The Wash | |
|---|---|
 Sunset in Hunstanton | |
 The Wash, showing the position of the towns and major villages that are of significance and the neighbouring areas. | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Country | England |
| Regions | East of England East Midlands |
| Counties | Lincolnshire Norfolk |
| Districts | East Lindsey Borough of Boston South Holland King's Lynn and West Norfolk |
| Time zone | UTC±0 (Greenwich Mean Time) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+1 (British Summer Time) |
The Wash is a shallow natural rectangularbay and multipleestuary on the east coast ofEngland in theUnited Kingdom. It is an inlet of theNorth Sea and is the largest multiple estuary system in the UK, as well as being the largest natural bay in England and is the outflow for the riversWitham,Welland,Nene and theGreat Ouse. It is also one of the most important places of conservation in Europe, with several nature reserves located within this area.
The coastline is partly inLincolnshire and partly inNorfolk. The Lincolnshire side forms part of the only coastline of theEast Midlands region whilst theNorfolk side forms the north-west corner of theEast Anglian region. The coastline stretches fromGibraltar Point just south of the seaside town ofSkegness to Gore Point near the village ofHolme-next-the-Sea, just east of the seaside town ofHunstanton inNorfolk. These two points are over 75 miles (121 km) from each other by road, but only eleven and a half miles (18.5 km) by sea.
The bay is made up of multiple estuaries, marshland, deep water channels (in particular the Boston and Lynn Deeps), shifting shallow water channels which are all surrounded by multiple sandbanks.
There are several large settlements near its coastline, the largest is the town ofKing's Lynn in Norfolk followed by the two slightly smaller towns ofBoston in Lincolnshire andWisbech inCambridgeshire. These are the three maininland ports in the Wash area; a fourth smaller port is also available for shipping on the River Nene atSutton Bridge and a small marina for pleasure craft is also accessible on the tidal River Welland atFosdyke Bridge. Nearby, on either side of the Wash at almost opposite ends to each other, are the seaside towns ofSkegness which is located on the top of the Lincolnshire side just north ofGibraltar Point andHunstanton on the top of the Norfolk side north of the nearby royal estate ofSandringham.
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The Wash makes a large indentation in the coastline ofEastern England that separates Lincolnshire from the curved coast ofEast Anglia. It is a large bay with three roughly straight sides meeting at right angles, each about 15 miles (25 kilometres) in length.
The western coast, which is roughly parallel to the east coast, runs fromGibraltar Point to the mouth of the River Welland just north east of the village ofFosdyke, and is entirely within Lincolnshire. The southern coast from Fosdyke to King's Lynn runs roughly north-west to south-east, connecting these two river mouths, and is punctuated by the mouth of a third river, the River Nene, which flows into the Wash just north ofSutton Bridge with the county boundary between Lincolnshire and Norfolk (which is also the regional boundary between theEast Midlands and theEast of England) meeting just beyond this point before it continues eastwards to Ongar Hill where it meets the mouth of theRiver Great Ouse.
The eastern coast of the Wash is entirely within Norfolk, and initially extends from the mouth of the River Great Ouse just north of the town of King's Lynn north eastwards towards the small village ofWolferton close to theSandringham estate before heading northwards fromSnettisham to the low lands ofHeacham, the town of Hunstanton, and the village ofOld Hunstanton, before reaching its northern extremity at Gore Point nearHolme-next-the-Sea, where the Norfolk coast turns eastwards.
Inland from the Wash the land is flat, low-lying and often marshy: these arethe Fens of Lincolnshire,Cambridgeshire and Norfolk.
Deposits of sediment andland reclamation have altered the coastline of the Wash markedly in historical times. Several towns once on the coast of the Wash (notably King's Lynn) are now some distance inland. Much of the Wash itself is very shallow, with several large sandbanks, such as Breast Sand, Bulldog Sand, Roger Sand and Old South Sand, which are exposed at low tide, especially along the south coast. These form hazards to navigation.[1]
Three commercial shipping lane channels lead inland from the Wash:
both via the large channel known as the Lynn Deeps.
Each of the three shipping lanes hasmaritime pilot stations to guide and navigate incoming and outgoing cargo ships. Large boats can now only access theRiver Welland as far asFosdyke Bridge since the replacement of the old swing bridge which carries theA17 road over the river with a fixed bridge in 1990 following the decline ofSpalding as a port during the first part of the 20th century leaving only very small craft being able to use this route.
A re-survey of the coastline of the Wash carried out by the Ordnance Survey in 2011 revealed that an estimated additional 3,000 acres (1,200 hectares) on its coastline had been created byaccretion since previous surveys between 1960 and 1980.
