Prehistoric Islands An Barrow Airships Key Dates Prehistoric nds inc. axe heads have been discovered around the Islands of The expansion of Barrow-in- was due to three men: Lord Cavendish, 7th 1911 Britains rst rigid airship HMA 1 ‘Mayy’, built in Barrow’s Cavendish 1127 is established; The First Savignac Monastery in The Islands of Barrow Barrow, many on and Sandscale Haws. The coast oered stone age Duke of Devonshire (the nancier), Henry Schneider (local iron ore magnate) & Dock. 1134-1342 Furness Abbey becomes 2nd most powerful Cistercian Abbey in England communities, a wide range of foods and materials, often gathered during the James Ramsden (managing director of the Company). 1487 Lambert Simnal Lands on & Claims English Throne hard winter months. It also oered opportunities for trade & communication via HMA 1 Mayy (named as such because “she may y” famously broke in two 1839 Henry Schneider a speculator & dealer in iron arrives during a test ight over but important lessons were learnt. sea-borne trac. Indeed, for much of prehistory, the sea was a link to the wider Ramsden built a ne house (now demolished) in Abbots wood above Furness Abbey. 1843 Only 32 dwellings & two pubs in the Hamlet of Barrow Later designs for rigid & non rigid airships were built by H.B. Pratt & Barnes world, rather than a barrier to it. Perhaps it is no surprise that the earliest cereal Some of Ramsden’s possessions & furniture were given to the Town Hall. Ramsden’s 1846 Furness Railway built by Schneider & James Ramsden to transport iron ore & slate Pictorial Wallis for the Airship Dept. in a new hangar on Walney Island. (now crops so far recovered from , were found in Barrow-in-Furness, dating statue can be seen in Ramsden Square. 1851 Schneider discovers massive iron ore deposits near demolished) from around 5800 years ago. 1859 Schneider builds furnaces in the town, with John Hannay. (Pictured below) Schneider lived at Bels eld House beside Lake Windermere. 1865 World’s Largest Bessemer Process Steelworks is established. We know there was trade between and England at that time, He left home each morning on his personal steam launch SL Barnes Wallis’s Walney airships culminated in the HMA R80 which began ight 1871 Barrow Shipbuilding Company formed on Barrow Island. and utilising the as a stop-o point within the , Esperance, (on which he’d have breakfast), & cross the lake to trials in 1920. R80 was the rst fully streamlined British airship. (more overleaf) B 3 Walney Island may well have been an important link for these early Lakeside. Then a train with a private carriage on the railway 1881 Barrow’s population had reached 47,000. (Current population is around 72,000) he helped to build to his oce in Barrow. 1900 HIJMS Mikasa Launched; The most Historically important Japanese Battleship sea-farer’s. 1911 Maiden ight of the rst seaplane to be own in the UK takes place 1901 First British Naval ‘HMS Holland 1’ Launched from Cavendish Dock. It is also the rst seaplane to be tted with twin oats. 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 The pebble beaches of the west coast of Cumbria also oered a Schneider’s steam launch is preserved in Windermere 1911 Maiden ight of the rst seaplane to be own in the UK: A Prototype AVRO Type D I S L A N D S Steamboat Museum. It became the model for Captain Flint's valuable source of int, washed up from the bed of the Irish Sea, in an During the development of HMA 1: ‘Mayy’, under construction in its oating 1911 First British Rigid Airship Built on Cavendish Dock houseboat in Swallows and Amazons. He had other homes area where it is otherwise a scarce resource. hangar in Cavendish Dock a group of naval ocers purchase & modify an Avro 1917 HMA 23 British Rigid Airship Built on Walney Island Barrow Island in the area; at , next to the lifeboat station (now a Type D biplane, which is used to evaluate a number of dierent oat designs hotel) and at Oak Lea, near Sowerby Woods, Barrow which 1919 First British Sea-going Concrete Ship; ‘Armistice’ is Launched O 4 F 4 R 1 Dova Haw tted to the aircraft's standard undercarriage. burnt down in mysterious circumstances in 1903. 1920 First British fully Streamlined Airship HMA R80 Built on Walney Island: Barnes Wallis 1936 Hindenburg Zeppelin ies over Barrow gathering intelligence prior to WW2

