Most of the region is located on theSouth West Peninsula, between theEnglish Channel andBristol Channel. It has the longest coastline of all the English regions, totalling over 700 miles (1,130 km).[7] Much of the coast is now protected from further substantial development because of its environmental importance, which contributes to the region's attractiveness to tourists and residents.
Geologically the region is divided into the largelyigneous andmetamorphic west andsedimentary east, the dividing line slightly to the west of theRiver Exe.[8] Cornwall and West Devon's landscape is of rocky coastline and high moorland, notably atBodmin Moor andDartmoor. These are due to thegranite andslate that underlie the area. The highest point of the region isHigh Willhays, at 2,038 feet (621 m), onDartmoor.[9] In North Devon the slates of the west and limestones of the east meet atExmoor National Park. The variety of rocks of similar ages seen has led to the county's name being given to that of theDevonian period.
The climate of South West England is classed asoceanic (Cfb) according to theKöppen climate classification. The oceanic climate typically experiences cool winters with warmer summers and precipitation all year round, with more experienced in winter. Annual rainfall is about 1,000 millimetres (39 in) and up to 2,000 millimetres (79 in) on higher ground.[14] Summer maxima averages range from 18 °C (64 °F) to 22 °C (72 °F) and winter minimum averages range from 1 °C (34 °F) to 4 °C (39 °F) across the south-west.[14] It is the second windiest area of the United Kingdom, the majority of winds coming from the south-west and north-east.[14] Government organisations predict the region to rise in temperature and become the hottest region in the United Kingdom.[15]
Inland areas of low altitude experience the least amount of precipitation. They experience the highest summer maxima temperatures, but winter minima are colder than the coast. Snowfalls are more frequent in comparison to the coast, but less so in comparison to higher ground.[14] It experiences the lowest wind speeds and sunshine total in between that of the coast and the moors. The climate of inland areas is more noticeable the further north-east into the region.
In comparison to inland areas, the coast experiences high minimum temperatures, especially in winter, and it experiences slightly lower maximum temperatures during the summer. Rainfall is the lowest at the coast and snowfall is rarer than the rest of the region. Coastal areas are the windiest parts of the peninsula and they receive the most sunshine. The general coastal climate is more typical the further south-west into the region.
Areas ofmoorland inland such as:Bodmin Moor,Dartmoor andExmoor experience lower temperatures and more precipitation than the rest of the southwest (approximately twice as much rainfall as lowland areas), because of their high altitude. Both of these factors also cause it to experience the highest levels of snowfall and the lowest levels of sunshine. Exposed areas of the moors are windier than lowlands and can be almost as windy as the coast.
The boundaries of the South West region are based upon those devised by central government in the 1930s for civil defence administration and subsequently used for various statistical analyses. The region is also similar to that used in the 17th-centuryRule of the Major-Generals underCromwell. (For further information, seeHistorical and alternative regions of England). By the 1960s, the South West region (including Dorset, which for some previous purposes had been included in a Southern region), was widely recognised for government administration and statistics. The boundaries were carried forward into the 1990s when regional administrations were formally established as Government Office Regions. Aregional assembly andregional development agency were created in 1999, then abolished in 2008 and 2012 respectively.
It has been argued[by whom?] that the official South West region does not possess a cultural and historic unity or identity of itself, which has led to criticism of it as an "artificial" construct. The large area of the region, stretching as it does from the Isles of Scilly to Gloucestershire, encompasses diverse areas which have little more in common with each other than they do with other areas of England. The region has several TV stations and newspapers based in different areas, and no single acknowledged regional "capital". Many people in the region have some level of a "South West" or "West Country" regional identity, although this may not necessarily correspond to an identification with the official government-definedregion. It is common for people in the region to identify at a national level (whetherEnglish,British,Cornish or a county, city or town level). Identifying as being from 'the Westcountry', amorphous though it is, tends to be more predominant further into the peninsula where the status of being from the region is less equivocal.[16][17]
The South West region is largely rural, with small towns and villages; a higher proportion of people live in such areas than in any other English region. There are two major regional cities in terms of population, which are Bristol and Plymouth (although Bristol is larger by some consideration), and two major conurbations which are the South East Dorset Conurbation (Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole) and the Bristol Metropolitan Conurbation (which includes the City of Bristol and areas of South Gloucestershire).
Pulteney Bridge in Bath, Somerset: the entire city is a World Heritage Site
Cities and Towns with specific tourist and cultural sites of interest include Bath, Bristol, Salisbury, Plymouth, Exeter, Cheltenham, Gloucester and Weston-super-Mare, as well as the county of Cornwall on a widespread scale.
The vast majority of trains in the region are operated byCrossCountry,Great Western Railway (GWR) andSouth Western Railway (SWR). GWR is the key operator for all counties in the region except Dorset where SWR is the key operator.
CrossCountry operates services toManchester Piccadilly,Glasgow andAberdeen. Dorset is currently the only county in the region where there are electric trains, though the Great Western Main Line and theSouth Wales Main Line in Wiltshire, Somerset, Greater Bristol and Gloucestershire isbeing electrified. SWR operate services to and from London Waterloo and serves every county in the region except Gloucestershire and Cornwall. GWR serves all counties in the region and operate to various destinations, some of which run to South Wales and the West Midlands, though almost all intercity trains operated by GWR run through the region.
