River Orwell | |
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Location | |
Country | England |
The River Orwell flows through the county of Suffolk in England from Ipswich to Felixstowe. Above Ipswich, the river is known as the River Gipping, but its name changes to the Orwell at Stoke Bridge, where the river becomes tidal. [1] It broadens into an estuary at Ipswich, where the Ipswich dock has operated since the 7th century, and then flows into the North Sea at Felixstowe, the UK's largest container port, after joining the River Stour at Shotley forming Harwich harbour.
The large Orwell Bridge carries the A14 trunk road over the estuary to the south of Ipswich.
In the name Orwell, Or- comes from an ancient river-name—probably pre-Celtic; but -well probably indicates an Anglo-Saxon naming. [2] In A tour through England and Wales, written in 1722, Daniel Defoe calls the river "Orwel" (though he does this inconsistently). [3] He also mentions that "a traveller will hardly understand me, especially a seaman, when I speak of the River Stour and the River Orwell at Harwich, for they know them by no other names than those of Maningtre-Water, and Ipswich-Water". The writer Eric Blair chose the pen name under which he would later become famous, "George Orwell," because of his love for the river. [4] [5] A few miles north of the Orwell is another Suffolk river, the Ore, and Orfordness, the village port of Orford with its historic castle.
The estuary flows through different sections as it makes its way down from Ipswich to the sea: [6]
Redgate Hard is located here. This hard is probably post medieval. [7]
A whale was beached on Downham Reach around 1816.
At this point the Stour flows into the Orwell by Shotley Point. [6]
The Orwell provides a popular venue for sailing. Interest originally centred on the hamlet of Pin Mill (featured in two children's novels by Arthur Ransome: We Didn't Mean To Go To Sea and Secret Water ), which is home to the Pin Mill Sailing Club and its Hard. Ransome had kept his yacht Selina King at the Pin Mill anchorage in 1937–39.
Since the 1970s marinas have opened at Levington (Suffolk Yacht Harbour, pictured), Woolverstone, Fox's (just outside Ipswich), and two marinas in the old Ipswich Wet Dock. Woolverstone is home to the Royal Harwich Yacht Club that was for many years host to the Swordfish 15-foot racing dinghy built by Fairey Marine, in addition to its 12-foot Firefly, a derivative of the National 12-foot dinghy, both designed by the sailor Uffa Fox. It now hosts a broad range of sailing events, such as the annual 'Junior Race Week'.
Ipswich has in the past been affected by flooding, both fluvial flooding from water passing down the river Gipping, and tidal flooding from tidal surges passing up the estuary of the Orwell, with the river becoming much narrower near to the entrance to Ipswich Docks. In order to reduce this risk, the Environment Agency implemented a programme of works expected to cost a total of £58 million to improve the flood defences on both banks of the tidal river and of the Port of Ipswich. The work included the construction of the Ipswich tidal barrier, and because the work affected the right of navigation on the New Cut, the section of the Orwell immediately above the barrier site, it required an order to be issued under the Transport and Works Act 1992. The Ipswich Barrier Order was issued by the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in August 2012. [8]
The barrier consists of a rising sector gate, 66 feet (20 m) wide and 30 feet (9 m) high, located just to the west of the entrance to the wet dock. In November 2014, a contract for £28 million was awarded to VBA, a joint venture between VolkerStevin, Boskalis Westminster and Atkins, for construction of the barrier and associated flood defences on the banks of the river. The barrier is designed to prevent tidal surges passing further up stream, and to enable downstream fluvial flows to be controlled. It provides better flood protection to some 1,500 homes and 400 business properties. The river at the barrier site was 180 feet (55 m) wide, but in order to allow the construction of the barrier and the commissioning of the gate, a large cofferdam, 98 feet (30 m) square, extending 20.6 metres (68 ft) downwards into the chalk bed of the river, was formed against the east bank. This left a much narrower channel to allow the river flows to reach the estuary and boats to continue to access the river above the barrier site. [8]
The sector gate was designed by the German firm IRS, and was manufactured in Holland by Hollandia. Once assembled, it was floated across the North Sea, and lifted into the concrete support structure by a 600 tonne crane. The position of the gate is moved by two hydraulic cylinders, and it can be positioned to prevent a tidal surge passing up stream, or to regulate the downstream flow of the river. The concrete structure was tied in to the eastern bank early in the project, but ties to the western bank had to wait until the gate had been commissioned. At that point, both the flow of the river and boats could pass through the new structure, and the side channel could be blocked off. [8] The new barrier was officially opened in early February 2019 by Therese Coffey, Floods Minister at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, by which time the cost of the project had risen to £67.4 million. While most of the funding came from the Environment Agency, some was also provided by Ipswich Borough Council, the New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership, the Regional Flood and Coastal Committee, and UK Power Networks. [9]
The 1957 film Yangtse Incident: The Story of HMS Amethyst was filmed on the river. The naval shore establishment at HMS Ganges also featured in the film being used as a site for Chinese gun batteries. [10]
The River Stour is a major river in East Anglia, England. It is 47 miles (76 km) long and forms most of the county boundary between Suffolk to the north, and Essex to the south. It rises in eastern Cambridgeshire, passes to the east of Haverhill, through Cavendish, Sudbury, Bures, Nayland, Stratford St Mary and Dedham. It becomes tidal just before Manningtree in Essex and joins the North Sea at Harwich.
