River Eden, Cumbria
Encyclopedia
The River Eden is a river
that flows through Cumbria
, England on its way to the Solway Firth
.
, Mallerstang
, on the high ground between High Seat, Yorkshire Dales
and Hugh Seat
. Here it forms the boundary between the counties of Cumbria and North Yorkshire
. Two other great rivers arise in the same peat bogs here, within a kilometre of each other: the River Swale
and River Ure
.
It starts life as Red Gill
Beck, then becomes Hell Gill Beck, before turning north and joining with Ais Gill Beck to become the River Eden. (Hell Gill Force, just before it meets Ais Gill Beck, is the highest waterfall along its journey to the sea).
The steep-sided dale
of Mallerstang
later opens out to become the Vale of Eden
. The river flows through Kirkby Stephen
and Appleby-in-Westmorland
, and receives the water of many becks flowing off the Pennines
to the east, and longer rivers from the Lakes off to the west, including the River Lyvennet
, River Leith
and River Eamont
, which arrives via Ullswater
and Penrith
.
Continuing north, it passes close to the ancient stone circle
known as Long Meg and Her Daughters
and through the sparsely populated beef and dairy farming regions of the vale of Cumbria on the Solway Plain
. After flowing through Wetheral
it merges with the River Irthing
from the east, followed by the River Petteril
and River Caldew
from the south, as it winds through Carlisle.
Its junction with the River Caldew in north Carlisle marks the point where Hadrian's Wall
crosses the Eden, only five miles before both reach their end at the tidal flats. It enters the Solway Firth near the mouth of the River Esk
after a total distance of 90 miles (145 km).
as the Itouna, as recorded by the Greek geographer Claudius Ptolemaeus (Ptolemy) in the 2nd century AD. This name derives from the Celtic
word ituna, meaning water. or rushing.
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
that flows through Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
, England on its way to the Solway Firth
Solway Firth
The Solway Firth is a firth that forms part of the border between England and Scotland, between Cumbria and Dumfries and Galloway. It stretches from St Bees Head, just south of Whitehaven in Cumbria, to the Mull of Galloway, on the western end of Dumfries and Galloway. The Isle of Man is also very...
.
Course of river
The Eden rises in Black Fell MossBog
A bog, quagmire or mire is a wetland that accumulates acidic peat, a deposit of dead plant material—often mosses or, in Arctic climates, lichens....
, Mallerstang
Mallerstang
Mallerstang is a civil parish in the extreme east of Cumbria, and, geographically, a dale at the head of the upper Eden Valley. Originally part of Westmorland, it lies about south of the nearest town, Kirkby Stephen...
, on the high ground between High Seat, Yorkshire Dales
High Seat (Yorkshire Dales)
High Seat is a fell in the dale of Mallerstang, Cumbria. With a summit at 709 metres, it is the fourth highest fell in the Yorkshire Dales, although outside the National Park, after Whernside, Ingleborough and Great Shunner Fell...
and Hugh Seat
Hugh Seat
Hugh Seat is a mountain, or more accurately a fell, in Mallerstang on the eastern edge of Cumbria, England. It lies on the present border between Cumbria and the Yorkshire Dales National Park....
. Here it forms the boundary between the counties of Cumbria and North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...
. Two other great rivers arise in the same peat bogs here, within a kilometre of each other: the River Swale
River Swale
The River Swale is a river in Yorkshire, England and a major tributary of the River Ure, which itself becomes the River Ouse, emptying into the North Sea via the Humber Estuary....
and River Ure
River Ure
The River Ure is a river in North Yorkshire, England, approximately long from its source to the point where it changes name to the River Ouse. It is the principal river of Wensleydale, which is the only one of the Dales now named after a village rather than its river...
.
It starts life as Red Gill
Gill (stream)
Ghyll or Gill is used for a stream or narrow valley in the North of England and other parts of the United Kingdom. The word originates from the Old Norse Gil...
Beck, then becomes Hell Gill Beck, before turning north and joining with Ais Gill Beck to become the River Eden. (Hell Gill Force, just before it meets Ais Gill Beck, is the highest waterfall along its journey to the sea).
The steep-sided dale
Dale (origin)
A dale is an open valley. The name is used when describing the physical geography of an area. It is used most frequently in the Lowlands of Scotland and in the North of England, where the term "fell" commonly refers to the mountains or hills that flank the dale.The word dale comes from the Old...
of Mallerstang
Mallerstang
Mallerstang is a civil parish in the extreme east of Cumbria, and, geographically, a dale at the head of the upper Eden Valley. Originally part of Westmorland, it lies about south of the nearest town, Kirkby Stephen...
later opens out to become the Vale of Eden
Vale of Eden
The Vale of Eden is formed by the course of the River Eden, one of the major rivers of Northwest England. It is however of much greater extent than the actual valley of the river, lying between the Cumbrian Mountains , and the northern part of the Pennine Range. It lies entirely within the county...
. The river flows through Kirkby Stephen
Kirkby Stephen
Kirkby Stephen is a civil parish and small market town in Cumbria, in North West England which historically, is part of Westmorland. The town is located on the A685, surrounded by sparsely populated hill country, and about from the two nearest larger towns, Kendal and Penrith...
and Appleby-in-Westmorland
Appleby-in-Westmorland
Appleby-in-Westmorland is a town and civil parish in Cumbria, in North West England. It is situated within a loop of the River Eden and has a population of approximately 2,500. It is in the historic county of Westmorland, of which it was the county town. The town's name was simply Appleby, until...