Local bus services are primarily operated byFirstGroup,Go-Ahead Group andStagecoach subsidiaries as well as independent operators.Megabus andNational Express operate long-distance services from South West England to all parts of the United Kingdom.
Three major roads enter the region from the east. TheM4 motorway from London to South Wales via Bristol is the busiest. TheA303 cuts through the centre of the region from Salisbury toHoniton, where it merges with theA30 to continue past Exeter to the west of Cornwall. TheA31, an extension of theM27, serves Poole and Bournemouth and the Dorset coast. TheM5 runs from theWest Midlands through Gloucestershire, Bristol and Somerset to Exeter. TheA38 serves as a western extension to Plymouth. There are three other smaller motorways in the region, allin the Bristol area.
There is evidence fromflintartefacts in a quarry atWestbury-sub-Mendip that an ancestor of modern man, possiblyHomo heidelbergensis, was present in the future Somerset from around 500,000 years ago.[36] There is some evidence of human occupation of southern England before thelast ice age, such as atKents Cavern in Devon, but largely in thesouth east. The British mainland was connected to the continent during the ice age and humans may have repeatedly migrated into and out of the region as the climate fluctuated. There is evidence of human habitation in the caves atCheddar Gorge 11,000–10,000 years BC, during a partial thaw in the ice age. The earliest scientifically dated cemetery inGreat Britain was found atAveline's Hole in theMendip Hills. The human bone fragments it contained, from about 21 different individuals, are thought to be roughly between 10,200 and 10,400 years old.[37] During this time the tundra gave way tobirch forests andgrassland and evidence for human settlement appears atSalisbury Plain, Wiltshire andHengistbury Head, Dorset.
At the end of thelast Ice Age theBristol Channel was dry land, but subsequently the sea level rose, resulting in major coastal changes. TheSomerset Levels were flooded, but thedry points such asGlastonbury andBrent Knoll are known to have been occupied byMesolithic hunters.[38] The landscape at this time wastundra. Britain's oldest complete skeleton,Cheddar Man, lived at Cheddar Gorge around 7150 BC (in theUpper Palaeolithic or Old Stone Age), shortly after the end of the ice age;[39] however, it is unclear whether the region was continuously inhabited during the previous 4000 years, or if humans returned to the gorge after a final cold spell. APalaeolithic flint tool found in West Sedgemoor is the earliest indication of human presence on the Somerset Levels.[40] During the 7th millennium BC the sea level rose and flooded the valleys, so theMesolithic people occupied seasonal camps on the higher ground, indicated by scatters of flints.[40] TheNeolithic people continued to exploit the reed swamps for their natural resources and started to construct wooden trackways. These included thePost Track and theSweet Track. The Sweet Track, dating from the 39th century BC, is thought to be the world's oldesttimber trackway and was once thought to be the world's oldest engineered roadway.[11] The Levels were also the location of theGlastonbury Lake Village as well as two lake villages atMeare.[41]Stonehenge,Avebury andStanton Drew are perhaps the most famous Neolithic sites in the UK.
At the time of theRoman invasion, the inhabitants of the entire area spoke aBrythonic Celtic language. Its descendant languages are still spoken to a greater or lesser extent inCornwall, Wales, andBrittany.[44]
Silbury Hill – Europe's largest man-made earthwork
During theRoman era, the east of the region, particularly the Cotswolds and eastern Somerset, was heavily Romanised but Devon and Cornwall were much less so, though Exeter was a regional capital. There are villas, farms and temples dating from the period, including the remains at Bath.
The area ofSomerset was part of theRoman Empire from AD 47 to about AD 409.[45] The empire disintegrated gradually, and elements ofRomanitas lingered on for perhaps a century. In AD 47, Somerset was invaded from the south-east by theSecond LegionAugusta, under the future emperorVespasian. Thehillforts of theDurotriges atHam Hill andCadbury Castle were captured. Ham Hill probably had a temporary Roman occupation. The massacre at Cadbury Castle seems to have been associated with the laterBoudiccan Revolt of AD 60–61.[38]
A 19th-centuryPhotochrom of the Roman Baths in Bath, Somerset
The Roman invasion, and possibly the preceding period of involvement in the internal affairs of the south of England, was inspired in part by the lead mines of theMendip Hills, which also offered the potential for the extraction of silver.[46][47] Forts were set up atBath andIlchester. The lead and silvermines atCharterhouse in the Mendip Hills were run by the military. The Romans established a defensive boundary along the new military road known theFosse Way (from the Latinfossa meaning "ditch"). The Fosse Way ran throughBath,Shepton Mallet,Ilchester and south-west towardsAxminster. The road fromDorchester ran throughYeovil to meet the Fosse Way at Ilchester. Salt was produced on theSomerset Levels nearHighbridge andquarrying took place near Bath, named after theRoman baths.[48]
