South Downs
South Downs | |
---|---|
Seven Sisters, near Eastbourne, viewed from Seaford Head | |
Highest point | |
Peak | Blackdown |
Elevation | 279.7 m (918 ft) |
Coordinates | 50°58′40″N 0°58′49″W / 50.97778°N 0.98028°W |
Dimensions | |
Area | 670 km2 (260 sq mi) |
Naming | |
Etymology | Old English dūn, meaning 'hill' |
Geography | |
Country | England (United Kingdom) |
Region | Hampshire, East Sussex, West Sussex |
Range coordinates | 50°54′N 0°30′W / 50.9°N 0.5°W |
Parent range | Southern England Chalk Formation |
Geology | |
Orogeny | Alpine orogeny |
Age of rock | Cretaceous |
Type of rock | Chalk |
The South Downs are a range of chalk hills in the south-eastern coastal counties of England that extends for about 260 sq mi (670 km2)[1] across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, in the Eastbourne Downland Estate, East Sussex, in the east. The Downs are bounded on the northern side by a steep escarpment, from whose crest there are extensive views northwards across the Weald. The South Downs National Park forms a much larger area than the chalk range of the South Downs, and includes large parts of the Weald.
The South Downs are characterised by rolling chalk downland with close-cropped turf and dry valleys, and are recognised as one of the most important chalk landscapes in England.[2] The range is one of the four main areas of chalk downland in southern England.[3]
The South Downs are relatively less populated compared to
The grazing of sheep on the thin, well-drained chalk soils of the Downs over many centuries, and browsing by rabbits, resulted in the fine, short, springy turf, known as old chalk grassland, that has come to epitomise the South Downs today. Until the middle of the 20th century, an agricultural system operated by downland farmers known as 'sheep-and-corn farming' underpinned this: the sheep (most famously the
The South Downs have also been designated as a
The downland is a highly popular recreational destination, particularly for walkers, horseriders and mountain bikers. A
Toponymy
The term 'downs' is from Old English dūn, meaning 'hill'. The word acquired the sense of 'elevated rolling grassland' around the 14th century.[7] These hills are prefixed 'south' to distinguish them from another chalk escarpment, the North Downs, which runs roughly parallel to them about 30 mi (48 km) away on the northern edge of the Weald.
Geology
The South Downs are formed from a thick band of chalk which was deposited during the
The strata of southeast England, including the Chalk, were gently folded during a phase of the
The chalk, being porous, allows water to soak through; as a result there are many winterbournes along the northern edge.
Geography
The South Downs are a long chalk escarpment that stretches for over 110 km (68 mi), rising from the valley of the
In the west, the chalk ridge of the South Downs merges with the
The South Downs may be said to have three main component parts: the East Hampshire Downs, the Western Downs and the Eastern Downs, together with the river valleys that cut across them and the land immediately below them, the scarpfoot.[11] The Western and Eastern Downs are often collectively referred to as the Sussex Downs. The Western Downs, lying west of the River Arun, are much more wooded, particularly on the scarp face, than the Eastern Downs. The bare Eastern Downs – the only part of the chalk escarpment to which, until the late 19th century, the term "South Downs" was usually applied – have come to epitomise, in literature and art, the South Downs as a whole and which have been the subject matter of such celebrated writers and artists as Rudyard Kipling (the "blunt, bow-headed, whale-backed downs") and Eric Ravilious.[12]
Four river valleys cut through the South Downs, namely those of the rivers Arun, Adur, Ouse and Cuckmere, providing a contrasting landscape. Chalk aquifers and to a lesser extent winterbourne streams supply much of the water required by the surrounding settlements. Dew ponds, artificial ponds for watering livestock, are a characteristic feature on the downland.
The highest point on the South Downs is
Within the boundary of the South Downs National Park, which includes parts of the western Weald to the north of the South Downs, the highest point is Blackdown, West Sussex, which rises to 280 m (919 ft) above sea level. However, Blackdown geologically is not part of the South Downs but instead forms part of the Greensand Ridge on the Weald's western margins.