, and receives the water of many becks flowing off the Pennines
Pennines
The Pennines are a low-rising mountain range, separating the North West of England from Yorkshire and the North East.Often described as the "backbone of England", they form a more-or-less continuous range stretching from the Peak District in Derbyshire, around the northern and eastern edges of...
to the east, and longer rivers from the Lakes off to the west, including the River Lyvennet
River Lyvennet
The River Lyvennet is a river flowing through the county of Cumbria in England.The source of the Lyvennet is to be found close to Robin Hood's Grave on Crosby Ravensworth Moor, an area rich in ancient remains....
, River Leith
River Leith
The River Leith is a watercourse in Cumbria, a county of northwestern England.Rising at Shap, the Leith flows north alongside the M6 motorway via Great and Little Strickland before turning eastward at Melkinthorpe. Having passed through Cliburn, the Leith flows into the River Lyvennet at Cliburn...
and River Eamont
River Eamont
The River Eamont is a river in Cumbria, England and one of the major tributaries of the River Eden.The river is formed by the outflow from Ullswater in the Lake District, later augmented by Dacre Beck from the west and the River Lowther which carries the water from Haweswater north to the Eamont at...
, which arrives via Ullswater
Ullswater
Ullswater is the second largest lake in the English Lake District, being approximately nine miles long and 0.75 miles wide with a maximum depth of slightly more than ....
and Penrith
Penrith, Cumbria
Penrith was an urban district between 1894 and 1974, when it was merged into Eden District.The authority's area was coterminous with the civil parish of Penrith although when the council was abolished Penrith became an unparished area....
.
Continuing north, it passes close to the ancient stone circle
Stone circle
A stone circle is a monument of standing stones arranged in a circle. Such monuments have been constructed across the world throughout history for many different reasons....
known as Long Meg and Her Daughters
Long Meg and Her Daughters
Long Meg and Her Daughters, also known as Maughanby Circle, is a Bronze Age stone circle near Penrith in Cumbria, North West England. One of around 1,300 stone circles in the British Isles and Brittany, it was constructed as a part of a megalithic tradition that lasted from 3,300 to 900 BCE, during...
and through the sparsely populated beef and dairy farming regions of the vale of Cumbria on the Solway Plain
Solway Plain
The Solway Plain is a low-lying coastal plain in the northwest of Cumbria, England. It is an area generally lying north and west of Carlisle along the Solway Firth and drained by the rivers Esk and Lynne. This geographic unit is associated with the westernmost part of Hadrian's Wall. In medieval...
. After flowing through Wetheral
Wetheral
Wetheral is a village and civil parish in Cumbria, England. The village serves mostly as a dormitory town for nearby Carlisle. As of the 2001 census, the population of the Wetheral Ward is 4,039. The civil parish of Wetheral is slightly larger, with a population of 5,203...
it merges with the River Irthing
River Irthing
The River Irthing is a river in Cumbria, England and a major tributary of the River Eden.Rising in the hills around Paddaburn Moor in Border Forest Park, for the first 15 miles of its journey south it defines the border between Northumberland and Cumbria. After passing Butterburn Flow raised bog,...
from the east, followed by the River Petteril
River Petteril
The River Petteril is a river running through the English county of Cumbria.The source of the Petteril is near Penruddock and Motherby, from where the young river runs northeast through Greystoke, Blencow and Newton Reigny, before passing under the M6 motorway, after which the river turns north,...
and River Caldew
River Caldew
The River Caldew is a river running through Cumbria in England. Historically, the county watered by the Caldew was Cumberland.The Caldew's source is high up on Skiddaw, between the summit and Sale How, in the Lake District, from where it runs east through a valley between Bowscale Fell and Carrock...
from the south, as it winds through Carlisle.
Its junction with the River Caldew in north Carlisle marks the point where Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall was a defensive fortification in Roman Britain. Begun in AD 122, during the rule of emperor Hadrian, it was the first of two fortifications built across Great Britain, the second being the Antonine Wall, lesser known of the two because its physical remains are less evident today.The...
crosses the Eden, only five miles before both reach their end at the tidal flats. It enters the Solway Firth near the mouth of the River Esk
River Esk, Dumfries and Galloway
The River Esk is a river in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, that flows into the Solway Firth. It also flows for a small way through the English county of Cumbria before entering the Solway....
after a total distance of 90 miles (145 km).
Etymology
The river was known to the RomansRoman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
as the Itouna, as recorded by the Greek geographer Claudius Ptolemaeus (Ptolemy) in the 2nd century AD. This name derives from the Celtic
Celtic languages
The Celtic languages are descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic"; a branch of the greater Indo-European language family...
word ituna, meaning water. or rushing.
See also
- List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Cumbria
- Hadrian's WallHadrian's WallHadrian's Wall was a defensive fortification in Roman Britain. Begun in AD 122, during the rule of emperor Hadrian, it was the first of two fortifications built across Great Britain, the second being the Antonine Wall, lesser known of the two because its physical remains are less evident today.The...