Excavations carried out before the flooding ofChew Valley Lake also uncovered Roman remains, indicating agricultural and industrial activity from the second half of the 1st century until the 3rd century AD. The finds included a moderately largevilla at Chew Park,[49] where wooden writing tablets (the first in the UK) with ink writing were found. There is also evidence from thePagans Hill Roman Temple atChew Stoke.[49][50] In October 2001 theWest Bagborough Hoard of 4th-century Roman silver was discovered inWest Bagborough. The 681 coins included twodenarii from the early 2nd century and 8miliarensia and 671siliquae all dating from AD 337 to 367. The majority were struck in the reigns of emperorsConstantius II andJulian and derive from a range of mints includingArles andLyon in France,Trier in Germany, and Rome.[51] In April 2010, theFrome Hoard, one of the largest ever hoards of Roman coins discovered in Britain, was found by a metal detectorist. The hoard of 52,500 coins dated from the 3rd century AD and was found buried in a field nearFrome, in a jar 14 inches (36 cm) below the surface.[52] The coins were excavated by archaeologists from thePortable Antiquities Scheme.[53]
After the Romans left at the start of the 5th century AD, the region split into several Brittonic kingdoms, includingDumnonia, centred around the old tribal territory of theDumnonii.[54] The upper Thames area soon came underAnglo-Saxon control but the remainder of the region was in British control until the 6th century.[55][56]Bokerley Dyke, a large defensive ditch onCranborne Chase dated to 367, delayed theSaxon conquest of Dorset, with the Romano-British remaining in Dorset for 200 years after the withdrawal of the Roman legions. The WesternWandsdyke earthwork was probably built during the 5th or 6th century. This area became the border between theRomano-BritishCelts and theWest Saxons following theBattle of Deorham in 577.[57]
The Anglo-Saxons then gained control of the Cotswold area; but most of Somerset, Dorset and Devon (as well as Cornwall) remained in British hands until the late 7th century. According to theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle, the SaxonCenwalh achieved a breakthrough against theBritish Celtic tribes, with victories atBradford-on-Avon (in theAvon Gap in the Wansdyke) in 652,[58] and further south at theBattle of Peonnum (atPenselwood) in 658,[59] followed by an advance west through thePolden Hills to theRiver Parrett.[60] The Saxon advance from the east seems to have been halted by battles between the British and Saxons, for example at the siege of BadonMons Badonicus (which may have been in the Bath district, perhaps atSolsbury Hill),[61] orBathampton Down.[62] The Battle ofBedwyn was fought in 675 betweenEscuin, aWest Saxon nobleman who had seized the throne ofQueen Saxburga, andKing Wulfhere ofMercia.[63] The earliest fortification ofTaunton started for KingIne of Wessex andÆthelburg, in or about the year 710. However, according to theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle this was destroyed 12 years later.[64]Alfred the Great refortified Exeter as a defensiveburh, followed by new erections atLydford,Halwell andPilton, although these fortifications were small compared toburhs further east, suggesting that they were protection for the elite only.
The English defeated a combined Cornish and Danish force atHingston Down (near Gunnislake) in 838.[65]Edward the Elder built similarly atBarnstaple andTotnes. But sporadic Viking incursions continued until theNorman Conquest, including the disastrous defeat of the Devonians at theBattle of Pinhoe. In 876 King Alfred the Great trapped a Danish fleet atArne and then drove it out; 120 ships were wrecked atStudland.[66] Although King Alfred had lands in Cornwall, it continued to have a British king. It is generally considered that Cornwall came fully under the dominion of the English Crown in the time ofAthelstan's rule, i.e. 924–939.[67] In the absence of any specific documentation to record this event, supporters of Cornwall's English status presume that it then became part of England. However, in 944, within a mere five years of Athelstan's death,King Edmund issued a charter styling himself "King of the Englishand ruler of this province of the Britons". Thus we can see that then the "province" was a territorial possession, which has long claimed a special relationship to the English Crown.[68]
King Alfred was driven to seek refuge from the Danes atAthelney before defeating them in 878 at theBattle of Ethandun, usually considered to be nearEdington, Wiltshire, but possibly the village ofEdington in Somerset. Alfred established a series of forts and lookout posts linked by a military road, orHerepath, to allow his army to cover Viking movements at sea. The Herepath has a characteristic form which is familiar on the Quantocks: a regulation 20 m wide track between avenues of trees growing fromhedge laying embankments. A peace treaty with the Danes was signed atWedmore and the Danish kingGuthrum the Old was baptised atAller.Burhs (fortified places) had been set up by 919, such asLyng. TheAlfred Jewel, an object about 2.5-inch (64 mm) long, made of filigree gold,cloisonné-enamelled and with a rock crystal covering, was found in 1693 atPetherton Park,North Petherton.[70] This is believed to have been owned by King Alfred.[71]Monasteries andminster churches were set up all over Somerset, with daughter churches of the minsters in manors. There was a royal palace atCheddar, which was used at times in the 10th century to host theWitenagemot.[72]