The Wash varies enormously in water temperature throughout the year. Winter temperatures are brought near freezing by the cold North Sea flows. Summer water temperatures can reach 20–23 °C (68–73 °F) after prolonged high ambient air temperature and sun. This effect, which typically happens in the shallow areas around beaches and often only in pockets of water, is exaggerated by the large shelteredtidal reach.
The Wash is made up of extensivesalt marshes, major inter-tidal banks of sand and mud, shallow waters and deep channels. As understanding of the importance of the natural marshes has increased in the 21st century, the seawall atFreiston has been breached in three places to increase the salt-marsh area and provide extrahabitat forbirds, particularlywaders, and as a natural flood-prevention measure. The extensive creeks in the salt marsh and the vegetation that grows there help to dissipate wave energy, so enhancing the protection afforded to land behind the salt marsh. This is an example of the recent exploration of the possibilities ofsustainablecoastal management by adoptingsoft engineering techniques, rather than with dykes and drainage. The same scheme includes newbrackishlagoon habitat.
On the eastern side of the Wash, low chalk cliffs, with a noted stratum of red chalk, are found at Hunstanton. Thegravel pits (lagoons) found atSnettisham RSPB reserve are an important roost for waders at high tide. This Special Protection Area (SPA) borders onto the North Norfolk Coast Special Protection Area. To the north-west, the Wash extends to Gibraltar Point, another SPA.
The partly confined nature of the Wash habitats, combined with ample tidal flows, allowsshellfish to breed, especiallyshrimp,cockles andmussels. Some water birds such asoystercatchers feed on shellfish. It is also a breeding area forcommon tern, and a feeding area formarsh harriers. Migrating birds such asgeese,duck and wading birds come to the Wash in large numbers to spend the winter, with an average total of around 400,000 birds present at any one time.[2] It has been estimated that some two million birds a year use the Wash for feeding and roosting during their annual migrations.
The Wash is recognised as being internationally important for 17 species of bird. They includepink-footed goose, dark-belliedbrent goose,shelduck,pintail,oystercatcher,ringed plover,grey plover,golden plover,lapwing,knot,sanderling,dunlin,black-tailed godwit,bar-tailed godwit,curlew,redshank andturnstone.[2]
At the end of thelatest glaciation, and while the sea level remained lower than it is today, the rivers Witham, Welland,Glen, Nene and Great Ouse joined into a large river.
The deep valley of the Wash was formed, not by an interglacial river, but by ice of theWolstonian andDevensian stages flowing southwards up the slope represented by the modern coast and formingtunnel valleys, of which theSilver Pit is one of many. This process gave the Silver Pit its depth and narrowness. When the tunnel valley was free of ice and seawater, it was occupied by the river. This kept it free of sediment, unlike most tunnel valleys. Since the sea flooded it, the valley seems to have been kept open by tidal action. During theIpswichian Stage, the Wash River probably flowed by way of the site of the Silver Pit, but the tunnel valley would not have been formed at this stage, as its alignment seems inconsistent.
InRoman Britain, embankments were built around the Wash's margins to protect agricultural land from flooding. However, they fell into disrepair after the Roman withdrawal in 407 CE.
From 865 to about 1066, the Wash was used by theVikings as a major route to invadeEast Anglia andMiddle England.Danes established themselves inCambridge in 875. Before the 12th century, when drainage and embankment efforts led by monks began to separate the land from the estuarine mudflats, the Wash was a tidal part ofthe Fens that reached as far asCambridge andPeterborough.
Local people put up fierce resistance against theNormans for some time after the 1066Conquest.
The name Wash may have been derived fromOld Englishwāse meaning mud, slime or ooze. The wordWasche is mentioned in the popular dictionaryPromptorium parvulorum of about 1440 as a water or aford (vadum). A chronicle states thatKing Edward VI passedthe Wasshes as he visited the town ofKing's Lynn in 1548. By then, documents began to refer to theWaashe orWysche, but only for the tidal sands and shoals of the rivers Welland and Nene. Sixteenth-century scholars identified the Wash as theÆstuarium Metuonis ("The Reaping/Mowing/Cutting-Off Estuary") mentioned byPtolemy in Roman times. They claimed the word was still in occasional use.William Camden characterizedThe Washes as "a very large arme" of the "German Ocean" (theNorth Sea), "at every tide and high sea covered all with water, but when the sea ebbeth, and the tide is past, a man may pass over it as on dry land, but yet not without danger", asKing John learned not without his loss (see below). Inspired by Camden's account,William Shakespeare mentioned theLincolne-Washes in his stage playKing John (1616). During the 17th and 18th centuries the name Wash came to be used for the estuary itself.
