Corfe Castle

The Isle of Purbeck, not a true island but a peninsula, is in the county of Dorset, England. It is bordered by the English Channel to the south and east, where steep cliffs fall to the sea; and by the marshy lands of the River Frome and Poole Harbour to the north. Its western boundary is less well defined. The most southerly point is St Aldhelm's or St Alban's Head. As in most parts of Britain this place is also suffering erosion problems along the coast. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2272x1704, 1869 KB) Summary Corfe Castle from the Halves Licensing Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2272x1704, 1869 KB) Summary Corfe Castle from the Halves Licensing Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1. ... Corfe Castle is a small village and ruined castle (, ) dating back to the 11th century, situated in a gap in the Purbeck Hills, five miles south of Wareham, in Dorset, England. ... Peninsula A peninsula (from Latin paene insula, almost island) is a geographical formation consisting of an extension of land from a larger body, surrounded by water on three sides. ... For other uses, see Dorset (disambiguation). ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister Tony Blair MP Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq... Satellite view of the English Channel Map of the English Channel The English Channel (French: La Manche (IPA: ) is the part of the Atlantic Ocean that separates the island of Great Britain from northern France and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. ... The River Frome is a river in Dorset in the south of England. ... Poole Harbour is a harbour in Dorset, south England. ...

Geology

The geology of the Isle is complex. The northern part is Eocene clay (Barton beds), but where the land rises to the sea there are several parallel strata of Jurassic rocks, including Portland limestone and the Purbeck beds. The latter include Purbeck marble, a particularly hard limestone which is capable of being polished (although in geological terms it is not marble). A ridge of Cretaceous chalk runs along the peninsula creating the Purbeck Hills, part of the southern England Chalk Formation which includes Salisbury Plain, the Dorset Downs and the Isle of Wight. The cliffs here are some of the most spectacular in England, and of great geological interest, both for the rock types and variety of landforms, notably Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door, and the coast is part of the Jurassic coast World Heritage Site because of the unique geology. The Eocene epoch (56-34 Ma) is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Palaeogene period in the Cenozoic era. ... The Gay Head cliffs in Marthas Vineyard are made almost entirely of natural clays. ... The Jurassic Period is a major unit of the geologic timescale that extends from about 200 Ma (million years ago), at the end of the Triassic to 146 Ma, at the beginning of the Cretaceous. ... The Cenotaph, in Whitehall, London, England, is made from Portland stone Portland stone is limestone from the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. ... Purbeck is a local government district in Dorset, England, named for the Isle of Purbeck. ... Limey shale overlaid by limestone. ... Venus de Milo, front. ... The Cretaceous period is one of the major divisions of the geologic timescale, reaching from the end of the Jurassic period, about 146 million years ago (Ma), to the beginning of the Paleocene epoch of the Tertiary period (65. ... The Needles, part of the extensive Southern England Chalk Formation. ... The Purbeck Hills form a headland where they meet the sea at Old Harry Rocks Corfe Castle guards a gap in the ridgeway At Lulworth Cove the sea has broken through the Limestone, eroded away the weak clays and exposed the chalk of the Purbeck hills The Purbeck Hills are... The Chalk Formations of Europe are thick deposits of chalk, a soft porous white limestone, deposited in a marine environment during the upper Cretaceous Period. ... This article is about the plateau in southern England; Salisbury Plain is also an area on South Georgia Island. ... The Dorset Downs shown within Dorset The Dorset Downs are an area of Chalk downland in the centre of the county Dorset in south west England. ... The Isle of Wight is an English island and county, off the southern English coast, to the south of the county of Hampshire. ... A landform comprises a geomorphological unit. ... Lulworth Cove Lulworth Cove is a cove near the village of West Lulworth, on the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site in Dorset, south England. ... Durdle Door Durdle Door (sometimes spelt Durdle Dor) is a natural limestone arch on the Jurassic Coast near West Lulworth in Dorset, England. ... Lulworth Cove The Jurassic Coast is a World Heritage Site in south England. ... A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a specific site (such as a forest, mountain, lake, desert, monument, building, complex, or city) that has been nominated and confirmed for inclusion on the list maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 State...

