channel.
Ecology
As a busy shipping lane, the English Channel experiences environmental problems following accidents involving ships with toxic cargo and oil spills. Indeed over 40% of the UK incidents threatening pollution occur in or very near the Channel. One of the most infamous was the
MSC NapoliMSC Napoli was a United Kingdom-flagged container ship that was deliberately broken up by salvors after she ran into difficulty in the English Channel on 18 January 2007.The ship was built in 1991 and had a capacity of 4,419 TEU...
, which with nearly 1700 tonnes of dangerous cargo was controversially beached in Lyme bay, a protected World Heritage Site coastline. The ship had been damaged and was en route to Portland when much nearer harbours were available.
Transportation
Ferry
Important ferry routes are:
- Dover-Calais
- Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; west of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
-BoulogneBoulogne-sur-Mer is a city in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department of Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city was 44,859 in the 1999 census, whereas that of the whole metropolitan area was 135,116.-Name:...
- Newhaven-Dieppe
- Portsmouth-Caen (Ouistreham)
- Portsmouth-Cherbourg
- Portsmouth-Le Havre
- Poole-Saint Malo
- Poole-Cherbourg
- Weymouth-Saint Malo
- Plymouth-Roscoff
Channel Tunnel
Many travellers cross beneath the English Channel using the
Channel TunnelThe Channel Tunnel , also known as the Chunnel, is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the UK with Coquelles, near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point it is deep...
. This engineering feat, first proposed in the early 19th century and finally realised in 1994, connects the UK and France by
railRail transport is the conveyance of passengers and goods by means of wheeled vehicles running along railways or railroads. Rail transport is part of the logistics chain, which facilitates international trade and economic growth...
. It is now routine to travel between
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
or
BrusselsBrussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the de facto capital city of the European Union and the largest urban area in Belgium...
and
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
on the Eurostar train. Cars can also travel on special trains between
FolkestoneFolkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site lay in a stream valley in the cliffs here; and its subsequent development was through fishing and its proximity to the Continent as a landing place and trading port...
and
CalaisCalais is a town in northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture...
.
Tourism
The coastal resorts of the channel, such as
BrightonBrighton is a town in the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex on the south coast of Great Britain...
and
DeauvilleDeauville is a town and a commune in the Calvados département in the Basse-Normandie region of France. With its racecourse, harbour, international film festival, marinas, conference centre, villas, Grand Casino and sumptuous hotels, Deauville is regarded as the "queen of the Norman beaches"...
, inaugurated an era of aristocratic tourism in the early 19th century, which developed into the seaside tourism that has shaped resorts around the world. Short trips across the channel for leisure purposes are often referred to as
Channel HoppingChannel hopping is a slang term used by Britons making short trips across the English Channel. It is most commonly used for trips to France, often for the purposes of a booze cruise, but may also apply to trips to other countries such as The Netherlands or Belgium.Although it commonly denotes a...
.
Culture and languages
The two dominant cultures are English on the north shore of the Channel, and French on the south shore. However, there are also a number of minority languages that are/were found on the shores and islands of the English Channel, which are listed here, with the Channel's name following them.
Celtic Languages
- Breton
The Breton language is a Celtic language spoken in Brittany , France.-History:Breton is a Brythonic language, descended from the Celtic British language brought from Great Britain to Armorica by migrating Britons during the Early Middle Ages. Like the other Brythonic languages, Welsh and Cornish,...
(Brezhoneg) - "Mor Breizh" (Sea of BrittanyBrittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Brittany was previously a kingdom and then as a duchy it was a fief of the Kingdom of France. It was at one time called Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
)
- Cornish
The Cornish language is one of the Brythonic group of Celtic languages. The language continued to function as a community language in parts of Cornwall until the late 18th century, and a process to revive the language was started in the early 20th century, continuing to this day.The revival of...
(Kernewek) - "Chanel"
Germanic languages
- Dutch
Dutch is a West Germanic language spoken by over 22 million people as a native language, and over 5 million people as a second language.
"1% of the EU population claims to speak Dutch well enough in order to have a conversation." Outside the European Union the number of second language...
- "het Kanaal" (the Channel)
Dutch previously had a larger range, and extended into parts of the modern-day French state. For more information, please see French Flemish.
Romance languages
- French language
French is a Romance language globally spoken by about 65 million people as a first language , by 50 million as a second language, and by about another 200 million people as an acquired foreign language, with significant speakers in 57 countries. Most native speakers of the language live in France,...
