Solway Plain

Last updated
Solway Basin
Solway Firth from Longlands Fell.jpg
A view of the Solway Plain from Longlands Fell
Ceremonial county
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
List of places
UK
England

The Solway Plain [1] or Solway Basin is a coastal plain located mostly in northwest Cumbria in England, extending just over the Scottish border to the low-lying area around Gretna and Annan. [2] It lies generally north and west of Carlisle along the Solway Firth, and is drained by the rivers Esk and Lyne. It is associated with the westernmost part of Hadrian's Wall. [3] In medieval times, clay houses known as dabbins were commonly built on the Solway Plain. [4] The Solway coast has been designated an “Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty”. [5]

Contents

The plain is known for its archaeological heritage. Archaeological finds that are mentioned in Hodgson and Brennand [6] include urned cremation cemeteries at Ewanrigg, evidence suggesting an ancient domestic settlement at Plasketlands, and evidence suggesting pre-Roman occupation at Ewanrigg, Wolsty Hall and Boustead Hill (among other sites). Salta Moss, where a Bronze Age rapier was discovered, boasts flora that is unusual for a mire on the Solway Plain, and has been designated a “Site of Special Scientific Interest” since 1982. [7] As the presence of Hadrian's Wall attests, the Solway Plain is also known for its history as a disputed borderland, control of which was often fought over — from the Roman occupation of Britain to the Border Reivers and Anglo-Scottish conflicts in the Middle Ages. [1]

Geography

The vast and flat Solway Plain lies inland from the Solway Coast, which has been designated as both an “Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty” and a “Special Area of Conservation”, due to its salt marshes, sand dunes, and wetlands, which have given rise to marked and distinctive biodiversity. Agriculturally, like much of Northern England, the Solway Plain is dominated by pastoral agriculture, as evidenced by its popular beef and dairy markets. It is also known for its mostly protected bogland and its stores of peat. Its major rivers are the Ellen in the west, and the Sark, Esk, and Eden in the east. In the hillier regions toward the southeastern part of the plain, further from the coast, woodlands are common and river valleys are pronounced. The plain is also home to the cathedral city of Carlisle, which was historically a strategically important city. [1] [8]

Proposed nuclear waste facility

In June 2012, it became clear that the Solway Plain between Silloth, Abbeytown and Westnewton has been identified as a potential site for a Geological Disposal Facility for the UK's high-level nuclear waste. Two other sites have also been identified - Eskdale and the Ennerdale. The Solway Plain wasn't named by the Managing Radioactive Waste Safely (MRWS) Partnership, rather they referred to the 'Low permeability sedimentary rocks associated with the Mercia Mudstone Group (MMG)'. [9] This was in (publicly available) document 285 of the West Cumbria MRWS in a report written by Dr Dearlove, the consultant geologist recruited by MRWS.

See also

Related Research Articles

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 near to the firth. The firth comprises part of the Irish Sea.

River Eden, Cumbria River in Cumbria, England

The River Eden is a river that flows through the Eden District of Cumbria, England, on its way to the Solway Firth.

Abbeytown Human settlement in England

Abbeytown, also known as Holme Abbey, is a village and civil parish in the Allerdale borough of Cumbria, England.

Beaumont, Cumbria Village and civil parish in the City of Carlisle district of Cumbria, England

Beaumont is a village and civil parish in the City of Carlisle district of Cumbria, England. The village lies four miles north-west of Carlisle on the banks of the River Eden.

Solway may refer to:

Bowness-on-Solway Human settlement in England

Bowness-on-Solway is a village of fewer than 100 houses in northwest Cumbria, situated to the west of Carlisle on the southern (English) side of the Solway Firth estuary separating England and Scotland. The civil parish had a population of 1,126 at the 2011 census. The western end of Hadrian's Wall is a notable tourist destination, though the Wall itself is no longer to be seen here above ground. The west end of the Hadrian's Wall Path is marked by a pavilion on the small coastal cliff at Bowness. Other attractions are the beaches and wading birds.

History of Cumbria

The history of Cumbria as a county of England begins with the Local Government Act 1972. Its territory and constituent parts however have a long history under various other administrative and historic units of governance. Cumbria is an upland, coastal and rural area, with a history of invasions, migration and settlement, as well as battles and skirmishes between the English and the Scots.

Solway Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Cumbria, England

The Solway Coast is a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in northern Cumbria, United Kingdom. It incorporates two areas of coastline along the Solway Firth, the first running from just north of the city of Carlisle, at the estuary of the rivers Esk and Eden, in a westerly direction as far as Silloth-on-Solway, including the villages of Bowness-on-Solway, Burgh-by-Sands, Port Carlisle, and Skinburness. The second area begins just north of the hamlet of Beckfoot, and runs south down the coast to the southern end of Allonby Bay near the village of Crosscanonby. Included in this area are the villages of Mawbray and Allonby, and the hamlets of Dubmill, Hailforth and Salta. The hamlet of Wolsty lies just outside the AONB. Beginning at Silloth, the B5300 coast road runs in a south-westerly direction, entering the AONB just north of Beckfoot, and exiting near Crosscanonby.

Beckfoot A hamlet in Cumbria, England

Beckfoot is a hamlet in the civil parish of Holme St Cuthbert in Cumbria, England. It is located on the B5300 coast road, three miles south of Silloth-on-Solway and two miles north of the village of Mawbray. The county town of Carlisle is twenty-five miles away to the east.