Devonshire Dock Devonshire

HMA 1 Leaving Hangar Cavendish Dock 1911 Hangar Cavendish 1 Leaving HMA 1943 Bouncing Bombs built by Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness to a Barnes Wallis design A statue of Schneider stands in Schneider Square near the R 1 Headin Haw Town Hall. Furness Railway HMA R80 Flight Tests 1920 1943 X Craft X5 Midget built to Attack Tirpitz (later subject of 1955 movie) 1946 Wilbert Awdry writes Thomas the Tank Engine Stories based on Barrow’s Islands Piel Island 1953 HMS Hermes Launched; Aircraft Carrier; former Royal Navy Flagship Ramsey Island 1956 1,155,076 tonnes of Iron Ore alone is Exported through the of Barrow O 4 Roa Island 1960 First British Nuclear Submarine HMS Dreadnought Launched. 1960 Oriana Cruise Liner Launched. The last Orient Steam Navigation Company Ocean Liner 1965 British Admiral 103,000 ton Oil Tanker Launched; then The Worlds Largest Ship W 4 Walney Island 1975 First British Woman Principal Lighthouse Keeper: Peggy Braithwaite, Walney Island 1977 HMS Invincible Launched; Aircraft Carrier; former Flagship of the Royal Navy 1986 Hall, Tallest building in Cumbria: 2nd largest Facility of its type in Europe 2001 HMS Albion Launched; Current Flagship; Royal Navy

2007 HMS Astute Launched: The most advanced British Nuclear Submarine ever built HIJMS Mikasa Launch: 1900 (see overleaf) Britains rst sea plane, Cavendish Dock 1911 Cavendish Britains rst sea plane, Barrow Ironworks Est. 1859 Bouncing Bomb Test 1943: Designer, Barnes Wallis Cavendish Tenement Flats Barrow Island

Net Sinker or Late Neolithic mace head Piel Island: Piel & Ship Inn as seen when approaching by sea Furness Abbey 6500-4500 BC Found in Barrow Park 1910

Piel Island Industry & Nature Barnes Wallis

In the Middle Ages, Barrow was a small hamlet within the Parish of The Islands of Barrow feature many little-known & exciting locations where, Industry & Nature Dalton-in-Furness. collide. Furness Abbey was the second most rich & powerful Cistercian Abbey in the country Industry and Nature XT5 Midget Submarine being ‘X Craft’ Dock 1944. Devonshire into lowered (after Fountains), & it controlled the local economy.

The arti cially warm waters of Cavendish Dock (heated by the power station) encourage migrating Dock Devonshire 2010 and above birds to overwinter. Ponds in former mine workings have become thriving wildlife habitats. Barrow’s Island Hangar c.1920 Walney Non Rigid Airship In the Middle Ages Piel was known as Fowdray (or Fouldrey) Island. (from the systems rely on sheep grazing to them ‘open’ and able to support rare species inc. Coralroot Old Norse words ‘fouder’ meaning fodder, and ‘ay’ or ‘oy’ meaning island.) Orchid. 1127 Piel’s known history begins; King Stephen gives Piel Island to the Savignac monks. Nature and Industry Barrow Island at War Later 12th c. Savignacs become part of the Cistercian order & the Island came Nature has given Industry Barrow’s natural harbours for ship building, sand, gravel & rich deposits of under the control of Furness Abbey. iron ore. Even the wind is now a major resource o Walney Island; driving the biggest o-shore Wind

