Sandown
| Sandown | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Coordinates | 50 ° 39 ′ N , 1 ° 9 ′ W | ||
| OS National Grid | SZ600843 | ||
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| Residents | 5299 (status: 1991) | ||
| administration | |||
| Post town | SHANKLIN | ||
| ZIP code section | PO36 | ||
| prefix | 01983 | ||
| Part of the country | England | ||
| region | South East England | ||
| Ceremonial county | Isle of Wight | ||
| Unitary authority | Isle of Wight | ||
| British Parliament | Isle of Wight | ||
| Website: City Council | |||
Sandown is a seaside resort and civil parish on the east coast of the Isle of Wight in southern England with around 5,000 inhabitants. It's north of Shanklin . Both places are on Sandown Bay , a bay in the English Channel . The coastline is characterized by long sandy beaches.
Geography and surroundings
In the northern part of Sandown Bay there is an underwater occurrence of petrified trees (English petrified forest ), some of which protrude from the water at extreme low tide.
Northeast of Sandown lies Culver Down with public chalk cliffs (in southern England chalk downlands specified), mainly owned and managed by the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty (short National Trust ) are. Northwest of Sandown inland are the Sandown Levels , one of the few freshwater wetlands on the Isle of Wight. The local nature reserve Alverstone Mead is a popular place for bird watching. West of Sandown is Borthwood Copse , a four-mile- long wooded area owned by the National Trust and formerly a royal hunting ground.
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history
Originally, Sandown was only of military importance due to its extensive sandy beaches, which were a potential landing place for an invasion. In Sandown was the former Sandown Castle , built by Henry VIII from 1544 . Because it was built too close to the sea, it suffered badly from erosion and was abandoned before the construction of what is now Sandown. Today it is the Sandham Grounds Public Park between Fort Street and Culver Parade. Ruins should still be visible at low tide. Other forts in the city are the Diamond Fort (named for its layout) and the Granite Fort, which is now used as a zoo .
One of the earliest civilian buildings was Villakin , a vacation home owned by radical politician John Wilkes in the 18th century when the fashion of seaside holidays slowly emerged. Initially reserved for the rich only, the expansion of railways and excursion steamers made such trips increasingly affordable. The sandy beaches and the comparatively sunny weather made it possible for Sandown to become a seaside resort in the Victorian era, as did other places on the Isle of Wight. The development of the seaside resorts favored the expansion of the railway, so that a connection was created to Ventnor in the south and to Ryde on the north side of the island. Sandown Railway Station is now on the island's only active railway line, connecting Ryde and Shanklin .
Culture and sights
Sandown is home to Christ Church and the Church of St. John the Evangelist , both Anglican churches.
There are a number of Victorian and Edwardian hotels on Sandown's esplanade. There is a large entertainment center on Sandown Pier . Further north is the Isle of Wight Zoo (also known as the Sandown Zoo ), which specializes in keeping tigers. There is an 18-hole golf course to the west inland.
traffic
Sandown is on the Island Line Railway . Buses of the company Southern Vectis drive Sandown to the routes 2 , 3 and 8 at. There are direct bus connections to Bembridge , Newport , Ryde , Shanklin and Ventnor, among others .
Town twinning
- Tonnay-Charente , Charente-Maritime department , western France
- St. Pete Beach , Florida , USA
Sandown-related personalities
- John Wilkes , former Mayor of London, owned a house in Sandown and stayed here regularly.
- Lewis Carroll spent long vacations in Sandown, where he first met Gertrude Chataway, who inspired him to write The Hunting of the Snark .
- Charles Darwin began his "abstract", which later became the work Origin of Species , at the King's Head Hotel in Sandown in July 1858 and moved to Shanklin's Norfolk House Hotel in July, where he stayed for two weeks. Darwin came back to the Isle of Wight several times.
- Richard Strauss spent summer vacations at the Ocean Hotel in 1902 and 1903 and worked on his Sinfonia domestica .
- Members of the bands Level 42 and The Bees attended Sandown High School.
- Karl Marx visited the Sandown Library to read the Isle of Wight County Press.
- Victoria Cross bearer Eric Charles Twelves Wilson was born in Sandown.
various
The television series Tiger Island reports on the life of tigers in the Isle of Wight Zoo.
NB Sandown gambling is not named after the city, but after the Sandown Park racecourse near London.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Darwin Correspondence Online Database ( Memento of the original from March 29, 2007 in the web archive archive.today ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