Quarrying still takes place in Purbeck; in the past quarrying was particularly around the western side of Swanage, the villages of Worth Matravers and Langton Matravers, and the cliffs along the coast between Swanage and St. Aldhelm's Head. The "caves" at Tilly Whim are former quarries, and Dancing Ledge, Seacombe and Winspit are other cliff-edge quarries. Stone was removed from the cliff quarries either by sea, or using horse carts to transport large blocks to Swanage. Location within the British Isles Swanage station, the terminus of the Swanage heritage railway. ... Worth Matravers is a small village in the Purbeck district of Dorset, England, situated on the cliffs west of Swanage, with a population of 644. ... Langton Matravers is a village in the Purbeck district of Dorset, England, just outside Swanage. ... Dancing Ledge is part of the Jurassic Coast near Langton Matravers in the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset, England. ... Winspit is an old quarry on the cliffs near Worth Matravers in the Isle of Purbeck, Dorset, England that is no longer in use. ...

Many of England's most famous cathedrals are adorned with Purbeck marble, and much of London was rebuilt in Portland and Purbeck stone after the Great Fire of London. A cathedral is a Christian church building, specifically of a denomination with an episcopal hierarchy, such as the Anglican, Catholic and some Lutheran churches, which serves as the central church of a diocese, and thus as a bishops seat. ... London (pronounced ) is the capital city of England and the United Kingdom. ... The Great Fire of London was a major fire that swept through the City of London from 2-5 September 1666, and resulted more or less in the destruction of the city. ...

See also: Geology of Dorset. Stylised simple Geology map of Dorset Dorset rests on a variety of different rock types which give the county its interesting landscapes and habitats. ...

The Isle

A large part of the district is now designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), but a portion of the coast around Worbarrow Bay is still, after over 50 years, in the hands of the Army, and has not yet been acquired. An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England (AONB) is an area in England specially designated by the Countryside Agency. ... Worbarrow Bay is a large broad and shallow bay just to the east of Lulworth Cove in Dorset, England, and is part of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. ...

Other places of importance are:

• Swanage, at the southern end of the peninsula, is a seaside resort. At one time it was linked by a branch railway line from Wareham; this was closed in 1972, but has now reopened as the Swanage Railway, a heritage railway.
• Studland: This is a seaside village in its own sandy bay. Nearby, lying off-shore from The Foreland (also Handfast Point), are the chalk stacks named Old Harry Rocks: Old Harry and his Wife.
• Poole Harbour is popular with yachtsmen; it contains Brownsea Island, the site of the first-ever Scout camp.
• Corfe Castle is in the centre of the Isle, with its picturesque village named after it.
• Langton Matravers once the home of several boys preparatory schools now only The Old Malthouse remains

The Purbeck district covers roughly the same area. Location within the British Isles Swanage station, the terminus of the Swanage heritage railway. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... Wareham is a historic market town in the Purbeck district of Dorset, England. ... Swanage station is decorated with railway memorabilia. ... A scene on a heritage railway. ... Studland is a small village in Dorset, England famous for its beaches and Nature Reserve. ... Old Harry Rocks peak A stack at Old Harry rocks Old Harry Rocks at Handfast Point are a small but characteristic set of coastal landforms off Ballard Down at the eastern end of the Jurassic Coast world heritage site near Swanage in Dorset, England. ... Poole Harbour is a harbour in Dorset, south England. ... Brownsea Island boat jetty seen from the Poole to Brownsea ferry. ... Stone on Brownsea Island commemorating the first scout camp The Brownsea Island Scout Camp was the worlds first Scout camp, and is regarded as the formal birth of the worldwide Scout movement. ... Corfe Castle is a small village and ruined castle (, ) dating back to the 11th century, situated in a gap in the Purbeck Hills, five miles south of Wareham, in Dorset, England. ... Langton Matravers is a village in the Purbeck district of Dorset, England, just outside Swanage. ... In the United States a preparatory school, or prep school, is usually a private secondary school (or high school) designed to prepare a student for higher education. ... The Old Malthouse School (The OMH) is a preparatory school in the village of Langton Matravers near Swanage in the Isle of Purbeck, Dorset, United Kingdom. ... Purbeck is a local government district in Dorset, England, named for the Isle of Purbeck. ... Local government areas called districts are used, or have been used, in several countries. ...

External links

• West, I., The Geology of the Wessex Coast
• Photographs of the Isle of Purbeck
• Map and aerial photo sources centred on Corfe Castle at Grid reference: SY 960 820.
• The Old Malthouse School