In the late pre-Norman period, the east coast of modern-day England came under the growing sway of theNorsemen. Eventually England came to be ruled by Norse monarchs, and theAnglo-Saxon kingdoms fell one by one,Wessex being conquered in 1013 by KingSweyn Forkbeard.[73][74][75] Sweyn's realms includedDenmark andNorway, and parts of England such asMercia (an Anglian kingdom roughly coinciding with theEnglish Midlands), much of which, along with northern England, fell under theDanelaw. Sweyn ruled Wessex, along with his other realms, from 1013 onwards, followed by his sonCanute the Great. But Cornwall wasnot part of his realm of Wessex. A map by the American historian called "The Dominions of Canute" (pictured just above) shows that Cornwall, like Wales and Scotland, was part neither of Sweyn Forkbeard's nor of Canute's Danish empire. Neither Sweyn Forkbeard nor Canute conquered or controlled Scotland, Wales or Cornwall; but these areas were "client nations": subject to payment of a yearly tribute ordanegeld to Sweyn and later Canute, all three areas retained their autonomy from the Danes. Ultimately, the Danes lost control of Wessex in 1042 on the death of both of Canute's sons.Edward the Confessor retook Wessex for the Saxons.[76] In 1016Edmund Ironside was crowned king at Glastonbury.[77]
After the Norman Conquest the region was controlled by various Norman as well asBreton lords and later by local gentry, a few of whom appear to have been descended from pre-Conquest families. In 1140, during thecivil war ofKing Stephen's reign, the castles of Plympton andExeter were held against the king byBaldwin de Redvers and this gave rise to the defensive castles atCorfe Castle,Powerstock,Wareham andShaftesbury. The period saw the growth of towns such asTruro,Totnes,Okehampton andPlympton in the west of the region, but these were small compared with the established wealth of ancientcathedral cities in the east of the region such asExeter,Bath andWells. Wealth grew from sheep farming in the east of the region: church controlled estates such asGlastonbury Abbey andWells became among the richest in England, whiletin and silver mining was important in Devon and Cornwall;Stannary Parliaments with semi-autonomous powers were established. Farming prospered until it was severely hit by theBlack Death which arrived inDorset in 1348 and quickly spread through Somerset, causing widespread death, with mortality rates perhaps as high as 50% in places. The resulting labour shortage led to changes in feudal practices. Crafts and industries also flourished; the Somerset woollen industry was then one of the largest in England.[78] Coal mining in theMendips was an important source of wealth whilequarrying also took place.
Many parish churches were rebuilt in this period. Between 1107 and 1129William Giffard, the Chancellor of KingHenry I, converted the bishop's hall in Taunton intoTaunton Castle. It passed to the king in 1233[79] and in 1245 repairs were ordered to itsmotte and towers. During the 11th-centurySecond Barons' War againstHenry III, Bridgwater was held by the barons against the King. During theMiddle Ages sheep farming for the wool trade came to dominate the economy ofExmoor. The wool was spun into thread on isolated farms and collected by merchants to be woven, fulled, dyed and finished in thriving towns such asDunster. The land started to be enclosed and from the 17th century onwards larger estates developed, leading to establishment of areas of large regular shaped fields. During this period aroyal forest and hunting ground was established, administered by the Warden. The royal forest was sold off in 1818.[80]
Where conditions were suitable, coastal villages and ports had an economy based on fishing. The larger ports such asFowey contributed vessels to the naval enterprises of the King and were subject to attack from the French in return. Bridgwater was part of thePort of Bristol until the Port of Bridgwater was created in 1348,[69] covering 80 miles (130 km) of the Somerset coast line, from theDevon border to the mouth of theRiver Axe.[81][82] Historically, the main port on the river was at Bridgwater; the river being bridged at this point, with the first bridge being constructed in 1200.[83]Quays were built in 1424; with another quay, theLangport slip, being built in 1488 upstream of the Town Bridge.[84] InBristol the port began to develop in the 11th century.[85] By the 12th century Bristol was an important port, handling much of England's trade with Ireland. During this period Bristol also became a centre of shipbuilding and manufacturing. Bristol was the starting point for many important voyages, notablyJohn Cabot's 1497 voyage of exploration to North America.[86] By the 14th century Bristol was one of England's three largestmedieval towns after London, along withYork andNorwich, with perhaps 15,000–20,000 inhabitants on the eve of theBlack Death of 1348–49.[87]The plague resulted in a prolonged pause in the growth of Bristol's population, with numbers remaining at 10,000–12,000 through most of the 15th and 16th centuries.[88]
Great disturbances throughout both Cornwall and Devon followed the introduction ofEdward VI'sBook of Common Prayer. The day afterWhit Sunday 1549, a priest atSampford Courtenay was persuaded to read the oldmass.[90] This insubordination spread swiftly into serious revolt. The Cornish quickly joined the men of Devon in thePrayer Book Rebellion and Exeter was besieged until relieved by Lord Russell.[91] The Cornish had a particular motivation for opposing the new English language prayer book, as there were still many monoglotCornish speakers in West Cornwall. TheCornish language declined rapidly afterwards and theDissolution of the Monasteries resulted in the eventual loss of the Cornish language as a primary language. By the end of the 18th century it was no longer a first language.