- "La Manche"
- Gallo
Gallo is a regional language of France. Gallo is a Romance language, one of the oïl languages. It is spoken in Brittany and the west of France along the border with Normandy....
- Norman
Norman is a Romance language and one of the Oïl languages. Norman can be classified in the northern Oïl languages with Picard and Walloon. The name Norman-French is sometimes used to describe not only the modern Norman language, but also the administrative languages of Anglo-Norman and Law French...
, including the Channel Island vernaculars -
- Anglo-Norman
The Anglo-Norman language is a term traditionally used to refer to the variety of Old Norman used in England and to some extent elsewhere in the British Isles during the Anglo-Norman period. When William the Conqueror led the Norman invasion of England, he, his nobles, and many of his followers...
(extinct, but still fossilised in certain English law phrases)
- Auregnais
Auregnais, Aoeur'gnaeux or Aurignais was the Norman dialect of the Channel Island of Alderney .Very little Auregnais survives in written form...
(extinct)
- Cotentinais
Cotentinais is the dialect of the Norman language spoken in the Cotentin Peninsula. It is one of the strongest dialects of the language on the mainland.-Dialects:...
- Maunche
- Guernesiais - Ch'nal
- Jèrriais
Jèrriais is the form of the Norman language spoken in Jersey, in the Channel Islands, off the coast of France. It has been in decline over the past century as English has increasingly become the language of education, commerce and administration...
- Ch'na
- Sercquais
- Picard
Picard is a language closely related to French, and as such is one of the larger group of Romance languages. It is spoken in two regions in the far north of France – Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardy – and in parts of the Belgian region Wallonia, district of Tournai and a piece of...
The English Channel has a variety of names in these languages. In Breton, it is known as
Mor Breizh meaning the Sea of Brittany; in Norman, the Channel Island dialects use forms of "channel", e.g.
Ch'nal, whereas the Mainland dialects tend more towards the French as in
Maunche. In
DutchDutch is a West Germanic language spoken by over 22 million people as a native language, and over 5 million people as a second language.
"1% of the EU population claims to speak Dutch well enough in order to have a conversation." Outside the European Union the number of second language...
it is
Het Kanaal (the channel).
Most other languages tend towards variants of the French and English forms, but notably
WelshWelsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of Celtic spoken natively in Wales, in England by some along the Welsh border and in the Welsh immigrant colony in the Chubut Valley in Argentine Patagonia....
has "Môr Udd"
Notable channel crossings
As one of the narrowest but most famous international waterways lacking dangerous currents, crossing the Channel has been the first objective of numerous innovative sea, air and
human powerHuman power is timed rate of work done by a human. Most humans can exert only less than one-half horsepower for a duration of a few minutes. World records of power performance by humans are of interest to work planners and work-process engineers...
ed technologies.
| Date |
Crossing |
Participant(s) |
Notes |
| 7 January 1785 |
First crossing by air (in balloonA balloon is a type of aircraft that remains aloft due to its buoyancy. A balloon travels by moving with the wind. It is distinct from an airship, which is a buoyant aircraft that can be propelled through the air in a controlled manner....
, from Dover to Calais) |
Jean-Pierre BlanchardJean-Pierre Blanchard was a French inventor, most remembered as a pioneer in aviation and ballooning.-Biography:...
(France)
John JeffriesJohn Jeffries was a Boston physician, scientist, and a military surgeon with the British Army in Nova Scotia and New York during the American Revolution. He is best known for accompanying Jean-Pierre Blanchard on his 1785 balloon flight across the English Channel. Dr. John Jeffries also played a...
(U.S.) |
— |
| 15 June 1785 |
First air crash
(in combination hydrogen / hot-air balloon) |
Pilâtre de RozierJean-François Pilâtre de Rozier was a French chemistry and physics teacher, and one of the first pioneers of aviation. He and the Marquis d'Arlandes made the first manned free balloon flight on 21 November 1783, in a Montgolfier balloon. He died when his balloon crashed near Wimereux in the...
