Portland Harbour
Encyclopedia
Isle of 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. A tombolo over which runs the A354 road connects it to Chesil Beach and the mainland. Portland and...
, off Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, on the south coast of England
England
England 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, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is one of the largest man-made harbours in the world. Grid reference
British national grid reference system
The Ordnance Survey National Grid reference system is a system of geographic grid references used in Great Britain, different from using latitude and longitude....
: .
History
Historically the original harbour was formed by the protection offered by the south coast of England, Chesil BeachChesil Beach
Chesil Beach, sometimes called Chesil Bank, in Dorset, southern England is one of three major shingle structures in Britain. Its toponym is derived from the Old English ceosel or cisel, meaning "gravel" or "shingle"....
and the Isle of Portland
Isle of 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. A tombolo over which runs the A354 road connects it to Chesil Beach and the mainland. Portland and...
. This gave protection from the weather to ships from all directions except the east. King Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
built Portland Castle
Portland Castle
Portland Castle is one of the Device Forts, also known as Henrician Castles, built in 1539 by Henry VIII on the Isle of Portland to guard the natural Portland anchorage known as the Portland Roads. The castle lies in the far north of the island, in the village now called Castletown, near Fortuneswell...
and Sandsfoot Castle
Sandsfoot Castle
Sandsfoot Castle is one of Henry VIII's Device Forts, also known as Henrician Castles, built in the 1530s to the west of Weymouth, Dorset, England, opposite its contemporary Portland Castle...
to defend this anchorage.
Construction of the modern harbour began in 1849 when the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
created a breakwater
Breakwater (structure)
Breakwaters are structures constructed on coasts as part of coastal defence or to protect an anchorage from the effects of weather and longshore drift.-Purposes of breakwaters:...
to the south of the anchorage, made of blocks from local quarries on the Isle of Portland
Isle of 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. A tombolo over which runs the A354 road connects it to Chesil Beach and the mainland. Portland and...
. This was completed in 1872 and created a much larger harbour providing protection from south-easterly winds. The Verne Citadel
Verne Citadel
Verne Citadel is a citadel on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. The citadel was started in 1847 at a camp for prisoners building Portland harbour's breakwaters, and was extended during the 1860s as a result of the Royal Commission, ending up with 8 RML guns with calibres up to 12". It is now...
fort, Nothe Fort
Nothe Fort
Nothe Fort is a fort in Weymouth, Dorset, England. The fort is situated on the shore beside the northern breakwater of the ex-military Portland Harbour, and at the mouth of civilian Weymouth Harbour. The fort was built in 1872 to protect Portland's harbour, which was then becoming an important...
, East Wear Battery
East Wear Battery
East Wear Battery was a gun battery to the east of the Verne Citadel on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. The battery was built in the 1860s as a result of the Royal Commission to guard the new Portland harbour and Royal Navy institutions on the island. Five open batteries were built...
, High Angle Battery
High Angle Battery
The High Angle Battery is a derelict fort built in 1892 on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. The battery was built as part of Britain's Coastal Defences in 1892 and is located in a disused Portland Stone quarry at the northern end of the island...
and two forts on the breakwaters were also built.
In 1906, with the threat of torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
attack from the eastern side of the anchorage, two more breakwaters were added. A further barrier against submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
attack from the south came in 1914 when HMS Hood
HMS Hood (1891)
The second warship to be named HMS Hood was a modified Royal Sovereign-class battleship of the Royal Navy, and the last of the eight built. She differed from the Royal Sovereign class in that she had cylindrical gun turrets instead of barbettes, a lower freeboard and a higher metacentric height...
was scuttled across the southern entrance to the 1848 breakwater. Its wreck still remains, although it is deemed too dangerous for divers.
The Harbour was sold off by the Royal Navy in 1996 allowing it to be used as both a centre for water sports and as a service station for Channel shipping. There is also a commercial port operated by Portland Port Ltd and Portland Harbour Authority Limited. Commercial activities on the water include specialist diving services for vessels and repairs & maintenance as well as a bunkering (fuelling) station. The Port is used by all nature of vessels from commercial ships such as bulkers, tankers, container carriers car carriers, survey and Reefers etc to British and foreign naval vessels. The Port also sees various cruise ship calls bringing visitors to Dorset. Commercial activities on the land of the dock estate include fuel storage, natural gas storage, several engineering facilities and a shell fish specialist.