TheCouncil of the West was a short-lived administrative body established by Henry VIII for the government of the western counties of England. It was analogous in form to theCouncil of the North. The council was established in March 1539, withLord Russell as its Lord President. Members included Thomas Derby, Sir Piers Edgcumbe, Sir Richard Pollard and John Rowe. However, the fall ofThomas Cromwell, the chief political supporter of government by Councils, and the tranquillity of the western counties made it largely superfluous. It last sat in summer 1540, although it was never formally abolished.[92]
During theEnglish Civil War, Somerset was largelyParliamentarian, althoughDunster was a Royalist stronghold. The county saw important battles between theRoyalists and the Parliamentarians, notably atLansdowne in 1643 andLangport in 1645.[97] Bristol was occupied by Royalist military, after they overranRoyal Fort, the last Parliamentarian stronghold in the city.[88]Taunton Castle had fallen into ruin by 1600 but it was repaired during the Civil War. The castle changed hands several times during 1642–45 along with the town.[98] During theSiege of Taunton it was defended byRobert Blake, from July 1644 to July 1645. After the war, in 1662, the keep was demolished and only the base remains. This war resulted in castles being slighted (destroyed to prevent their re-use).[99]
In 1685,the Duke of Monmouth led theMonmouth Rebellion in which a force partly raised in Somerset fought againstJames II. The rebels landed atLyme Regis and travelled north hoping to captureBristol andBath, Puritan soldiers damaged the west front ofWells Cathedral, tore lead from the roof to make bullets, broke the windows, smashed the organ and the furnishings, and for a time stabled their horses in the nave.[100] They were defeated in theBattle of Sedgemoor atWestonzoyland, the last battle fought on English soil.[101] TheBloody Assizes which followed saw the losers being sentenced to death ortransportation.[102] At the time of theGlorious Revolution,King James II gathered his main forces, altogether about 19,000 men, atSalisbury, James himself arriving there on 19 November 1688. The first blood was shed at theWincanton Skirmish inSomerset. In Salisbury, James heard that some of his officers, such asEdward Hyde, had deserted, and he broke out in a nose-bleed which he took as a bad omen. His commander in chief, theEarl of Feversham, advised retreat on 23 November, and the next dayJohn Churchill deserted to William. On 26 November, James's daughterPrincess Anne did the same, and James returned to London the same day, never again to be at the head of a serious military force in England.[103]
Since 1650, the City ofPlymouth has grown to become the largest city in Devon, mainly due to the naval base atDevonport.Her Majesty's Naval Base (HMNB) Devonport is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for theRoyal Navy. HMNB Devonport is now the largest naval base in Western Europe.[104] The largePortland Harbour, built at the end of the 19th century and protected byNothe Fort and theVerne Citadel, was for many years, including during the wars, another of the largest Royal Navy bases.
The 19th century saw improvements to roads in the region with the introduction ofturnpikes and the building of canals and railways. The usefulness of the canals was short-lived, though they have now been restored for recreation.Chard claims to be the birthplace ofpowered flight, in 1848 when theVictorian aeronautical pioneerJohn Stringfellow first demonstrated that engine-powered flight was possible through his work on theAerial Steam Carriage.[105][106]North Petherton was the first town in England (and one of the few ever) to be lit byacetylene gas lighting.[107]
Around the 1860s, at the height of the iron and steel era, apier and a deep-waterdock were built, atPortishead to accommodate the large ships that had difficulty in reachingBristol Harbour.[108][109] ThePortishead power stations were coal-fedpower stations built next to the dock. Industrial activities ceased in the dock with the closure of the power stations. The Port of Bristol Authority finally closed the dock in 1992,[110] and it has now been developed into a marina and residential area.
During theFirst World War many soldiers from the South West were killed, and war memorials were put up in most of the towns and villages; only a few villages escaped casualties. There were also casualties – though much fewer – during the Second World War, who were added to the memorials. Several areas were bases for troops preparing for the 1944D-Day landings.Exercise Tiger, or Operation Tiger, was the code names for a full-scale rehearsal in 1944 for theD-Day invasion ofNormandy. The British Government evacuated approximately 3,000 local residents in the area ofSlapton, nowSouth Hams District ofDevon.[111] Some of them had never left their villages before.[112] Bristol's city centre suffered severe damage fromLuftwaffe bombing during theBristol Blitz of World War II.[113] TheRoyal Ordnance FactoryROF Bridgwater was constructed early inWorld War II for theMinistry of Supply.[114] TheTaunton Stop Line was set up to resist a potential German invasion, and the remains of itspill boxes can still be seen, as well as others along the coast.[115]
William Herschel, previously a clarinet player, of Bath discoveredinfrared radiation on 11 February 1800, and the planetUranus in March 1781; he had made important improvements to thereflecting telescope by increasing the mirror diameter. Herschel then built a 20-ft reflecting telescope and invented thestar count, working out that theMilky Way is a disc, which he called agrindstone, and that it is a galaxy. SirArthur C. Clarke ofMinehead invented the idea of artificialsatellites; he sent a letter toHarry Wexler who then developed the firstweather satelliteTIROS-1. SirArthur Eddington of Weston-super-Mare was the first to realise thatnuclear fusion powered the Sun; at the 1920British Association meeting he said that the Sun converted hydrogen into helium, although the mechanism was not known until 1933.James Bradley was an important astronomer from Gloucestershire, who discovered theaberration of light.
Regional profile of the South West in 2011Population pyramid of the South West in 2020
At the2021 census, the population of the South West region was 5,701,186[121]
It has long been one of the fastest-growing regions in England and its 2021 population had increased by 7.8% since 2011 (when it was 5,288,935), and by 15.7% over the 2001 figure (4,928,434).