(France) Pierre Romain (France) |
Attempted crossing similar to Blanchard/Jeffries |
| 10 June 1821 |
Paddle steamer "Rob Roy", first passenger ferry to cross channel |
|
The steamer was purchased subsequently by the French postal administration and renamed "Henri IV". |
| June 1843 |
First ferry connection through Folkestone-Boulogne |
|
Commanding officer Captain Hayward Captain Hayward is an english sailor. He was in command of the first ferry to cross the English Channel from Folkestone to Boulogne-sur-Mer in June 1843....
|
| 25 August 1875 |
First known person to swim the channel (Dover to Calais, 21 hrs, 45 min) |
Matthew Webb Captain Matthew Webb was the first person to swim the English Channel without the use of artificial aids. On 25 August 1875 he swam from Dover to Calais in less than 22 hours.-Early life and career:...
(UK) |
Attempted crossing on 12 August the same year; forced to abandon swim because of strong winds/rough sea conditions |
| 27 March 1899 |
First radio transmission across the Channel (from (WimereuxWimereux is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:Wimereux is a coastal town situated some north of Boulogne, at the junction of the D233 and the D940 roads, on the banks of the river Wimereux. The river Slack forms the northern boundary of...
to South Foreland LighthouseSouth Foreland Lighthouse is a Victorian lighthouse on the South Foreland in St. Margaret's Bay, Dover, Kent, England, used to warn ships approaching the nearby Goodwin Sands. It went out of service in 1988 and is currently owned by the National Trust...
) |
Guglielmo MarconiMarchese Guglielmo Marconi was an Italian inventor, best known for his development of a radiotelegraph system, which served as the foundation for the establishment of numerous affiliated companies worldwide...
(Italy) |
|
| 25 July 1909 |
First person to cross the channel in a heavier-than-air aircraftAn aircraft is a vehicle which is able to fly by being supported by the air, or in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil An aircraft is a vehicle which is able to fly by being supported...
(the Blériot XIDesigned by Louis Blériot and Raymond Saulnier , the Blériot XI was a light and sleek monoplane constructed of oak and poplar. The flying surfaces were covered with cloth. The original XI was designed and built in 1908 and made its public debut at a Paris airshow in December of that year. The...
) (Calais to Dover, 37 minutes) |
Louis BlériotLouis Blériot was a French aviator, inventor and engineer. In 1909 he completed the first flight across a large body of water in a heavier-than-air craft, when he crossed the English Channel. For this achievement, he received a prize of GB£. He also is credited as the first person to make a...
(France) |
Encouraged by £1000 prize being offered by the Daily Mail The Daily Mail is a British daily tabloid newspaper. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper, The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982. Scottish and Irish editions of the paper were launched in...
for first successful flight across the channel |
| 23 August 1910 |
First aircraft flight with passengers |
John Bevins MoisantJohn Bevins Moisant was a United States aviator.-Birth:He was born in Kankakee, Illinois to Medore Moisant and Josephine Fortier . Both parents were French-Canadian immigrants...
(U.S.) |
Passengers were mechanic Albert Fileux and Moisant's cat. |
| 16 April 1912 |
First woman to fly across the English channel (Dover to Calais, 59 minutes) |
Harriet QuimbyHarriet Quimby was an early American aviator and movie screenwriter. She was the first woman to gain a pilot license in the United States when, in 1911 she earned the first U.S. pilot's certificate issued to a woman by the Aero Club of America. Less than a year later, she became the first woman...
(US) |
Her accomplishment did not receive much media attention, as the Titanic had sunk the evening before. |
| 23 August 1926 |
First woman to swim across the channel (Cap Gris Nez Cap Gris Nez is a cape on the Côte d'Opale in the Pas-de-Calais département in northern France....
to KingsdownKingsdown is a village immediately to the south of Walmer, itself south of Deal, on the English Channel coast of Kent. There is also a West Kingsdown in Kent. There is a butcher shop, a hairdresser, a newsagent and a post office on the main Upper Street...
, 14 hours 39 minutes) |
Gertrude EderleGertrude Caroline Ederle was an American competitive swimmer. In 1926, she became the first woman to swim across the English Channel.-Biography:...
