Geography of Somerset

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Somerset (red) and the other ceremonial counties of England

The geography of Somerset is the regional geography of the county of Somerset in South West England . It describes the area between the Bristol Channel and the counties of Bristol and Gloucestershire in the north, Wiltshire in the east, Dorset in the south and Devon in the west. The climate is mild and humid due to the proximity to the Atlantic Ocean and the prevailing westerly winds.

Somerset is a predominantly rural and agricultural county. The high elevations are formed by the Mendip Hills in the east, the Quantock Hills further west, north of the city of Taunton , and the Exmoor in the far west of the county, as well as the Blackdown Hills south of Taunton. Extending between the Mendips and the Quantocks is an extensive lowland area known as the Somerset Levels . The most important rivers in the county are the River Ax and River Brue in the northeast and the much longer River Parrett in the southwest of the levels, all of which flow into the Bristol Channel.

The relief of the landscape is largely determined by the rock composition of the subsoil. The mendips are made of carbonic limestones from the Carboniferous Limestone Soupergroup , in which karst gorges and caves have formed. The Exmoor is an extensive barren hill country and protected as a national park . The Somerset Levels have wetlands that are of international importance to bird life. The Quantocks and Blackdown Hills are Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty , and Steep Holm Island in the Bristol Channel is one of the many Sites of Special Scientific Interest .

The section of the M5 motorway between Exeter and Bristol crosses Somerset approximately in a north-south direction and is connected to a network of expressways (trunk roads). Several rail lines connect Somerset with other parts of the UK. Bristol Airport is in the northeast of the county. While some traditional industries have disappeared or are in decline, the region is still popular with tourists and known for its cheddar cheese and cider .

physical geography

The Somerset Levels with the surrounding mountain ranges

Somerset is a rural county in south-west England with an area of ​​4,171.4 km 2 . It borders the Bristol Channel to the north with Bristol and Gloucestershire at its eastern end. Somerset is bordered by Wiltshire to the east and Dorset to the southeast . It shares its south-western and short western borders with Devon . The county is divided into four main geological regions, which are underlain by rocks of the Silurian to Lower Cretaceous , whose special properties have an influence on the relief and landscape. The central region of the county consists of a vast plain, which is framed by several mountain ranges.

topography

Glastonbury Tor as seen from the south west.

The most important high areas in Somerset are the Mendip Hills in the northeast and the Quantock Hills further west, which are still relatively central . The Mendips extend in a southeast-northwest direction between Frome and Weston-super-Mare . They tower above the south adjoining Somerset Levels as well as the north adjoining valleys in the catchment area of ​​the River Avon such as the Chew Valley . The mendips are made of folded limestones from the Carboniferous Limestone Group , where chemical weathering has created canyons, arid valleys, sinkholes, caves, and various other karst phenomena . Geologically, the Mendips continue west to the Brean Down headland and reappear in the Bristol Channel in the form of the islands of Steep Holm and Flat Holm . While Steep Holm is part of Somerset, Flat Holm is the southernmost island of Wales .

The Quantock Hills stretch north of the Vale of Taunton Deane for about 25 kilometers in a north-westerly direction to Kilve and West Quantoxhead on the coast of the Bristol Channel. Its highest point is Wills Neck with a height of 384 m. The Quantocks consist of folded siliciclastic sedimentary rocks of the Devonian . They are characterized by a heather landscape with heather, gorse and ferns, old forests and pastureland, steep slopes and wooded valleys.

The Blackdown Hills are south of the Vale of Taunton on the southern border of the county and extend over to North Devon. They are made up of various types of sedimentary rocks belonging to the Upper Greensand Formation of the Lower Cretaceous and form a low plateau with steep flanks and deeply cut valleys in the north and gentler slopes in the south. The highest point is the summit of the 315 m high Staple Hill .

