English Channel

Lore & Background

The Channel aided the United Kingdom in becoming a naval superpower, serving as a natural defence against invasions, such as in the Napoleonic Wars and in the Second World War. Roman sources named the Channel Oceanus Britannicus (the Ocean of the Britons). Other Latin names include Oceanus Gallicus (the Gaulish Ocean).

The term British Sea is still used by speakers of Cornish and Breton. Anglo-Saxon texts refer to the sea as Sūþsǣ (South Sea). The word 'channel' was first recorded in Middle English in the 13th century, borrowed from Old French.

By the middle of the fifteenth century, an Italian map named it Britanicus Oceanus nunc Canalites Anglie (Ocean of the Britons but now English Channel). By the eighteenth century, the name English Channel was in common usage in England. The French name La Manche has been used since at least the 17th century, referring to the sleeve shape of the Channel.

Reader's Guide

The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the English Channel. The Strait of Dover at the Channel's eastern end is its narrowest point, while its widest point lies between Lyme Bay and the Gulf of Saint Malo. It has an average depth of about 120 m at its widest; yet averages about 45 m between Dover and Calais. The Channel descends briefly to 180 m in the submerged valley of Hurd's Deep.

Major islands include the Isle of Wight and the Channel Islands. The coastline is deeply indented, especially on the French shore. The Channel acts as a funnel that amplifies the tidal range from less than a metre at sea in eastern places to more than 6 metres in the Channel Islands, the west coast of the Cotentin Peninsula and the north coast of Brittany in monthly spring tides. In the UK Shipping Forecast the Channel is divided into areas: Dover, Wight, Portland, Plymouth.