(US) |
Five men had successfully swum the channel before Ederle. Ederle beat their best time by two hours, creating a record for a female swimmer that stood until Florence Chadwick Florence May Chadwick was an American swimmer who was the first woman to swim the English Channel in both directions...
swam it in 13 hours 20 minutes in 1950. |
| 25 July 1959 |
Hovercraft crossing (Calais to Dover, 2 hours 3 minutes) |
SR-N1* For the locomotive class see SR N1 classThe Saunders-Roe Nautical One was the first practical hovercraft. It was designed by Christopher Cockerell and built by Saunders-Roe on the Isle of Wight under the auspices of the National Research and Development Corporation...
|
Sir Christopher Cockerell Sir Christopher Sydney Cockerell CBE FRS was an English engineer, inventor of the hovercraft.-Life:Cockerell was born in Cambridge, where his father, Sir Sydney Cockerell, was curator of the Fitzwilliam Museum, having previously been the secretary of William Morris. Christopher Cockerell was...
was on board |
| 22 August 1972 |
First solo hovercraft crossing (same route as SR-N1; 2 hours 20 minutes) |
Nigel Beale (UK) |
|
| 12 June 1979 |
First human-powered aircraft A human-powered aircraft is an aircraft powered by direct human energy and the force of gravity; the thrust provided by the human may be the only source; however, a hang glider that is partially powered by pilot power is a human-powered aircraft where the flight path can be enhanced more than if...
to fly over the channel
(in 55-pound (25 kg) Gossamer AlbatrossThe Gossamer Albatross was a human-powered aircraft built by American aeronautical engineer Dr. Paul B. MacCready's AeroVironment. On June 12, 1979 it completed a successful crossing of the English Channel to win the second Kremer prize.-Overview:...
) |
Bryan AllenBryan L. Allen is self-taught hang glider pilot and bicyclist. He achieved fame when he piloted the aircraft that won the first two Kremer prizes for human-powered flight, the Gossamer Condor and Gossamer Albatross...
(U.S.) |
Won a £100,000 Kremer Prize The Kremer prizes are a series of monetary awards, established in 1959 by the industrialist Henry Kremer, that are given to pioneers of human-powered flight. The competitions and prize awards are administered by the Royal Aeronautical Society's Human Powered Aircraft Group. .The first Kremer prize...
; Allen pedalled for three hours |
| 14 September 1995 |
Fastest crossing by hovercraftA hovercraft is a craft capable of traveling over relatively smooth surfaces supported by a cushion of slow moving, high-pressure air, ejected against the surface below, and contained within a "skirt." Although supported by the air, they are not usually considered to be aircraft.Hovercraft are...
, 22 minutes by "Princess Anne" |
MCH MCH can refer to:* Machala, Ecuador * March, in National Rail abbreviations.* March railway station, England; National Rail station code MCH.* Mean corpuscular hemoglobin* Maternal and child health* Melanin concentrating hormone...
SR-N4 MkIII |
Craft was designed to work as a ferry |
| 1997 |
First vessel to complete a solar-powered crossing using photovoltaic cell A photovoltaic cell is a type of Photoelectric cell that uses the photovoltaic effect to generate electrical energy using the potential difference that arises between materials when the surface of the cell is exposed to electromagnetic radiation....
s. |
SB Collinda |
— |
| 14 June 2004 |
New record time for crossing in amphibious vehicle (the Gibbs Aquada The Gibbs Aquada is a high speed amphibious vehicle developed by Gibbs Technologies, an Alan Gibbs company. It is capable of speeds over 100 mph on land and 30 mph on water...
, two-seater open-top sports carThe term sports car has been defined as "an open, low-built, fast motor car." The term describes a class of automobile with two seats, two doors, precise handling, brisk acceleration, and sharp braking — trading practical considerations such as passenger space, comfort, and cargo capacity...
) |
Richard BransonSir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson is an English industrialist, best known for his Virgin brand of over 360 companies. Branson's first successful business venture was at age 16, when he published a magazine called Student. He then set up an audio record mail-order business in 1970...
(UK) |
Completed crossing in 100 min 06 sec. Previous record was 6 hours. |
| 31 July 2003 |
carbon fibreCarbon fiber is a material consisting of extremely thin fibers about 0.005–0.010 mm in diameter and composed mostly of carbon atoms. The carbon atoms are bonded together in microscopic crystals that are more or less aligned parallel to the long axis of the fiber...
wing |
Felix Baumgartner Felix Baumgartner is a skydiver and a BASE jumper. His nickname is "Fearless Felix" and "God of the skies" because of the dangerous nature of the stunts he has performed during his career...