The Exmoor is a wide, barren highlands west of the Quantocks, mostly in Somerset and to a lesser extent in North Devon, the northern edge of which stretches along the coast of the Bristol Channel. Similar to the Quantocks, it is made up of siliciclastic sedimentary rocks from the Devonian. The coastline in the Exmoor area is characterized by rocky headlands, gorges, waterfalls and towering cliffs, which are among the highest coastal cliffs in Great Britain . Exmoor is also home to the county's highest point, the 520 m high Dunkery Beacon .

View from the Somerset Levels towards Glastonbury Tor

Halfway between the Quantocks and the Mendips, the low, narrow ridge of the Polden Hills , which is made up of carbonate rocks from the Triassic - Jurassic border area, runs almost parallel to them . On both sides of this ridge stretches a coastal plain with wetlands, the Somerset Levels . The plain, the height of which usually does not exceed five meters above sea level, covers an area of ​​around 700 km². The northeastern part of the lowlands is drained by the River Ax and River Brue, which flow parallel to each other, while this happens in the southwestern part by the River Parrett and its main tributary, the River Tone . The region at the lower reaches and estuary of the Parrett is traditionally referred to as Sedgemoor . In the northeast part of the Levels, about halfway between the Polden Hills and the Mendips, lies Glastonbury Tor , an island mountain made of relatively erosion-resistant sedimentary rocks from the Jurassic.

Waters

View from Glastonbury Tor to the Northern Somerset Levels

The north coast consists of flat and steep sections with surf platforms as well as beaches and sediment mud flats made of - especially in the western part - very fine-grained material. The largest coastal body of water is Bridgwater Bay , a wide bay in the southeast of the Bristol Channel, the only important port of which is at the mouth of the River Parrett . The main watercourses Ax , Brue and Parrett originate in the mountain ranges and flow mainly north and west to the Bristol Channel. The River Exe rises in the west of the county of Somerset, about 8 km south of the Bristol Channel, but flows more or less directly south to the English Channel .

The source of the River Ax is at Wells in the Wookey Hole Caves of the Mendip Hills. Coming out of the cave system, it first flows south through a gorge. At the village of Wookey it enters the northern levels, turns west and splits into two arms. A few kilometers below Wookey it swings to the northwest, and a few kilometers below this bend the two arms flow together again. The Ax maintains the north-westerly direction of flow along the south-western edge of the Mendips for the rest of its way. It immediately passes the small towns of Lower Weare and Loxton before flowing into Weston Bay at Brean Down . Below Loxton, the river forms the border with Bristol .

River Tone just above the confluence with the River Parrett

The River Brue flows through the Somerset Levels parallel to the northeast edge of the Polden Hills. It rises in the hills on the county's eastern border, flows through Bruton , where the River Pitt meets, and between the small towns of Glastonbury and Street . The underflow flows in an artificial bed and reaches the mouth of the River Parrett at Burnham-on-Sea on Bridgwater Bay. In the middle section of the river there are up to 7 m thick peat beds that go back to a previously existing high moor .

The River Parrett has its source in the hills around Chedington in Dorset and flows northwest past Aller and through the southern Somerset Levels to Bridgwater, before flowing into Bridgwater Bay via an estuary at Burnham-on-Sea . There is a tidal wave on the river similar to that of the Severn .

The two short source streams of the River Tone , the most important tributary of the Parrett, arise in the Brendon Hills at the eastern end of the Exmoor and are dammed at the foot of this ridge to the Clatworthy Reservoir . From there the clay first flows south and then turns east towards Taunton . After passing through the county capital, it flows into the Parrett above Bridgwater.

Slightly above sea level, the Somerset Levels are prone to flooding. They are drained by ditches and canals that flow into major rivers such as King's Sedgemoor Drain (River Parrett) just south of the Polden Hills. Ax and Brue are connected to one another via such weirs with drainage channels.