A list of those points on the South Downs above 700 ft (210 m), going from west to east, is given below.
Name of hill | Nearest settlement | Height | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Butser Hill | Petersfield
|
270 m (886 ft) | Highest point in the South Downs proper. |
West Harting Down | South Harting | 229 m (751 ft) | |
Beacon Hill | South Harting | 242 m (793 ft) | |
Linch Down | Bepton | 248 m (814 ft) | |
Littleton Down | East Lavington | 255 m (836 ft) | The summit, Crown Teglease, is the highest point on the Sussex Downs. |
Glatting Beacon | Sutton | 245 m (803 ft) | |
Chanctonbury Hill | Washington | 238 m (782 ft) | Site of Chanctonbury Ring hill fort |
Truleigh Hill | Upper Beeding | 216 m (708 ft) | |
Ditchling Beacon | Ditchling | 248 m (814 ft) | |
Firle Beacon | Firle | 217 m (713 ft) |
History
Archaeological evidence has revealed that the Downs have been inhabited and utilised for thousands of years.
It has been estimated that the tree cover of the Downs was cleared over 3000 years ago, and the present closely grazed turf is the result of continual grazing by sheep.
National park
Proposals to create a national park for the South Downs date back to the 1940s. However, it was not until 1999 that the idea received firm government support. After a public enquiry that took place between 2003 and 2009, the government announced its decision to make the South Downs a national park on 31 March 2009. The South Downs National Park finally came into operation on 1 April 2011. Within its boundary are included not only the South Downs proper but also part of the western Weald, a geologically and ecologically quite different district.
The South Downs National Park has replaced two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB)s: East Hampshire AONB and Sussex Downs AONB. During the enquiry process a number of boundary questions were considered, so that the National Park contains areas not in the former AONBs, and vice versa.
National nature reserves
The South Downs contain a number of national nature reserves (NNRs).[15]
The NNRs on the Sussex Downs comprise
The NNRs on the East Hampshire Downs comprise Butser Hill, near Petersfield, a large area of chalk grassland on the highest point in the South Downs (a large area is also designated as a scheduled monument reflecting its historical significance, particularly in the Bronze and Iron Ages); Old Winchester Hill, a lowland grassland on the west and south facing scarp slopes of the Meon valley; and Beacon Hill, a high quality chalk grassland 5 km west of Old Winchester Hill.
Tourism, leisure and sport
In 1923 the Society of Sussex Downsmen (now the South Downs Society) was formed with the aim of protecting the area's unique landscape.[16]
The South Downs are a popular area for ramblers with a network of over 2,000 mi (3,200 km) of well-managed, well-signed and easily accessible trails. The principal bridleway, and longest of them, is the South Downs Way.[17] The Monarch's Way, having originated at Worcester, crosses the South Downs and ends at Shoreham-by-Sea.[18]
Sports undertaken on the Downs include
The popular Beachy Head Marathon (formerly Seven Sisters Marathon), a hilly cross-country marathon, takes place each autumn on the eastern Downs, starting and finishing in Eastbourne. The South Downs Trail Marathon starts in the village of Slindon (near Arundel) and ends at the Queen Elizabeth Country Park (to the south of Petersfield.)Longer events that take in the South Downs Way include a 100-mile running 'ultramarathon' and mountain biking 75 mile night time race from Beachy Head to Queen Elizabeth Country Park.
Landmarks
Three of the landmarks on the Downs are the
South Downs in literature
Rudyard Kipling who lived in Rottingdean described the South Downs as "Our blunt, bow-headed whale-backed Downs".[20] Writing in 1920 in his poem The South Country, poet Hilaire Belloc describes the South Downs as "the great hills of the South Country".[21] In On The South Coast, poet Algernon Charles Swinburne describes the South Downs as "the green smooth-swelling unending downs".[22]
The naturalist-writer William Henry Hudson wrote that "during the whole fifty-three mile length from Beachy Head to Harting the ground never rises above a height of 850 feet, but we feel on top of the world".[23]
Poet
In the introduction to
The author Graham Greene's first published novel, The Man Within (1929), is set largely on and around the South Downs. The book's principal character, Andrews, travels by foot across the Downs to reach Lewes and attend the Assizes. Greene provides a detailed description of both the landscape and its 'feel'.