(Austria) |
|
| 26 July 2006 |
New record time for crossing in hydrofoil A hydrofoil is a winglike structure or foil, attached to the hull of a boat that raises all or part of the hull out of the water when the boat is moving forward, thus reducing drag....
car (the Rinspeed Splash, two-seater open-top sports carThe term sports car has been defined as "an open, low-built, fast motor car." The term describes a class of automobile with two seats, two doors, precise handling, brisk acceleration, and sharp braking — trading practical considerations such as passenger space, comfort, and cargo capacity...
) |
Frank M. Rinderknecht (SUI) |
Completed crossing in 194 min |
| 25 September 2006 |
First crossing on a towed inflatable object (not a powered inflatable boatAn inflatable boat is a lightweight boat constructed with its sides and bow made of flexible tubes containing pressurised gas. For smaller boats, the floor and hull beneath it is often flexible. On boats longer than 3 metres/10 feet, the floor often consists of three to five rigid plywood or...
) |
Stephen Preston (UK) |
Completed crossing in 180 min |
| July 2007 |
BBC Top Gear presenters drive to France in amphibious cars. |
Jeremy ClarksonJeremy Charles Robert Clarkson is an English broadcaster and journalist who specialises in motoring. He is best known for his role on the BBC TV show Top Gear along with co-presenters Richard Hammond and James May...
, Richard HammondRichard Mark Hammond is a British TV presenter, most noted for co-hosting car programme Top Gear alongside Jeremy Clarkson and James May, as well as presenting Brainiac: Science Abuse on Sky1, Should I Worry About...? on BBC One and Total Wipeout, also on BBC One and Richard Hammond's Blast Lab on...
, James MayJames Daniel May is a British television presenter and award-winning journalist.May is best known as co-presenter of the motoring programme Top Gear alongside Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond. He also writes a weekly column for The Daily Telegraph's motoring section...
|
Completed the crossing in a Nissan 4x4, fitted with an outboard engine. |
| 26 September 2008 |
First crossing with a jetpack |
Yves RossyYves Rossy is a Swiss pilot, inventor and aviation enthusiast. He is nicknamed Jet Man and Fusion Man for being the first person to achieve sustained human flight using a jet-powered fixed wing strapped to his back .Rossy developed and built a system comprising a back pack with rigid...
(SUI) |
Crossing completed in less than ten minutes |
By boat
Pierre Andriel crossed the English Channel aboard the
ÉliseThe Élise was the first steam ship to cross the English Channel.She was bought in England 1814 by Pierre Andriel as Margery, and renamed Élise. Andriel intended to accomplish a spectacular crossing of the Channel to convince public opinion that steam ships could be ocean-worthy.The Élise departed...
in 1815, one of the earliest sea going voyages by
steam shipA steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels....
.
On June 10, 1821 English built
paddle steamerA paddle steamer is a ship or boat driven by a steam engine that uses one or more paddle wheels to develop thrust for propulsion. It is also a type of steamboat. Boats with paddle wheels on the sides are termed sidewheelers, while those with a single wheel on the stern are known as sternwheelers....
"Rob Roy" was the first passenger ferry to cross channel. The steamer was purchased subsequently by the French postal administration and renamed "Henri IV" and put into regular passenger service a year later. It was able to make the journey across the Straits of Dover in around three hours.
In June 1843 because of difficulties with Dover harbour, the South Eastern Railway company developed
Boulogne-sur-MerBoulogne-sur-Mer is a city in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department of Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city was 44,859 in the 1999 census, whereas that of the whole metropolitan area was 135,116.-Name:...
-
FolkestoneFolkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site lay in a stream valley in the cliffs here; and its subsequent development was through fishing and its proximity to the Continent as a landing place and trading port...
route as an alternative to Calais-Dover. The first ferry crossed under the command of
Captain HaywardCaptain Hayward is an english sailor. He was in command of the first ferry to cross the English Channel from Folkestone to Boulogne-sur-Mer in June 1843....
.
The
Mountbatten class hovercraftThe Mountbatten class hovercraft or SR-N4 was a large passenger and vehicle carrying hovercraft built by the British Hovercraft Corporation . BHC was formed by the merger of Saunders-Roe and Vickers Supermarine in 1966...
(MCH) entered commercial service in August 1968 initially operated between Dover and Boulogne, but later craft also made the
RamsgateRamsgate is a seaside town on the Isle of Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century and is a member of the ancient confederation of Cinque ports. It has a population of around 40,000. Ramsgate's main attraction is its coastline and its main...