Urban areas

Somerset is largely rural. The two largest population concentrations are Bath and Weston-super-Mare ; in 1996 they were transferred to the two Unitary Authorities Bath and North East Somerset and North Somerset , but are still part of the ceremonial county. Due to the susceptibility of the Somerset Levels to flooding, the only larger towns are Glastonbury and Street , which are slightly elevated in the Polden Hills.

Other major towns in Somerset are Wells , the county seat of Taunton , Bridgwater , Yeovil and Frome. Wells is at the foot of the Mendip Hills and was built on the site of a Roman settlement; the city became important as a commercial center and is described as the smallest city in England because of the Wells Cathedral . Taunton lies on the banks of the River Tone and has been inhabited at least since Saxon times. The United Kingdom Hydrographic Office and regional representations of Defra and the Charity Commission for England and Wales are based here.

Bridgwater was once an important port; On the right in the picture is the Schütz Dunball, where King's Sedgemoor Drain flows into the River Parrett .

Bridgwater is located at the mouth of the River Parrett, about 15 kilometers from the coast, at the closest possibility to cross the estuary. The place is mentioned in the Domesday Book and was once an important port and trading center and is still an industrial city. Yeovil is located in the middle of the Yeovil Scarplands , a highland area on the southern border of the county and is also mentioned in the Domesday Book. The city is a focal point of the aviation and military industries, and the city's main employer is the helicopter manufacturer AgustaWestland . Frome is another, also ancient settlement at the foot of the Mendips on the River Frome . The city once relied on wool production, but metalworking and printing are now part of the economy, and many of the residents commute to Bristol and Bath.

geology

The oldest rock in Somerset is from the Silurian Mountains (443–419 million years ago). It consists of a sequence of lava , tuff , shale and mudstone in a narrow outcrop northeast of Shepton Mallet in the eastern Mendip Hills. Devonian rocks (419–359 million years ago) are found across most of the Exmoor, in the Quantocks, and in veins of the folded rock masses that make up the Mendip Hills.

The Cheddar Gorge was cut by water.

The limestone cliffs of the Mendip Hills date from the Carboniferous (359–299 million years ago) and rise abruptly from the flat landscape of the Somerset Levels. These limestone layers contain fossil crinoids (sea lilies), corals and brachiopods and thus bear witness to the abundant marine life in the shallow tropical seas that covered this area at the time. Some of these mountains rise more than 250 m above sea level, and from them arise flowing waters with a significant erosive force. The results of this erosion are, for example, the Cheddar Gorge and the caves there , because ravines and caves of considerable length and depth have formed in the soft limestone. Towards the end of the Permian (299–252 million years ago) and the Triassic (252–201 million years ago) the Variscan orogeny led to the uplift of several mountainous areas, including the Dartmoor and Exmoor, the Quantocks and the Mendips.

Most of the landscape is of the types predetermined by the underlying geology. These are the limestone of the Karst and Lias in the north, the central loamy valleys and wetlands, the oolite in the east and west, and the Devonian sandstone in the west. To the northeast of the Somerset Levels, the Mendips rise as moderately high limestone hills. The Mendips are the southernmost carbon limestone highlands in Great Britain. It consists of three large anticlines , each with a core of older Devonian sandstone and volcanic rocks from the Silurian. The area of ​​the central and western Mendip Hills was classified as an Area of ​​Outstanding Natural Beauty in 1972 and covers 198 km 2 . The predominant habitat in these areas is poor grassland , and there is some cultivated soil . The Somerset Coalfield is part of a coalfield that extends up to Gloucestershire. To the north of the Mendip Hills lies the Chew Valley and in the south, on the clay soil, there are wide valleys that allow dairy cattle to be kept and whose rivers approach the Somerset Levels.