The Haven is the tidal river of the port of Boston, Lincolnshire in England. It provides access for shipping between Boston Deeps in The Wash and the town, particularly, the dock. It also serves as the outfall into the sea, of the River Witham and of several major land drains of the northern Fens of eastern England, which are known collectively as the Witham Navigable Drains..
Woolverstone Hall is a large country house, now in use as a school and available at times as a function venue, located 5 miles (8.0 km) south of the centre of Ipswich, Suffolk, England. It is set in 80 acres (320,000 m2) on the banks of the River Orwell. Built in 1776 for William Berners by the architect John Johnson of Leicestershire, it is an outstanding example of English Palladian architecture and is a Grade I listed building while associated buildings are Grade II. From 1951 to 1990, it housed Woolverstone Hall School, a boarding school operated by London County Council (LCC).
Alton Water is a manmade reservoir located on the Shotley peninsula. It is the largest in Suffolk, with a perimeter of over 8 miles (13 km).
The River Deben is a river in Suffolk rising to the west of Debenham, though a second, higher source runs south from the parish of Bedingfield. The river passes through Woodbridge, turning into a tidal estuary before entering the North Sea at Felixstowe Ferry. The mouth of the estuary is crossed by a ferry connecting Felixstowe and Bawdsey.
Shotley is a village and civil parish 8 miles (13 km) south-east of Ipswich in the English county of Suffolk. It is in the Babergh district and gives its name to the Shotley peninsula between the Rivers Stour and Orwell. The parish includes the village of Shotley and the settlements of Shotley Gate and Church End. In 2011 civil parish had a population of 2,342.
Yangtse Incident: The Story of H.M.S. Amethyst (1957) is a British war film that tells the story of the British sloop HMS Amethyst caught up in the Chinese Civil War and involved in the 1949 Yangtze Incident. Directed by Michael Anderson, it stars Richard Todd, William Hartnell, and Akim Tamiroff.
The Haven ports are a group of ports on the east coast of England. Traditionally, only the three deep-water ports of Ipswich, Harwich and Felixstowe, on the confluence of the River Orwell and River Stour, were included. The name has since changed to mean the following five ports:
The ferries in Suffolk are a series of local ferry services in the county of Suffolk in Eastern England. Most cross rivers within the county, and one connects Suffolk with Essex to the south.
The Port of Ipswich can be dated to c.625. The name Ipswich was originally Gippeswyc, referring to the River Gyppes with a suffix derived from the Scandinavian term vik, which had evolved from meaning bay or inlet to mean landing-place, following the proliferation of merchants requiring places to unload their goods and conduct trade. Since 1997 the port has been run by Associated British Ports.
Shotley Gate is a settlement in the civil parish of Shotley, in the Babergh district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It is located at the tip of Shotley Peninsula and is the largest settlement in the parish of Shotley, in 2020 it had an estimated population of 1461. Shotley Gate has a pub called the Bristol Arms the settlement of Shotley Gate developed either side of Bristol Hill.
Woolverstone is a small village and civil parish in Suffolk, England located on the Shotley peninsula. It is situated about 6.4 km (4.0 mi) south of Ipswich, near the southern shore of the River Orwell. In 2005 it had a population of 240, increasing to 265 at the 2011 census.
The Ipswich Waterfront is a cultural and historically significant area surrounding the marina in the town of Ipswich, Suffolk, England. The modern dock was constructed in 1842 and the area was a functioning dock up until the 1970s. At the time of completion, the dock was known as 'the biggest and most important enclosed dock in the kingdom'. Although the dock as it stands was constructed in 1842, the area was used for trade as far back as the 7th century. The decline of industry in the town resulted in the area being transformed into a trendy area of Ipswich, the waterfront is now characterised by its marina, known as Neptune Marina, as well as its mix of classical and postmodern architecture which includes multiple high-rise apartment buildings, restaurants, bars and cafés. The waterfront is also home to the main campus of the region's university, the University of Suffolk.
Felixstowe Pier was a railway station on the Felixstowe Branch Line built in 1877 the site of which is now within the boundary of the Port of Felixstowe. There were a number of sidings that served the docks that were situated to the north of the line as well as one that served the seaplane bases on the south side. The station consisted of a single platform and run round loop. The siding at the "river" end of the run round loop extended onto a jetty.
Stoke is the south west part of Ipswich, Suffolk, bounded by the River Orwell and Belstead Brook. To the west lie the Chantry estates. Stoke is associated with the coming of the railway and consequent industrialisation. Nowadays it is a suburb with many housing developments.
The Shotley Peninsula is a rural area east of the A137 Ipswich-Colchester road located between the rivers Stour and Orwell in Suffolk, England. The peninsula is named after the settlements of Shotley and Shotley Gate which are situated near its south-eastern tip. Other villages on the peninsula include Chelmondiston, Erwarton (Arwarton), Freston, Harkstead, Holbrook, Stutton, Tattingstone, Wherstead and Woolverstone.
Pin Mill is a hamlet on the south bank of the tidal River Orwell, on the outskirts of the village of Chelmondiston, on the Shotley peninsula in southern Suffolk. It lies within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and is a designated Conservation Area. It is now generally known for the historic Butt and Oyster public house, and for sailing.
Orwell Estuary is a 1,335.7 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest which stretches along the River Orwell and its banks between Felixstowe and Ipswich in Suffolk. It is part of the Stour and Orwell Estuaries Ramsar site internationally important wetland site and Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. It is also in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.