Coralroot Orchid Orchid Coralroot Vickers’s Barrow Island site was an essential naval vessel builder during WW1 & WW2. Farm in the World. Early 13th c. The use Piel as a safe harbour & build a warehouse for the ‘The Yard’ also became a prime target for enemy bombers. Numerous pillboxes, machine gun batteries, search light emplacements, air raid shelters & bombing raid storage of grain, wine and wool. Some was shipped over from Ireland. The relationships between the activities of man & the processes of nature continue to evolve as they have done for millenia. But man-made global warming is changing local bird migration patterns & decoys were erected during WW2 & remain across the Islands of Barrow, many lie 1212 Monks granted a licence by King John to land one cargo of "wheat, our & within what are now Nature Reserves and SSSI’s. (detailed overleaf) other provisions" to stave o famine caused by the local harvest failing. Later in the countless other ecosystems which may have unforeseen eects. Maybe it‘s time to start giving something more back to nature? century an unlimited cargo licence was granted & 1258 ships owned by Furness The rst sign of German interest in Barrow came in May 1936, when the Hindenburg St John’s Church, Barrow Island Barrow Church, John’s St Abbey were placed under royal protection. The monks forti ed the Zeppelin ew over Barrow. Locals & the Government believed it was spying on the Natterjack Toad Breeding Ponds, (Sandscale) Six Spot Burnet Moth Oystercatchers www.barrowbc.gov.uk island, rstly with a wooden tower surrounded by a ditch with shipyard, although it was claimed she was simply carrying passengers on a luxury Sandscale Haws sand HMA 23 : Flight Trials on Walney Island 1917 Beach through Marram Grass palisades. trip. 1327 Monks begin to build a Motte & fort. The largest of its kind in . Built as a forti ed warehouse to repel During the Blitz, inaccurate bombing caused many residential neighbourhoods to pirates and raiders, it would appear to have had a measure of success National Trust be destroyed. 83 civilians were killed, 330 injured, and over 10,000 houses were damaged or destroyed; 25% of the town's housing stock. (see Nella Last below) Getting Around in keeping the customs men at bay as well: Sandscale Haws 1423 An accusation was made against the Abbott of Furness for Barnes Wallis’s design for the famous Bouncing Bomb used in the the dam busters The at coastal terrain of Barrow’s Islands, provide a series of rewarding half day or longer cycling or walking tours with a variety of breathtaking views punctuated by smuggling wool out of the country from "la Peele de Foddray". The P Roanhead raids was made by Vickers in Barrow in much haste & under a veil of secrecy, early in largely undiscovered historic sites and natural wonders. red sandstone ruins of the fort came to be known as the "Pile of 1943. Fouldrey", and are known today as . SH Sandscale Haws Loop There is a long tradition of mass cycling on the Islands because places of work have always been close-by workers housing. With thousands moving to and from work Walney Channel at North Channel at Scale Walney 1537 Following the Dissolution of the Monasteries in Piel Island & its 1936 Barrow over Hindenburg Zeppelin at the same time cycling was also the most ecient way to get around. Castle originally built by the Cistercian Monks at nearby Furness Mass Observation Abbey became the property of the King Henry VIII. North Julian Huxley, who had studied the courtship rituals of The Great Crested Grebe (a Almost all of Britain’s environment has been radically altered by man. This has created particular regular visitor to the Islands of Barrow) realised that the mass of the birdwatching About this Guide 1642- 1651 Furness was a Parliamentarian stronghold during the . Walney P Furness Dalton-in-Furness For this reason the Parliamentarian eet retreated to Piel Harbour when the opportunities for people, certain species of ora & fauna & disadvantages for others.: Walney Island’s Abbey population was, if mobilised eectively, an invaluable research tool in making ‘Earnse’ Bay from the Norse meaning ‘Sea Eagle’ is telling. observations & in the collection of useful data not only about wildlife but human This pictorial guide explores some of the modern day and historic points of interest Royalists captured . around the Islands of Barrow. Used in conjunction with the map overleaf, that populations too. Barrow has many highly evolved niche ecosystems supporting a wide variety of rare species. Around details a series of suggested routes, you can plan a tailored walking, cycling or 1662 Following the restoration of King Charles II, the Lordship of Furness was given ML Mainland Loop motoring tour. 50% of the Borough of Barrow-in-Furness is designated as Nature Reserves, RAMSAR sites and Areas of His methods were adapted by the Mass Observation movement which aimed to to the Duke of Albemarle including Piel Castle & other parts of Piel Island. After this Special Scienti c Interest (SSSI’s). create an 'anthropology of ourselves'. They recruited a team of observers and a panel date activity on Piel Island revolved around shipping and industry. A salt works is This guide is a simple introduction: further information and leaets detailing of volunteer writers to study the views & everyday lives of ordinary people in Britain. recorded as existing on the island from as early as 1662, which was still apparently speci c destinations are available from Barrow Town Hall or by following the links This original yet controversial work continued until the early 1950s. (below). present in the 1690’s. Sandscale Haws National Nature Reserve 18th c. Piel Island becomes an important trading post & Customs men were Vickers Model Making Shop: Six Spot Burnet Moth on a rare Orchid; Sandscale Orchid; Six Spot Burnet Moth on a rare A Beautiful Coastal Reserve covering 700 acres (282 ha). Mainly rare sand dune habitat Medical Dept c.1950 Vickers Sun lamp treatment permanently stationed on the Island; smuggling was still rife at the time. In the P Pill box on beach beside Walney Channel Model of Luxury Passenger Liner Orion 1934 Furness Golf Club, Walney Island End of Shift: Michaelson Rd Bridge supporting a wealth of wildlife with a magni cent panoramic backdrop of the Lakeland mountains Furness Railway second half of the 18th century the iron ore trade began to develop on the Furness best seen from its expansive sandy beaches. WI Peninsula and Piel Harbour continued to be important to the economy. As the Walney Island Gleaston volume of shipping increased "His Majesty's Boatmen" were stationed on Piel Island Don't Miss the distinctive chorus of the rare Natterjack toad. Over six hundred recorded plant Loop Barrow-in-Furness as harbour pilots and customs inspectors. Their cottages still stand; but are now in species, many of which are rare. Explore the wonderful world of coastal fungi. Sandscale is a great P M private ownership. In formal terms, Piel Island was a creek (outstation) of the port of site for invertebrate wildlife & home to six of Britain's native amphibians. P Lancaster, known as Piel Foudray. Boardwalks allow easy access to viewing platforms & the beach. P Events: The National Trust run a wide range of wildlife themed events throughout the year for RI Roa Island Loop P 19th c. Piel island was the subject of a poem by romanticist William Wordsworth. adults and families. Sandscale Haws Board-walk: P Piel Island eventually fell under the ownership of the Duke of Buccleuch. P Natterjack Toads, Europe's noisiest amphibians, breed in the natural & man-made pools Cavendish 1920 The Duke of Buccleuch donated Piel Island to the people of Barrow-in-Furness throughout the Reserve, where you can hear them croaking their distinctive chorus between April Barrow Dock as a War Memorial following the ravages of WW1. and June. WI No.4 Light Leading