climate

Like the rest of South West England , Somerset has a climate that is generally wetter and milder than most of England. The average annual temperature is around 10 ° C. The seasonal temperature differences are less extreme of the United Kingdom than in most part, due to the moderating influences of the adjacent marine areas. The summer months of July and August are the warmest with average maximum temperatures of around 21 ° C. Average lowest temperatures of 1 ° C or 2 ° C are common in winter. In summer, the Azores high affects the south-west of England, but convection clouds sometimes form which reduce the amount of sunshine. The annual hours of sunshine are slightly less than the regional average of 1,600 hours. The precipitation in autumn and winter is mostly caused by the North Atlantic lows , which bring in the saturated air from the southwest and west. In summer, solar radiation heats the surface, which leads to the generation of convection and the formation of showers and thunderstorms . Average rainfall is around 700mm / year, and eight to fifteen days of snow are typical. The strongest mean winds are from November to March and the weakest mean winds are from June to August. The prevailing wind direction is from the southwest.

Settlement history

Cadbury Castle

Evidence of early settlement are the remains of the Sweet Track , which was built with wood that was felled according to dendrological studies in the winter of 3807/3806 BC and some villages of the lowlands such as Glastonbury Lake Village and other hill castles and settlements from the Iron Age . From Roman times to 1908, the Mendip Hills were an important source of lead extraction. These areas were the center of a significant mining industry. This is reflected in the areas that are densely packed with shafts where lead ore was mined from veins near the surface. Calamine , manganese , iron , copper and barite were also mined.

Many mountain slopes, such as those at Cadbury Castle , Ham Hill and Maes Knoll, as well as sheltered valleys became easy-to-defend sites of early settlement and early trade. The large difference between the ebb and flow of the tide made inland easier access and was a key factor in the distribution of goods and products using rivers like Parrett and Avon. The tidal range of up to 13 m is the second highest in the world after the Bay of Fundy in the Canadian maritime provinces .

Land use

Peat extraction on Westhay Moor , 1905

A great variety of agricultural products thrive in much of the areas bordering the moors. Somerset is a predominantly field and dairy county; the cheddar is a nationally known product. The predominant crops are wheat , barley , oats and root crops as well as extensive orchards for the production of apples as a raw product for cider . The green landscape offers good grazing grounds for cattle. The numbers of cattle and sheep are significant, and Exmoor ponies and red deer roam the open moorland to the west of the county. Coal was once mined in the county too; Somerset Coalfield stretched from Cromhall to the Mendips and from Nailsea to Bath. The last two mines at Kilmersdon and Writhlington closed in 1973. The raw materials mined here included ores of iron, lead and zinc, as well as shale and fuller's earth . Limestone is mined to make building material for buildings, and other rocks are used for road construction and as a component for the production of concrete . In other parts of the county, sand , gravel and peat are mined.

The Somerset Levels between the ancient towns of Glastonbury and Wells were traditionally used for the extraction of willow twigs, which for centuries were used to make furniture, baskets and fences. Willows have been cut, processed, and used here since humans came to the area. Fragments of wicker baskets have been found near Glastonbury Lake Village which were used in the construction of dams in the Iron Age . Wicker basket production is flourishing in the protected moorland and there is a visitor center in Stoke St Gregory .

There is little industry in the county aside from agriculture and its dependent industries, including cider, cheese, and yogurt production and peat extraction . These include the manufacture of helicopters, certain heavy industry for national defense, mining and the quarrying of gravel and sand, the manufacture of bricks and roof tiles, and the manufacture of boots and shoes, but many of these industries are on the decline. Tourism is now one of the main sources of income in Somerset.

Protected areas

Wild in Exmoor National Park

The Gordano Valley, west of the Port of Bristol, sweeps past the coastal towns of Portishead and Clevedon and has been classified as a National Nature Reserve , and much of it can be seen by travelers on the southbound carriageway of the M5. The Chew Valley is a wooded valley in the same area. The Avon Valley east of Bristol leads to Bath and on into Wiltshire. The western end of the Mendip Hills was designated as the Area of ​​Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) in 1972 under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 . The Blackdown Hills were classified as AONB in ​​1991 and the Quantock Hills in 1956; the latter classification was the first such classification in England under this law.