The author H. G. Wells published a book called The Invisible Man in 1898, and in it says "He fled to South Down".
Gallery
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Looking east along the Downs towards the Devil's Dyke, Sussex
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Birling Gap
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Trig Point on Kithurst Hill West Sussex. Located on the South Downs Way above the village of Storrington. 699 ft high at the summit.
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Typical topography (Treyford Hill): steep wooded northern slope (left), gently sloping southern slope of pasture and woodland.
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Photo taken near Lewes, East Sussex
Notes
- ^ The land area figure cited here relates to the South Downs Environmentally Sensitive Area, as defined by Natural England for its Environmentally Sensitive Area scheme (launched 1987, but now closed to new applicants, having been replaced by the Environmental Stewardship scheme). The South Downs ESA is referred to by Peter Brandon when he defines the extent of the South Downs; see Brandon (1998), p.1.
- ^ Source: Natural England, South Downs ESA.
- .
- ^ Source: Natural England.
- ^ Peter Brandon, The South Downs (Halsgrove, Tiverton, 2003), p. 51.
- ^ South East and London National Character Area map Archived 24 April 2013 at the Wayback Machine at www.naturalengland.org.uk. Accessed on 3 April 2013.
- ^ Downs, Etymology online, archived from the original on 14 May 2011, retrieved 5 April 2011.
- ^ Shepherd, Roy, Chalk formation fossils, Discovering fossils, archived from the original on 19 July 2011, retrieved 5 April 2011.
- ^ British Geological Survey 1:50K map sheet 318/333 Brighton & Worthing.
- ^ There are various definitions of where in the west the South Downs really begin. The South Downs National Park boundary reaches to the eastern edge of Winchester, whereas for Brandon (1998), the South Downs begin east of the valley of the River Meon, with Old Winchester Hill marking the beginning of the chalk ridge.
- ^ Brandon 1998, pp. 1–3.
- ^ Brandon 1998, p. 3.
- ^ South Downs, English Heritage, archived from the original on 27 May 2009, retrieved 5 April 2011.
- ^ South Downs Way, nationaltrail.co.uk, archived from the original on 14 May 2011, retrieved 5 April 2011.
- ^ See Natural England website Archived 7 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine for more details of all the national nature reserves mentioned in this section.
- ^ South Downs Society website, archived from the original on 22 March 2011, retrieved 5 April 2011.
- ^ South Downs Way: description of the route Archived 5 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ South Downs Way National Trail, Ramblers Association, archived from the original on 20 November 2008, retrieved 5 April 2011.
- ^ Outdoor activities, South Downs National Park Authority, archived from the original on 6 April 2011, retrieved 5 April 2011.
- ^ Kipling, Rudyard (1907). Collected Verse of Rudyard Kipling. New York: Doubleday, Page and Co. p. 123..
- ^ Walters, L. D'O., ed. (1920), An anthology of recent poetry, New York: Dodd and Mead, p. 9.
- ^ Swinburne, Algernon Charles (1911), Poems of Algernon Charles Swinburne. Volume VI, London: Chatto and Windus, p. 147.
- ^ McCarthy, Michael (10 November 2003), "The wild, serene Downs fight against protection", The Independent, London, archived from the original on 28 May 2009, retrieved 14 September 2017.
- ^ Francis William Bourdillon: On the South Downs, Poem Hunter, 3 January 2003, archived from the original on 3 October 2012, retrieved 5 April 2011.
References
- Brandon, Peter (1998), The South Downs, Chichester, UK: Phillimore, ISBN 1-86077-069-X.
Further reading
- Hudson, W. H. (1901), Nature in Downland, London: Longmans and Green.