Island P a Bouncing Bomb Bomber releases Lancaster A Beautiful Sandy beach with views across the , P Headin Rampside No.4 Light Leading where thousands of wading birds & wildfowl over-winter. Visitors Dova Haw should avoid the dangerous intertidal area of the estuary due to deep Haw Ramsey Ship Inn channels and swift currents. Island Sand dunes Rampside Nella Last: ’Housewife, 49’ Recent Past & Future Focus The white lime rendered inn looks like a typical south Lakeland Explore the vast beautiful dune habitat, which supports highly diverse farmhouse with barns & outbuildings. Possibly initially a chandlers, an P Biggar rare plants and animals. inc. Coralroot orchid, Curlew & Great Crested P inn is thought to have been on the site since the 17th century. The One notable contributor was Barrow’s Nella Last whose diaries are now Iron and steel making in Barrow ceased in 1963, leaving Vickers as Barrow's main Newt. published & widely available. They provide an invaluable record of everyday current building is 18th & 19th century. employer. From the 1960’s the construction of nuclear-powered submarines Foulney family life in Barrow during WW2 & into the 1950’s. Her diaries formed the increasingly became a specialism. basis for Victoria Wood’s 2006 TV dramatisation. There has been a recent Since 1746 there have been 23 recorded landlords. Each was crowned Roa Island Island resurgence of interest in mass observation. With the end of the Cold War and the associated decrease in military spending, as the King of Piel in a ceremony that reects Simnel’s court on the Walney Island there was high unemployment. Despite this, the shipyard, now owned by BAE island. Nella Last Kiosk the beach Roanhead: Everything for