At the 2021 census, the proportion of white people in the region decreased from 95.4% to 93.1%, while the proportion of black and Asian residents increased significantly. At that time, 87.8% of the region's residents were classed as White British, which was higher than the England average of 73.5%.[121]
The region had the oldestmedian age in England; in the 2011 census,West Somerset had the UK's oldest average age – almost 48. The region had the second-highest proportion (23%) of rural population in the UK, after Northern Ireland.
Historical Population of the South West of England
35% of people in the region own their homes outright, with no debt, the highest in the UK. The Cotswold district had the biggest house price increases in the region, and the second-biggest in the UK outside of London and the South-East, in a March 2015 survey.Weymouth and Portland has the highest council tax in England. West Somerset has the lowest average full-time pay at £287; West Somerset is also the district where poor children do much worse than wealthier children at school, with some of the worst differences in the UK, according toAmbition School Leadership.
For top-tier authorities, Torbay has the highest teenage pregnancy rate in the region,[129] with Exeter the highest rate for council districts. For top-tier authorities, North Somerset (closely followed by Bath & NE Somerset) has the lowest rate, withCotswold having the lowest rate for council districts.
The population in the region with the highest obesity level isSedgemoor in Somerset, with 73.4%, the fifth in the UK.[130] North Dorset has the lowest proportion of cancer deaths in England – 97 per 100,000 (the England average is 142 per 100,000), down from 162 ten years earlier.[when?]
In the 2011 census, East Dorset had the highest rate of marriage in the UK;[131] East Dorset also has the third-highest life expectancy for men in the UK at 82.7.[132]
As measured by theEnglish Indices of Deprivation 2007, the region shows similarities withSouthern England in having moreLower Layer Super Output Areas in the 20% leastmultiple deprived districts than the 20% most deprived.[133] The relative amount of deprivation is similar to theEast Midlands, except the South West has many fewer deprived areas. According to the LSOA data in 2007, the most deprived districts[134] (before Cornwall became a unitary authority) were, in descending order: Bristol (64th in England), Torbay (71st), Plymouth (77th),Kerrier (86th),Restormel (89th),North Cornwall (96th), and West Somerset (106th). At county level, the deprived areas are City of Bristol (49th in England), Torbay (55th), Plymouth (58th), and Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly (69th).
The least deprived council districts are, in descending order: East Dorset, North Wiltshire, South Gloucestershire, Cotswold, Kennet, Stroud, Tewkesbury, West Wiltshire, Salisbury, and Bath and North East Somerset. At county level, the least deprived areas, in descending order, are South Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Bath and North East Somerset, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Poole, North Somerset, and Somerset. For smaller areas, the least-deprived in the region are E01015563 (139th in England) – Shaw and Nine Elms ward, in north Swindon; E01014791 (163rd in England) – Portishead East ward, in North Somerset off the A369 inPortishead and North Weston; E01020377 (184th in England) –Colehill East ward, in East Dorset, east of Wimborne Minster.
In March 2011, the region had the second-lowestunemployment claimant count in England, second toSouth East England, with 2.7%. Inside the region,Torbay has the highest rate with 4.5%, followed by Bristol and Plymouth with 3.8%. East Dorset has the lowest rate with 1.4%.[135]
TheCornish language evolved from theSouthwestern dialect of theBrittonic language spoken during theIron Age andRoman period.[136] The area controlled by the Britons was progressively reduced by the expansion ofWessex after the 6th century, and in 936Athelstan set the east bank of theTamar as the boundary betweenAnglo-SaxonWessex andCeltic Cornwall.[137] The Cornish language continued to flourish during theMiddle Ages but declined thereafter, and the last speaker of traditional Cornish died in the 19th century.[138] Geographical names derived from the British language are widespread in South West England, and include several examples of theRiver Avon, fromabonā = "river" (cf.Welshafon), and the words "tor" and "combe".[139]
Until the 19th century, theWest Country and its dialects of theEnglish language were largely protected from outside influences, due to its relative geographical isolation. The West Country dialects derive not from a corrupted form of modern English, but from the Southwestern dialects ofMiddle English, which themselves derived from the dialects of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom ofWessex.Late West Saxon, which formed the earliest English language standard, from the time of King Alfred until the late 11th century, is the form in which the majority of Anglo-Saxon texts are preserved.Thomas Spencer Baynes claimed in 1856 that, due to its position at the heart of the Kingdom of Wessex, the relics of Anglo-Saxon accent, idiom and vocabulary were best preserved in the Somerset dialect. There is some influence from theWelsh andCornish languages, depending on the specific location.
West Country dialects are commonly represented as "Mummerset", a kind of catchall southernrural accent invented for broadcasting.
Historic docks onBristol Harbour, within the region's most productive economySince the decline of mining, Cornwall's economy has been reliant on agriculture and tourism
The most economically productive areas within the region are Bristol, theM4 corridor and south east Dorset, which are the areas with the best links to London. Bristol alone accounts for a quarter of the region's economy, with the surrounding areas of Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire accounting for a further quarter.[140]
The region'sGross value added (GVA) breaks down as 69.9%service industry, 28.1%production industry and 2.0% agriculture. This is a slightly higher proportion in production, and lower proportion in services, than the UK average. Agriculture, though in decline, is important in many parts of the region.Dairy farming is especially important in Dorset and Devon, and the region has 1.76 million cattle, second to only one other UK region, and 3,520 square miles (9,117 km2) of grassland, more than any other region. Only 5.6% of the region's agriculture isarable.[140]
Tourism is important in the region, and in 2003 the tourist sector contributed £4,928 million to the region's economy.[142]In 2001 the GVA of the hotel industry was £2,200 million, and the region had 13,800 hotels with 250,000 bed spaces.[140]
There are large differences in prosperity between the eastern parts of the region and the west. While Bristol is the second most affluent large city in England after London,[143] parts of Cornwall have among the lowest average incomes in Northern Europe.
