Purbeck Hills

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Looking east along the top of the ridge Creech, snowy ridge-top view - geograph.org.uk - 464607.jpg
Looking east along the top of the ridge
Chalk cliffs, with cliff fall, at the eastern end of Bindon Hill Mupe Bay cliffs.jpg
Chalk cliffs, with cliff fall, at the eastern end of Bindon Hill

The Purbeck Hills, also called the Purbeck Ridge or simply the Purbecks, are a ridge of chalk downs in Dorset, England. [1] [2] The ridge is formed by the structure known as the Purbeck Monocline, and extends from Lulworth Cove in the west to Old Harry Rocks in the east, where it meets the sea. The hills are part of a system of chalk downlands in southern England formed from the Chalk Group which also includes Salisbury Plain and the South Downs. For most of their length the chalk of the Purbeck Hills is protected from coastal erosion by a band of resistant Portland limestone. Where this band ends, at Durlston Head, the clay and chalk behind has been eroded, creating Poole Bay and the Solent. The ridge of steeply dipping chalk that forms the Purbeck Hills continues further east on the Isle of Wight.

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The height of the chalk ridge and proximity to Poole Harbour and the south coast have made the hills of strategic importance. There are a number of Iron Age, Roman and Saxon archaeological sites, such as Nine Barrow Down. At Corfe Castle the hills are broken twice leaving a steep round hill between the ridges on which stood a medieval castle, guarding the only easy route through the hills, until the English Civil War of the 17th century, when it was slighted.

Some of the ridge, around the village of Tyneham, near Lulworth, has been closed to the public for use by the army as a firing range. This has protected them from damage from farming and development, and these areas are now nature reserves. At the eastern end Ballard Down is a National Trust nature reserve which is managed for its calcareous grassland habitat.

Named hills

See also

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isle of Purbeck</span> Peninsula in Dorset, England

The Isle of Purbeck is a peninsula in Dorset, England. It is bordered by water on three sides: 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, with some medieval sources placing it at Flower's Barrow above Worbarrow Bay. John Hutchins, author of The History and Antiquities of the County of Dorset, defined Purbeck's western boundary as the Luckford Lake steam, which runs south from the Frome. According to writer and broadcaster Ralph Wightman, Purbeck "is only an island if you accept the barren heaths between Arish Mell and Wareham as cutting off this corner of Dorset as effectively as the sea." The most southerly point is St Alban's Head.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Durdle Door</span> Natural limestone arch on the Jurassic coast of England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Purbeck District</span> Former non-metropolitan district in England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Lulworth</span> Human settlement in England

West Lulworth is a village and civil parish in the English county of Dorset, situated on the English Channel beside Lulworth Cove. In the 2011 census the civil parish—which includes most of Lulworth Camp army base—had 291 households and a population of 714. The village is a gateway to the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site and is a popular tourist destination, especially for day trips.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tyneham</span> Human settlement in England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swyre Head</span> Hill in Dorset, England

Swyre Head is the highest point of the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset, on the south coast of England. The hill Swyre Head lies about 2 kilometres (1 mi) southwest of the village Kingston, about 5 kilometres (3 mi) south of Corfe Castle and 8 kilometres (5 mi) west of Swanage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nine Barrow Down</span>

Nine Barrow Down is an elongated hill forming the northern ridge of the Purbeck Hills on the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset, England. The chalk down is part of the extensive Southern England Chalk Formation. The eastern end of the ridge, which carries the highest point, is also sometimes known as Godlingston Hill. The col of the railway cutting at Harman's Cross means that it has sufficient relative height that it qualifies as a Marilyn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Worbarrow Bay</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cow Corner</span>

Cow Corner is the north-western end of Worbarrow Bay, a small secluded bay on the south coast of the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flower's Barrow</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Purbeck Monocline</span> Geological fold in southern England

The Purbeck Monocline is a geological fold in southern England. The term 'fold' is used in geology when one or more originally flat sedimentary strata surfaces are bent or curved as a result of plastic deformation. A monocline is a step-like fold, in which one limb is roughly horizontal. The Purbeck Monocline was formed during the late Oligocene and early Miocene epochs, about 30 million years ago. It is the northernmost 'ripple' of the Alpine Orogeny.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Dorset</span>

Dorset is a county located in the middle of the south coast of England. It lies between the latitudes 50.512°N and 51.081°N and the longitudes 1.682°W and 2.958°W, and occupies an area of 2,653 km2. It spans 90 kilometres (56 mi) from east to west and 63 kilometres (39 mi) from north to south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ridgeway Hill</span> Hill in Dorset, England

Ridgeway Hill, also referred to as Grange Hill or Steeple Hill, is the third highest point of the Purbeck Hills in the county of Dorset standing at 199 metres (653 ft), is one of the only hills with a prominence of over a hundred metres, HuMPs, in the county. Near the top of the hill is an 18th-century folly known as Grange Arch, built by the former owner of Creech Grange, Denis Bond. On the eastern spur of the hill is Stonehill Down which is now a nature reserve. There are also good views of Swyre Head on the Jurassic Coast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dorset Heaths</span>

The Dorset Heaths form an important area of heathland within the Poole Basin in southern England. Much of the area is protected.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Purbeck</span> Region of Southern England

South Purbeck is a natural region on the south coast of England. It lies wholly within the county of Dorset and forms part of the Jurassic Coast, a World Heritage Site, as well as lying entirely within the Dorset AONB.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arish Mell</span>

Arish Mell is a small embayment and beach between Mupe and Worbarrow Bays in Dorset, England and is part of the Jurassic Coast and the South West Coast Path passes just to the north. It is about 1 mile (1.6 km) due south of Lulworth Castle and East Lulworth. The bay is relatively inaccessible because it is within the Lulworth Ranges, an Army tank firing range, and although the Range Walks are open at most weekends and public holidays, there is no public access to the beach and cliffs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stonehill Down Nature Reserve</span>

The Stonehill Down Nature Reserve is a downland nature reserve on the Purbeck Hills in the county of Dorset, England. It is managed by the Dorset Wildlife Trust.

References

  1. Chaffey, John (January 2016). "The Purbeck Hills". Dorset Life - The Dorset Magazine. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  2. "Purbeck Hills, Purbeck - area information, map, walks and more". OS GetOutside. Ordnance Survey . Retrieved 3 February 2024.

50°38′N2°07′W / 50.633°N 2.117°W / 50.633; -2.117