(
Pegwell BayPegwell Bay is a shallow inlet in the English Channel coast at the estuary of the River Stour between Ramsgate and Sandwich in Kent. Situated in the bay is a large nature reserve, known for its migrating waders and wildfowl, with a complete series of seashore habitats including extensive mudflats...
) to Calais route. The journey time, Dover to Boulogne, was roughly 35 minutes, with six trips per day at peak times. The fastest ever crossing of the English Channel by a commercial car-carrying hovercraft was 22 minutes, recorded by the
Princess Anne MCH SR-N4 Mk3 on 14 September 1995, for the 10:00 am service .
The youngest recorded sailors to cross the channel by boat are Hugo Sunnucks and Guy Harrison aged 15 (formula 18
catamaranA catamaran is a type of multihulled boat or ship consisting of two hulls, or vakas, joined by some structure, the most basic being a frame, formed of akas...
). They completed in 4 hours 15 mins in August 2006.
By swimming
The sport of Channel Swimming traces its origins to the latter part of the 19th century when Captain
Matthew WebbCaptain Matthew Webb was the first person to swim the English Channel without the use of artificial aids. On 25 August 1875 he swam from Dover to Calais in less than 22 hours.-Early life and career:...
made the first observed and unassisted swim across the Strait of Dover swimming from England to France on 24 August 1875 – 25 August 1875 in 21 hours and 45 minutes.
In 1927 (at a time when fewer than ten swimmers had managed to emulate the feat and many dubious claims were being made), the Channel Swimming Association (the CSA) was founded to authenticate and ratify swimmers' claims to have swum the English Channel and to verify crossing times. The CSA was dissolved in 1999 and was succeeded by two separate organisations: The CSA (Ltd) and the Channel Swimming and Piloting Federation (CSPF). Both observe and authenticate cross-Channel swims in the Strait of Dover.
- 24 August 1875 – 25 August 1875 Capt. Matthew Webb made the first crossing of the English Channel from England to France.
- 12 August 1923 Enrico Tiraboschi made the first crossing of the English Channel from France to England.
- 6 August 1926, Gertrude Ederle
Gertrude Caroline Ederle was an American competitive swimmer. In 1926, she became the first woman to swim across the English Channel.-Biography:...
became the first woman to swim the Channel. She did it in 14 hours 31 minutes, breaking the men's record of the time by two hours. However, this swim attracted some controversy. On 16 August, The Westminster Gazette reported locals as saying that "Miss Ederle swam under the lea of one of the accompanying tugs" while another boat "navigated in such a manner as to keep the heavy seas and tides off her" and that "Miss Ederle was drawn along by the suction of the tug so that she was able to swim at about twice the speed she would have been able to swim under ordinary conditions." The Dover Express and East Kent News commented that "So far little information has been given of the detail of Miss Ederle's swim. The most extraordinary thing about it being that she made no westward drift with the ebb tideTides are the rises and falls of sea level caused by the combined effect of rotation of the Earth and the gravitation of the Moon and the Sun. The tides occur with a period of approximately 12 and a half hours and are influenced by the shape of the near-shore bottom.Most coastal areas experience...
, which on the day in question ran westward for nearly seven hours."
- 7 October 1927, Mercedes Gleitze became, at her eighth attempt, the first British woman to swim the channel. She swam from France to England in 15 hours 15 minutes. Because of a claim which was soon proven to be false, by Dr. Dorothy Cochrane Logan (using her professional name, Mona McLennan), to have swum the Channel on 11 October in the faster time of thirteen hours and ten minutes, Gleitze's own claim was cast into doubt. To silence the doubters, Gleitze decided to repeat her feat in what was called "the vindication swim". On 21 October she entered the water at Cap Gris Nez. But this time the water was much colder, and she was unable to complete the crossing. She was pulled semi-conscious from the water after 10 hours 24 minutes, some seven miles (11 km) short of the English shore. She might have been disappointed at not completing the swim, but after witnessing her strength, courage, and determination, nobody doubted the legitimacy of her previous swim, and she was hailed as a heroine. As she sat in the boat, one journalist made an incredible discovery and reported it in The Times
The Times is a daily national newspaper published in the United Kingdom since 1785 when it was known as The Daily Universal Register....
as follows: "Hanging round her neck by a riband on this swim, Miss Gleitze carried a small gold watch, which was found this evening to have kept good time throughout." This was one of the first Rolex Oyster waterproof watches which the director of Rolex, Hans Wilsdorf, had asked her to wear during her repeat attempt, and her feat was subsequently used in advertising by Rolex.