The Somerset Levels are a wetland of international importance, with a large number of waders wintering here.

Exmoor is a national park, 71% Somerset and 29% Devon. The area of ​​the national park includes the Brendon Hills and the Vale of Porlock . It has an area of ​​692.8 km 2 of open and hilly moorland and the park has 55 km of coastline.

Steep Holm is protected as a nature reserve and Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). A large number of seabirds make their home or rest on the island, especially herring gulls (Larus argentatus) and black-backed gulls (Larus fuscus) , but the island is primarily protected for botanical reasons; it is the only site in the UK where wild peonies grow.

Local government

The ceremonial county of Somerset is divided into five districts and two unitary authorities (whose councils combine the functions of the councils of a county and a district). These five districts are West Somerset , South Somerset , Taunton Deane , Mendip and Sedgemoor, and the two Unitary Authoritys are North Somerset and Bath and North East Somerset .

traffic

Bristol Airport is located in North Somerset

Somerset has approximately 6,530 kilometers of road network. The M5 motorway runs diagonally from northeast to southwest through the county. Other thoroughfares include the A39 , A303 , A37 , A38 , A358 and A361 , but many of the rural towns can only be reached via narrow country roads.

The West of England Main Line connects London Waterloo and Basingstoke with Exeter via Yeovil Junction and the Bristol to Exeter Line , which is part of the Great Western Main Line . The Heart of Wessex Line from Bristol Temple Meads to Weymouth and the Reading to Taunton Line serve other parts of the county. The main railway company in the region is the Great Western Railway , other operators are South West Trains and CrossCountry . The West Somerset Railway connects Bishops Lydeard and Minehead and is the longest museum railway in England.

Bristol Airport is on the A38 in North Somerset and has domestic and international flight connections.