Crosscanonby Human settlement in England

Crosscanonby is a village and civil parish in Cumbria, England, historically part of Cumberland, near the Lake District National Park in England. It is situated within the Solway Coast, designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Blitterlees Human settlement in England

Blitterlees is a small hamlet in the parish of Holme Low, one mile south of Silloth in Cumbria, United Kingdom. The hamlet of Wolsty is located approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) to the south as the crow flies, or 2.25 miles (3.62 km) by road, and Cumbria's county town, Carlisle, is located 23 miles (37 km) to the east. The B5300, known locally as the "coast road", runs through the village on its way to Beckfoot, Mawbray, Allonby, and ultimately Maryport.

Hadrians Wall Defensive fortification in Roman Britain

Hadrian's Wall, also known as the Roman Wall, Picts' Wall, or Vallum Hadriani in Latin, is a former defensive fortification of the Roman province of Britannia, begun in AD 122 in the reign of the emperor Hadrian. Running "from Wallsend on the River Tyne in the east to Bowness-on-Solway in the west", the Wall covered the whole width of the island. In addition to the wall's defensive military role, its gates may have been customs posts.

Salta, Cumbria A hamlet in Cumbria, England

Salta is a hamlet in the parish of Holme St Cuthbert in northwestern Cumbria, United Kingdom. It is 1.1 miles (1.8 km) southwest of the village of Mawbray, and 25.1 miles (40.4 km) southwest of the city of Carlisle. It has a population of about 35 people.

Edderside A hamlet in Cumbria, England

Edderside is a hamlet in the civil parish of Holme St. Cuthbert in Cumbria, United Kingdom. It is located approximately one mile as the crow files to the south-east of Mawbray, or two-and-a-half miles by road, and a similar distance east of Salta, and north-east of Allonby. The small hamlet of Jericho is located less than a mile to the north-east. Approximately 23 miles to the north-east is the city of Carlisle. Allonby Bay, an inlet of the Solway Firth, is one-and-a-half miles to the south-west, as is the B5300 coast road which runs between Silloth-on-Solway, six-and-a-half miles to the north, and Maryport, six miles to the south.

Glasson, Bowness Human settlement in England

Glasson is a hamlet in Cumbria, England, just inland from the Solway coast, eight miles northwest of Carlisle on the course of Hadrian's Wall near Drumburgh. The place name derives from the Anglo-Scandinavian glaise, meaning "a small stream".

Newtown, Allerdale A hamlet in Cumbria, England

Newtown is a hamlet in the civil parish of Holme St Cuthbert in Cumbria, United Kingdom. It is located approximately two miles north-east of the village of Mawbray, a little over half-a-mile as the crow flies to the south-east of Beckfoot, and twenty-five miles west of the city of Carlisle. The B5300 coast road runs approximately three-quarters of a mile to the west of the hamlet, which goes to Maryport, nine-and-a-quarter miles to the south-west, and Silloth-on-Solway, approximately four miles to the north.

Allonby Bay Bay of the Solway Firth, in Cumbria, England

Allonby Bay is a crescent-shaped bay of the Solway Firth on the north-western shore of Cumbria, England. The bay is 5.5 miles (8.9 km) across. Its northern point is at Dubmill, between the village of Mawbray and the hamlet of Salta, and its southern end is just to the north of Maryport, near the village of Crosscanonby. The B5300 coast road follows the shoreline of Allonby Bay, running between Silloth in the north and Maryport in the south.

Wolsty A hamlet in Cumbria, England

Wolsty is a small hamlet in the civil parish of Holme Low in Cumbria, England. It is located three-and-a-quarter miles south of Silloth-on-Solway, five miles west of Abbeytown, three-and-a-quarter miles north of the village of Mawbray, and twenty-three miles west of Cumbria's county town, Carlisle. The B5300 coast road, which heads north toward Silloth-on-Solway and south to Mawbray, Allonby, and Maryport, is three-quarters of a mile away by road, or less than a quarter of a mile by way of an unpaved farm track.

Roman Cumbria Area that used to lay on the north-west frontier of Roman Britain and the Roman Empire itself

Roman Cumbria was an area that lay on the north-west frontier of Roman Britain, and, indeed, of the Roman Empire itself.. Interest in the Roman occupation of the region lies in this frontier aspect - why did the Romans choose to occupy the north-west of England; why build a solid barrier in the north of the region ; why was the region so heavily militarised; to what extent were the native inhabitants 'Romanised' compared to their compatriots in southern England?

Salta Moss A Site of Special Scientific Interest in Cumbria, England

Salta Moss is a raised blanket mire which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest ('SSSI') located in the hamlet of Salta, in Cumbria, United Kingdom. It was determined to be of biological interest under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The site, measuring 45.6 hectares, was officially designated in August 1982.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Solway Plain National Character Area" . Retrieved 17 June 2017.
  2. ↑ A. J. Scott (2015) "Solway Country: Land, Life and Livelihood in the Western Border Region of England and Scotland," Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
  3. ↑ "- English Heritage". www.english-heritage.org.uk. Retrieved 17 June 2017.
  4. ↑ Nina Jennings, The Building of the Clay Dabbins of the Solway Plain: Materials and Man-Hours, Vernacular Architecture 33 (2002), 19-27 Archived 2011-10-02 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ↑ DiscoverySquare. "Solway Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty". solwaycoastaonb.org.uk. Retrieved 17 June 2017.
  6. ↑ "North West Region Archaeological Research Framework Prehistoric Resource Assessment" (PDF). Retrieved 17 June 2017.
  7. ↑ "Natural England - Solway Moss SSSI" (PDF). Retrieved 21 December 2014.
  8. ↑ "Magic Map Application". magic.defra.gov.uk.
  9. ↑ "The domain name westcumbriamrws.org.uk is for sale".

Coordinates: 54°50′41″N3°17′16″W / 54.8447°N 3.2877°W / 54.8447; -3.2877

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.