- Mihir Sen
Mihir Sen was an Indian lawyer more notable for his career as a record-setting swimmer.- English channel swim :...
became the first Indian to swim the English Channel, from Dover to Calais on September 27 1958.
- In 1961 Antonio Abertondo
Antonio Abertondo was the first person to complete a two way swim of the English Channel. He completed the swim on 21 September 1961 in a time of 43 h 10 mins. He also swam the English Channel on 3 other occasions in 1950, 1951 & 1954....
from ArgentinaArgentina, officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America, constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires. It is the eighth largest country in the world by land area and the largest among Spanish-speaking nations, though Mexico,...
became the first person to swim the channel both ways non-stop.
- 9 September 1969 Atina Bojadzi, the first Macedonian woman to swim the Channel (the first woman from Yugoslavia, and actually the Balcans). This event was inspiration for the cult Macedonian movie from 1977 "Ispravi se, Delfina" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076212/).
- In July 1972, Lynne Cox
Lynne Cox is an American long-distance open-water swimmer and writer. In 1971, she and her teammates were the first group of teenagers to complete the crossing of the Catalina Island Channel in California. She was always the slowest swimmer in her swim classes...
became the youngest person to swim the English Channel at age fifteen, breaking both the men's and women's records. She swam the channel again in 1973, setting a new record time of nine hours thirty-six minutes.
- The oldest verified male swimmer to cross is American George Brunstad, who was aged 70 years and 4 days when he crossed on 27 August and 28 August 2004, taking 15 hours 59 minutes.
- The oldest male swimmer to cross under the rules of the Channel Swimming Association is Australian Clifford Batt, who was aged 67 years and 240 days when he crossed on 19 August 1987, taking 18 hours 37 minutes.
- The fastest verified swim of the channel was by Petar Stoychev
Petar Stoychev is a Bulgarian open water swimmer and is most famous for claiming third place at 2005 FINA World Championships in Montréal, Canada during the 10 km and 25 km metre events, respectively. Stoychev has swum at many locations around the world and was the overall winner of the...
on 24 August 2007. He crossed the channel in 6 hours 57 minutes 50 seconds.
- The fastest verified female channel swimmer is Yvetta Hlaváčová
Yvetta Hlaváčová is a Czech national team member in long-distance swimming and women’s world record holder from swimming the English Channel in a time of 7 h, 25 mins
...
in 2006. She crossed the channel in 7 hours 25 minutes and 15 seconds.
- The fastest verified two way channel swimmer, in a time of 16 hours 10 minutes, is Philip Rush
Philip Rush is a firefighter and long distance swimmer who is the current world record holder for the fastest two and three way swim of the English Channel which he completed in 1987 in a time of 28 h 21 mins -Biography:To date...
in 1987.
- The fastest verified female two way channel swimmer, in a time of 17 hours 14 minutes, is Susie Maroney
Susie Maroney , was an Australian marathon swimmer. She was four years old when she started swimming....
in 1991.
- The fastest verified three way channel swimmer is Philip Rush
Philip Rush is a firefighter and long distance swimmer who is the current world record holder for the fastest two and three way swim of the English Channel which he completed in 1987 in a time of 28 h 21 mins -Biography:To date...
in 1987. He crossed the channel (England/France/England/France) in 28 hours 21 mins.
- The fastest (and only) verified female three way channel swimmer is Alison Streeter
Alison Streeter MBE has conquered the English Channel 43 times, more than anyone in the world and earning her the title of Queen of the English Channel . This total includes a triple-channel swim...
in 1990. She crossed the channel (England/France/England/France) in 34 hours 40 mins.
- The woman with the most crossings, holding the undisputed title of "Queen of the Channel
The Queen of the Channel is a title bestowed on the woman who has currently completed more successful swims of the English Channel than any other. It is currently held by Alison Streeter with a total of 43 swims....
", is Alison StreeterAlison Streeter MBE has conquered the English Channel 43 times, more than anyone in the world and earning her the title of Queen of the English Channel . This total includes a triple-channel swim...
MBE with 43 crossings, including one 3-way and three 2-way swims.
- The "King of the Channel
- Swimming :The trademark title held by the Channel Swimming Association King of the Channel is awarded to the male swimmer who has completed the most successful male solo swims across the English Channel...