Drainage and reclamation works around the Wash continued until the 1970s. Large areas of salt marsh were progressively enclosed by banks and converted to agricultural land. The Wash is now surrounded by artificial sea defences on all three landward sides. In the 1970s, two large circular banks were built in the Terrington Marsh area of the Wash, as part of an abortive attempt to turn the entire estuary into a fresh water reservoir. The plan failed, not least because the banks were built using mud dredged from the salt marsh, which salinated fresh water stored there.
From 13th century the market town and seaport ofBishop's Lynn became the first member trading depot (Kontor) in theKingdom of England of theHanseatic League of ports. During the 14th century, Lynn ranked as the most important port in England, when sea trade with Europe was dominated by the League. It still retains two medieval Hanseatic League warehouses: Hanse House built in 1475 and Marriott's Warehouse.
KingJohn of England is reported to have lost part of hisbaggage train at the Wash in 1216.[3] According to contemporary accounts, the king travelled fromSpalding, Lincolnshire, toBishop's Lynn, Norfolk, but fell ill and opted to return. While John took a longer route viaWisbech, his baggage train—comprising horse-drawn wagons—was sent across the mouth of the Wellstream, a passage navigable only at low tide. The convoy moved too slowly to avoid the incoming tide, resulting in the loss of several wagons.
However, researcher Alan Marshall, using data from theRoyal Greenwich Observatory and by theBidston Observatory inBirkenhead, contended that the tide had in fact been retreating. Through analysis of the reclaimed landscape, Marshall proposed that a reverse tidal surge—where the ebbing tide accelerated unexpectedly—was responsible for the incident.[4][5] Scholars disagree on whether the royal regalia were among the baggage lost in the event.[6] Some evidence indicates that the king’s ceremonial items remained intact after the journey.[7] A later tradition suggests that John may have deposited his jewels in Lynn as security for a loan and subsequently arranged for their "loss", though this theory is generally regarded as apocryphal.
The loss is said to have occurred nearSutton Bridge on theRiver Nene. John was recorded as staying the night of 12–13 October 1216 atSwineshead Abbey before continuing toNewark-on-Trent, where he died of illness on 19 October.[8]
The name of the river changed as a result of redirection of theGreat Ouse in the 17th century.
Bishop's Lynn was renamed as King's Lynn in the 16th century as a result of KingHenry VIII's establishment of theChurch of England.
AMinistry of DefenceAir Weapons Range (AWR) Danger Area, supporting academic and operational exercises, lies along part of the Wash coastline. This designated zone is used by theRoyal Air Force,Army Air Corps, andNATO allies for bombing and air weapons training.RAF Holbeach, active since 1926, was originally part of the formerRAF Sutton Bridge station. Another range situated on the Wash—RAF Wainfleet—was active from 1938 until its decommissioning in 2010.
Sailing from out of the South Lincolnshire Fens into the Wash, especially for shell-fishing, is traditionally known locally as "going down below". The origin of the phrase is unclear.[9]
The bay is made up of multiple estuaries, marshland, deep water channels (in particular the Boston and Lynn Deeps), and shifting shallow water channels which are all surrounded by multiple sandbanks. Due to these features, it is claimed to be one of the most challenging and hazardous places for sea navigation in the world. It is fed by the riversWitham,Welland,Nene andGreat Ouse. It is a 620 km2 (240 sq. mi.) biologicalSite of Special Scientific Interest.[10][11] It is also aNature Conservation Review site, Grade I,[12] aNational Nature Reserve,[13] aRamsar site,[14] aSpecial Area of Conservation[15] and aSpecial Protection Area.[16] It is in theNorfolk CoastArea of Outstanding Natural Beauty[17] and part of it is the SnettishamRoyal Society for the Protection of Birds nature reserve.[18]
The four most distinctive man-made landmarks that can be seen from the bay are:
TheOuter Trial Bank, a remnant of a 1970s experiment, lies some two miles (three kilometres) off the Lincolnshire coast near the mouth of the River Nene.
The most notable nature feature isHunstanton Cliffs, comprisingstrata of orange, red and whitechalk.
In 1934 a proposal was made, supported by racing driverMalcolm Campbell, to build a 15-mile-long (24-kilometre) race track on reclaimed land from Boston toGibraltar Point, nearSkegness. It would have been used as a road to Skegness when there was no racing. There was also to be a long lake for boat racing inside the track loop. The financial straits in the 1930s prevented the project from proceeding.
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