Ginsters have a food production plant inCallington, off theA390 between Liskeard and Tavistock
Cornwall has become reliant on tourism, more so than the other counties of the South West. In 2010 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly had the lowest GVA per head of any county or unitary authority in England.[146] It contributes only 7.4% of the region's economy[147] and has receivedEU Convergence funding (formerly Objective One funding) since 2000.[148] Over four million people visit the county each year.[149] The reasons for Cornwall's poor economic performance are complex and apparently persistent, but causes include its remoteness and poor transport links,[140] the decline of its traditional industries, such asmining, agriculture and fishing, the low-wealth generating capacity of tourism, relocation of higher skilled jobs to other parts of the South West, and lack of a concerted economic strategy (although use of European Regional Development Fund and European Social Fund monies have been deployed in an attempt at restructuring).[150]
TheMet Office, withcumulus humilis cloud; the Met OfficeCray XC40 (previously aPower 775) computer takes 4.8m weather observations per year;Robert FitzRoy, who founded it in 1872, made the first weather forecast on 1 August 1861 inThe Times; isobars were invented in the late 1800s; two bodies producewindspeed for pilots around the world - the Met Office and theNOAA
Merlin Entertainments (who ownSea Life Centres, and are the world's second largesttheme park operator afterDisney) is inPoole with a former division,Aquarium Technology, at the end of the A350 near theTwin Sails bridge.Ryvita is made inParkstone on the B3061.Fitness First, the largest privately owned health club group in the world, originated in Bournemouth and is now globally headquartered south of Fleet's Corner.Siemens Traffic Controls make most of the UK's traffic lights west near Fleet's Corner; the main traffic light in the UK is the Siemens Helios (the other make is thePeek Elite). North of Fleets Lane, south of the Wessex Gate Retail Park, isParvalux, on the A3049 on the West Howe Ind Estate inWallisdown, which makes gearedDC electric motors and gearboxes; further south isFaerch Plast (formerSealed Air, which makes trays for food) then Fitness First, andAeronautical & General Instruments; further north isLush, the cosmetics company, with HamworthyWärtsilä (Finnish), and Hamworthy Combustion (owned byKoch Industries), at the A349/A3049 junction inFleetsbridge, is an international engineering consultancy.
An aerial view ofGCHQ's headquarters, 2004; the biggest employer in Gloucestershire is the intelligence agencyGCHQ, who are based at 'The Doughnut', their headquarters[151] GCHQ has around 6,000 staff,MI5 has 4,000, and MI6 (Secret Intelligence Service) has 3,200; GCHQ is in the west of Cheltenham, off the A40 at theA4013 roundabout atFiddlers Green, and also has a site to the east atOakley
The entrance toUCAS in 2008; it has around 37,000 courses at 370 institutions; it is in the north of Cheltenham, near theracecourse inPrestbury at theA435/B4075 junction
The region covers much of the historical area ofWessex (omitting onlyHampshire andBerkshire), and all of the Celtic Kingdom ofDumnonia which comprised Cornwall, Devon, and parts of Somerset and Dorset. In terms of local government, it was divided after 1974 intoAvon, Cornwall,Devon, Dorset,Gloucestershire, Somerset, andWiltshire. Avon has since been abolished, and several mainly urban areas have becomeunitary authorities.
Although referendums had been planned on whether elected assemblies should be set up in some of the regions, none was planned in the South West. TheSouth West Regional Assembly (SWRA) was theregional assembly for the South West region, established in 1999. It was based inExeter andTaunton. The SWRA was a partnership of councillors from all local authorities in the region and representatives of various sectors with a role in the region's economic, social and environmental well-being. There was much opposition to the formation of the SWRA with critics saying it was an unelected unrepresentative and unaccountable "quango". The Regional Assembly was wound up in May 2009, and its functions taken on by theStrategic Leaders' Board (SLB) of South West Councils.[172]
The South West has a below average rate of attainment in GCSE (and equivalent) examinations, with the lowest regional performance in England from 2009 to 2012.[173] In 2012,South Hams had the highest percentage of pupils achieving 5 or more GCSEs at grade A*-C at 86%, whilstPurbeck had the lowest at 70%.[174]
There are also four higher education colleges. The region has the lowest number of people registered on higher education courses at FE colleges.
The University of Bristol receives the most total funding, according toHigher Education Funding Council for England figures for the 2006/2007 academic year, and the largest research grant—twice as big as any other in the region.[190] Bath has the next largest research grant, closely followed by Exeter. UWE and Plymouth get small research grants, but no other universities in the region receive much of a research grant. The University of Plymouth has the largest teaching grant.