" title has been awarded to Kevin MurphyKevin Murphy has swum the English Channel 34 times, more than any other man in history. The overall title of greatest number of successful English Channel swims is held by Alison Streeter with 43 to her name....
(34 crossings, including three doubles)
- Des Renford
Desmond Robert Renford MBE was an Australian long distance swimmer who swam the English Channel 19 times from 19 attempts. This is more successful crossings than any other Australian...
swam the Channel 19 times, more than any other AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
n. He was born on 25 August 1927, the 52nd anniversary of Matthew Webb's inaugural swim.
- Other swimming crossings include: Vicki Keith
Vicki Keith, CM, O.Ont is a retired Canadian marathon swimmer.She currently holds 16 world records and has received over 41 honours and awards, having crossed many of the world's most challenging bodies of water. To date, she has raised over $1 million CAD to help children with physical disabilities...
(first butterfly swim crossing); Florence ChadwickFlorence May Chadwick was an American swimmer who was the first woman to swim the English Channel in both directions...
(first woman to swim the Channel in both directions); Montserrat Tresserras (first woman to swim the Channel in both directions, as verified by the Channel Swimming Association); Marilyn BellMarilyn Bell Di Lascio, Order of Ontario is a retired Canadian long distance swimmer, born in Toronto. She was the first person to swim across Lake Ontario and later swam the English Channel and Strait of Juan de Fuca....
(youngest person up to 1955); Amelia Gade Corson (first mother and second woman); Mercedes Gleitze (first Englishwoman, 7 October 1927); Brojen DasBrojen Das was the first Asian to swim across the English Channel, and the first person to cross it four times.-Early life:...
, the first Asian (23 August 1958); Abhijit Rao, the youngest Asian (6 August 1988); Comedians who have swum the channel Doon MackichanDoon Mackichan is an English comedienne and actress.-Biography:Aged 9, she moved with her family to Upper Largo, Fife...
, and David WalliamsDavid Walliams is an English comedian, writer and actor, known for his partnership with Matt Lucas on the sketch show Little Britain and its predecessor Rock Profile.-Early life:...
.
The team with the most number of Channel swims to its credit is the International Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team with 35 crossings by 25 members (by 2005).
By the end of 2005, 811 individuals had completed 1,185 verified crossings under the rules of the CSA, the CSA (Ltd), the CSPF and Butlins.
The total number of swims conducted under and ratified by the Channel Swimming Association to 2005: 982 successful crossings by 665 people. This includes twenty-four 2-way crossings and three 3-way crossings.
Total number of ratified swims to 2004: 948 successful crossings by 675 people (456 by men & 214 by women). There have been sixteen 2-way crossings (9 by men and 7 by women). There have been three 3-way crossings (2 by men and 1 by a woman). (It is unclear whether this last set of data is comprehensive or CSA-only.)
By Car
In 2007 the presenters of the BBC programme Top Gear;
Jeremy ClarksonJeremy Charles Robert Clarkson is an English broadcaster and journalist who specialises in motoring. He is best known for his role on the BBC TV show Top Gear along with co-presenters Richard Hammond and James May...
;
Richard HammondRichard Mark Hammond is a British TV presenter, most noted for co-hosting car programme Top Gear alongside Jeremy Clarkson and James May, as well as presenting Brainiac: Science Abuse on Sky1, Should I Worry About...? on BBC One and Total Wipeout, also on BBC One and Richard Hammond's Blast Lab on...
and
James MayJames Daniel May is a British television presenter and award-winning journalist.May is best known as co-presenter of the motoring programme Top Gear alongside Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond. He also writes a weekly column for The Daily Telegraph's motoring section...
drove across the Channel from England to France. They did it by designing 'Amphibious Cars' that could be driven on land and also operate in water.
After four attempts - twice failing to leave Dover harbour - the three presenters successfully reached the coast of France in a Toyota Hilux 4x4, dubbed as the Toyboata with an outboard motor and oil drums attached to the back to aid stability in the open water. The other two vehicles that attempted the crossing (a Triumph Herald with a sail and a Volkswagon with a propeller) both sank.
Clarkson believed it might be possible to break the world record for crossing the channel in this manner, but the team were unsuccessful.
The BBC received criticism from the coastguard who claimed that they had not been told that the stunt was going to take place and branded it "completely irresponsible".
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