supporting documents

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h 11: Santa Catarina - Thomas à Kempis . In: EF Bozman (Ed.): Everyman's Encyclopedia . JM Dent & Sons, 1967, pp. 295-296.
  2. ↑ Mendip Hills Natural Area profile ( English ) English Nature. S. January 20, 1998. Archived from the original on March 14, 2013. Retrieved on November 27, 2016.
  3. ↑ a b c d Fullard, Harold (Ed.): Philips' Modern School Atlas ( English ). George Philip and Son, 1973, ISBN 0-540-05278-7 , p. 24.
  4. ^ The Quantocks ( English ) English Nature. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  5. ↑ Blackdown Hills ( English ) In: Landscape . Natural England. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  6. ^ Geology ( English ) Exmoor National Park. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  7. ↑ Exmoor National Park Facts and Figures ( English ) Exmoor National Park. Retrieved October 27, 2016.
  8. ↑ What are the Somerset Levels? (English) . In: BBC News, Somerset , February 7, 2014. Retrieved November 27, 2016. 
  9. ^ A b A History of the County of Somerset: Volume 8: The Poldens and the Levels ( English ) British History Online. 2004. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  10. ^ The problem of "county confusion" - and how to resolve it ( English ) County-Wise. Retrieved October 6, 2016.
  11. ↑ a b c David Else: Somerset . Lonely Planet, 2010, ISBN 978-1-74104-491-1 , pp. 339-346.
  12. ^ Charity Commission for England and Wales ( English ) Megabiz.co.uk. Archived from the original on October 9, 2016. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  13. ^ Helicopters ( English ) Leonardo. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  14. ↑ Frome Community Plan ( English ) Mendip District Council. Archived from the original on October 9, 2016. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  15. ↑ David Roche: Moons Hill Quarry, Stoke St Michael, Shepton Mallet ( English ) In: Geodiversity Audit of Active Aggregate Quarries . Somerset County Council. 2004. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  16. ^ Geology of Exmoor ( English ) Everything Exmoor. Archived from the original on October 19, 2007. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  17. ^ A b Hardy, Peter: The Geology of Somerset . Ex Libris, 1999, ISBN 978-0-948578-42-7 .
  18. ↑ PW Scott, Colin Malcolm Bristow; Geological Society of London: Industrial Minerals and Extractive Industry Geology . Geological Society of London, 2002, ISBN 978-1-86239-099-7 , pp. 363-364.
  19. ↑ Somerset Geology ( English , DOC) In: Good Rock Guide . Archived from the original on October 9, 2011. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  20. ↑ a b Frequently Asked Questions ( English ) In: Mendip Hills AONB . Archived from the original on February 12, 2009. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  21. ↑ a b Somerset Minerals Plan ( English ) Somerset County Council. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  22. ^ A b c d South West England: climate ( English ) Met Office. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  23. ↑ The day the Sweet Track was built ( English ) In: New Scientist . June 16, 1990. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  24. ↑ Shirley Toulson: The Mendip Hills: A Threatened Landscape . Victor Gollancz, London 1984, ISBN 0-575-03453-X .
  25. ↑ GB Gruffy Nature Reserve ( English ) Somerset Wildlife Trust. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  26. ↑ AW Coysh, EJ Mason, V. Waite: The Mendips . Robert Hale Ltd, London 1977, ISBN 0-7091-6426-2 .
  27. ^ JW Gough: The mines of Mendip . David & Charles, 1967.
  28. ^ Edited by William Page: RW Dunning (Eds.): Andersfield, Cannington, and North Petherton Hundreds (Bridgwater and Neighboring Parishes) , Volume VI. Oxford University Press for the University of London Institute of Historical Research, Oxford 1992, ISBN 0-19-722780-5 .
  29. ↑ Rod Fitzhugh: Bridgwater and the River Parrett: in old photographs . Alan Sutton Publishing, 1993, ISBN 0-7509-0518-2 .
  30. ↑ Severn Estuary Barrage ( English , PDF) In: UK Environment Agency . May 2006. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  31. ^ Marjorie A. Chan, Allen William Archer: Extreme Depositional Environments: Mega End Members in Geologic Time . Geological Society of America , Boulder, Colorado 2003, ISBN 0-8137-2370-1 , p. 151.
  32. ^ Coast: Bristol Channel ( English ) In: BBC . Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  33. ↑ A Brief History of the Bristol and Somerset Coalfield ( English ) In: The Mines of the Bristol and Somerset Coalfield . Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  34. ↑ a b c Willows and Wetlands Visitor Center ( English ) Visit Somerset. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  35. ↑ Somerset Levels ( English ) In: BBC Radio 4 - Open Country . Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  36. ^ Employers in Somerset ( English ) In: Somerset Chamber of Commerce . Archived from the original on September 4, 2006. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  37. ↑ Gordano Valley NNR ( English ) Natural England. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  38. ↑ About the AONB ( English ) Mendip Hills AONB. Archived from the original on February 20, 2015. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  39. ↑ Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) ( English ) Somerset County Council. Archived from the original on December 30, 2016. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  40. ↑ Moor Facts ( English ) Exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk. October 19, 1954. Archived from the original on July 16, 2011. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  41. ↑ Citation - Steep Holm ( English , PDF) In: English Nature . Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  42. ^ Stanley Lewis: Birds of the Island of Steep Holm . In: British Birds . xxx, 1936, pp. 219-223.
  43. ^ Steep Holm Island, Somerset ( English ) The Wildlife Trusts. Archived from the original on July 12, 2015. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  44. ^ The Avon (Structural Change) Order 1995 ( English ) In: HMSO . Archived from the original on June 20, 2010. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  45. ↑ a b About The Service ( English ) In: Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue . Archived from the original on June 23, 2010. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  46. ↑ a b A Concise Road Atlas of Britain ( English ). AA Publishing, 2016, ISBN 978-0-7495-7743-8 , pp. 16-17.
  47. ↑ West Somerset Railway ( English ) Visit Somerset. Retrieved September 10, 2016.