Of the region's students (postgraduate and undergraduate), 50% are from the region, and around 40% from other regions. For full-time first degree students, 35% come from the region, around 22% are fromSouth East England, and 8% are from London. Including theEast of England, around 70% are fromSouthern England. 10% are from theMidlands, and 5% fromNorthern England. The main access for students from the north is theCross Country Route. Around 33% of native South West students stay in the region, with 18% going to the South East (around 60% stay in the south of England). Around 14% go to Wales, but very few go to the East of England. Access by road or rail to the East of England region is not straightforward, with around the same amount of travel as to Scotland. Many more native South West students are prepared to go to the north of England, than northern students are prepared to study in the South West. Once graduated, around 50% stay in the region, with 15% each going to London or the South East (around 80% find work in the south of England). Very few go elsewhere (especially the north of England); around 4% go to the West Midlands or Wales.[citation needed]
Parts of Wiltshire and Dorset, including the Salisbury, Bournemouth, Poole, Dorchester and Weymouth areas, receiveBBC South andITV Meridian fromSouthampton.
Hits Radio services forBristol (formerlySam FM) andBournemouth (previouslyFire Radio); each has a local afternoon drivetime programme, taking Hits Radio Network content at other times including breakfast.
Kiss (national service, formerlyKiss 101 for the Severn Estuary region).
Pirate FM (Cornwall), which has retained much of its local identity and programming.
Radio Exe (formerly Exeter FM) is an independent locally-run commercial station for Exeter. The station expanded to servePlymouth via theDAB digital radio platform in March 2022.[191]
Other teams play in the South divisions of theSouthern League, at levels 7 and 8 of theleague system. At levels 9 and 10, theWestern League covers the whole region except the most eastern parts, while theHellenic League extends into Gloucestershire and north Wiltshire, and theWessex League has teams from east Dorset and south Wiltshire. Also at level 10, theSouth West Peninsula League has teams from Cornwall and Devon.
^abWilliams, Robin; Williams, Romey (1992).The Somerset Levels. Bradford on Avon: Ex Libris Press.ISBN0-948578-38-6.
^Duff, K.L.; McKirdy, A.P.; Harley, M.J. (1985).New sites for old: A students guide to the geology of the east Mendips. Nature Conservancy Council.ISBN0-86139-319-8.
^The Cornish hill is usually accepted as the location mentioned in an entry in theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle for 835 (corrected by scholars to 838) which says thatEgbert king of theWest Saxons defeated an army ofVikings andCornish atHengestdun = "Stallion Hill". See, for example:Higham, Robert (2008).Making Anglo-Saxon Devon. Exeter: The Mint Press. p. 64.ISBN978-1-903356-57-9.. However, Hingston Down in Devon has also been proposed as the site.
^Lapidge, Michael (2001). "Swein Forkbeard",The Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Anglo-Saxon England. Ed. Michael Lapidge, John Blair, et al. London: Blackwell Publishing; p. 437.ISBN0-631-15565-1.
^"Eadmund". Archontology.org.Archived from the original on 27 September 2010. Retrieved5 July 2010.
^"Saxon Times".Britannia.Archived from the original on 12 November 2006. Retrieved29 October 2006.
^"Bridgwater Castle, Bridgwater".Somerset Historic Environment Record. Somerset County Council.Archived from the original on 3 October 2016. Retrieved12 October 2008.
^Lawrence, J.F. (revised and completed by Lawrence, J.C.) (2005).A History of Bridgwater. Chichester: Phillimore.ISBN1-86077-363-X. Chapter 8: "The Medieval Port of Bridgwater".
^Farr, Grahame (1954).Somerset Harbours. London: Christopher Johnson. p. 104.ISBN0-900131-15-2.{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
^Dunning, Robert (1992b).Bridgwater: History and Guide. Stroud: Alan Sutton. p. 193.ISBN0-7509-0192-6.
^Dunning, Robert (1992b).Bridgwater: History and Guide. Stroud: Alan Sutton. p. 193.ISBN0-7509-0192-6.
^Brace, Keith (1996).Portrait of Bristol. London: Robert Hale. pp. 13–15.ISBN0-7091-5435-6.
^Heal, Felicity (2003).Reformation in Britain and Ireland, p. 225. Oxford University Press.ISBN0-19-826924-2.
^Secor, Philip Bruce (1999).Richard Hooker: Prophet of Anglicanism, p. 13. Continuum International Publishing Group.ISBN0-86012-289-1.
^Willen, Diane (Autumn 1975). "Lord Russell and the Western Counties, 1539–1555".The Journal of British Studies.15 (1):26–45.doi:10.1086/385677.S2CID162954069.
^Bryant, Edward; Haslett, Simon (2002). "Was the AD 1607 coastal flooding event in the Severn estuary and Bristol channel due to a Tsunami?".Archaeology in the Severn Estuary.13:163–167.
^Bryant, Edward; Haslett, Simon (2004). "The AD 1607 Coastal Flood in the Bristol Channel and Severn Estuary: Historical Records from Devon and Cornwall (UK)".Archaeology in the Severn Estuary.15:81–89.
^Cocroft, Wayne D. (2000).Dangerous Energy: The archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture. Swindon: English Heritage.ISBN1-85074-718-0
^"South West Region"(PDF).Regional profiles of higher education 2007. HEFCE.Archived(PDF) from the original on 12 November 2009. Retrieved31 March 2010.
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