The harbour is a popular location for wind surfing, diving
Diving
Diving is the sport of jumping or falling into water from a platform or springboard, sometimes while performing acrobatics. Diving is an internationally-recognized sport that is part of the Olympic Games. In addition, unstructured and non-competitive diving is a recreational pastime.Diving is one...
and sailing
Sailing
Sailing is the propulsion of a vehicle and the control of its movement with large foils called sails. By changing the rigging, rudder, and sometimes the keel or centre board, a sailor manages the force of the wind on the sails in order to move the boat relative to its surrounding medium and...
, as Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy
Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy
Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy is a centre for the sport of sailing on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, on the south coast of England, United Kingdom. The academy building is located in Osprey Quay on the northern tip of the island, and the waters of Portland Harbour and Weymouth Bay,...
which will host sailing events in the 2012 Olympic Games, is located on the south-western shore of the harbour.
In addition to Hood
HMS Hood (1891)
The second warship to be named HMS Hood was a modified Royal Sovereign-class battleship of the Royal Navy, and the last of the eight built. She differed from the Royal Sovereign class in that she had cylindrical gun turrets instead of barbettes, a lower freeboard and a higher metacentric height...
, there are other wrecks around the harbour:
- on the inside of the harbour, against a breakwater:
- Countess of Erme - bargeBargeA barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Some barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats...
30 metres north of the Eastern Ship Channel - the Spaniard - barge 50 metres south-west of the Chequered Fort
- a World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
landing craftLanding craftLanding craft are boats and seagoing vessels used to convey a landing force from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. Most renowned are those used to storm the beaches of Normandy, the Mediterranean, and many Pacific islands during WWII...
and a Bombardon Unit, a harbour device intended for the D-DayD-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...
beaches in NormandyNormandyNormandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
, 50 metres north east of the curve of the south break water
- Countess of Erme - barge
- in "open" water inside the harbour:
- a Sea Vixen Royal NavyRoyal NavyThe Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
aircraft - a diver training carcass between Ferrybridge and the helicopterHelicopterA helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
base - HimalayaHMS HimalayaHMS Himalaya was ordered by the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company as SS Himalaya. She was purchased by the Royal Navy in 1854 and served with them until 1920. She was sunk in 1940....
- an 1850s passenger liner, which served for many years as a troopship and later as a coalCoalCoal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
or fuel barge in the centre of the harbour
- a Sea Vixen Royal Navy
The second of only two Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
es awarded for action in the United Kingdom was posthumously bestowed on Jack Foreman Mantle
Jack Foreman Mantle
Jack Foreman Mantle VC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.-Details:...
, who died at his post on HMS Foylebank
HMS Foylebank
HMS Foylebank was a converted 5,500 ton merchant ship active during the Second World War. She was launched in 1930 and requisitioned in September 1939. She was converted into an anti-aircraft ship, equipped with .5 inch machine guns and four twin high angle 4 inch turrets. The Foylebank saw...
during a 1940 air raid on Portland Harbour. Mantle is buried in the Portland Naval Cemetery.
See also
- List of places on the Jurassic Coast
- Bincleaves GroyneBincleaves GroyneBincleaves Groyne is a breakwater located off the southern area of Weymouth, England. It is the second largest of four breakwaters which create Portland Harbour. It is separated from the Northeastern Breakwater by the North Ship Channel. A landing stage is situated on the southern side of the...
- Port of Portland PolicePort of Portland Police (United Kingdom)The Port of Portland Police are a body of four special constables attested under section 79 of the Harbours, Docks, and Piers Clauses Act 1847 . They were established in 1997 when the Portland Harbour Authority Ltd. bought the port from the British Government....
Further reading
- Dorset; The Royal Navy (illustrated): Stuart Morris, 2011. The Dovecote Press, Wimborne, DorsetDorsetDorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
: ISBN 978-1-904-34988-4 - Portland, an Illustrated History: Stuart Morris, 1985-2004. The Dovecote Press, Wimborne, DorsetDorsetDorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
: ISBN 0-946159-34-3 - Portland (Discover Dorset Series) Stuart Morris, 1998. The Dovecote Press, Wimborne, Dorset: ISBN 1-874336-49-0.
- Isle of Portland Railways: Jackson, Brian L., 1999. ISBN 0853615403
- Portland, Then and Now: Stuart Morris, 2006. The Dovecote Press, Wimborne, Dorset: ISBN 1-904349-48-X.