Ship Inn, Piel Island c. 1894 Island c. Ship Inn, Piel Sheep Prehistoric people inhabited Walney Island, evidenced by int nds Systems, remains the UK’s only operational submarine production facility. and other artefacts. Island * The King is crowned in an ancient, carved chair, wearing regalia of Peggy Braithwaite MBE The recent shifts in opportunities for work in Barrow have caused the town to helmet & sword, while alcohol is poured over him through clay pipes. P look afresh at the relationship between its centre; industry and the islands on The earliest recorded hamlets on the island are at , North Beware: those who sit in the throne must stand a round of drinks for Snab Peggy Braithwaite, Britain’s rst & last woman principal lighthouse-keeper, looked which it developed. Many hidden assets around the islands are now being End & South End, which were listed in an inventory dated 1247. P Point Piel Island all present. after the Walney Island lighthouse. Her father, sister & brother-in-law also kept the rediscovered & there is a renewed interest in opportunities for ecological light. She became an assistant keeper & was promoted to principal in 1975 & lifestyles & outdoor recreational activity. Biggar was recorded some 45 years later as a ‘Grange’ (a farm) awarded the MBE, 10 years before she retired, at the age of 74. The Inn served pilots competing for boats to guide into Piel Harbour. belonging to Furness Abbey. For the next 600 years the population of Islands of Barrow A new initiative ‘Barrow by Design’ spearheaded by Art Gene, Barrow seeks to Visitor books from 1850’s (now in the County Archives) record the the island was around 300. Nearly half of whom perished from plague Born on Piel Island she moved to Walney as a teenager when her father became names of knights with humorous notes and sketches. The entries fuse the understanding of cutting edge design & technologies & in the 17th c. Agriculture provided the principle way of life. the lighthouse's assistant keeper. They generated their own power & water came re-purpose them in the design of future focussed housing, business premises show the developing pleasure trade to the island in the 19th century. Thrift - Armeria Maritima Key Tour Routes from a rain catchment tank. Visitors were rare: holidaymakers, bird watchers & PP and lifestyles which foster the growth of sustainable, motivated communities. 1872 The Island became part of the fast growing Barrow Borough: Piel Ferry during WW2 soldiers stationed at four ack-ack batteries nearby: the remains of Kilometres The architectural and historic signi cance of the building is reected Workers used the Island as a weekend retreat. Its popularity increased Miles which are now within the Nature Reserve. The Lighthouse is now automated & the cottages are in private ownership. in its grade 2 listing. Below Right: when a regular ferry service was provided (late 19th c.) followed by the South Walney Peggy Braithwaite Peggy

Diverse stone types were deposited forming Barrow’s Harbour Piel construction of the Jubilee Bridge in early 20th c. Islands after the last ice age 24,000 years ago Star sh on Beach, Walney Island Viper’s Bugloss South Walney Nature Reserve & Boat Club Sheds Fisherman’s Cabin, Lowsy Point Almirante Saldanha: Training Ship Brazilian Navy 1934 Viper’s Bugloss South Walney Nature Reserve

Walking to Piel Island North Walney National Nature Reserve Kite Surfers at Above Right: Walney Lighthouse Natural England Cumbria Wildlife Trust Sheds Find Out More: Useful Links The King’s Collection of Curiosities Barrow’s workplaces have often featured massive ‘sheds’, mostly in close & Vickers Photographic Archive http://www.dockmuseum.org.uk/ North Walney National Nature Reserve South Walney Nature Reserve proximity to workers housing: from the Airship Hangars of Cavendish Dock & http://www.dockmuseum.org.uk/archive/categories.asp?subject=Shipbuilding The Kings Collection of Curiosities, is a visitor centre like no other which Walney Island to more recent shipyard buildings inc. Devonshire Dock Hall sits seamlessly within the newly refurbished Ship Inn: a diverse A wild coastal site featuring many Nationally rare & important habitats Overview: South Walney forms the southern tip of a shingle island lying at the end of the Furness Peninsula. (DDH) known locally as ‘The Shed’. Barrow’s Airships inc. sand dunes, dune heath, hay meadows, vegetated shingle, During the medieval period it was farmed by the monks of Furness Abbey, whilst during the 19th and 20th ttp://www.forgottenfutures.org/forgottenfutures.co.uk/vickers/vickers.htm collection of artefacts, furniture, photographs & stories which explore DDH is the second largest structure of its kind in Europe & the tallest building in http://www.sirbarneswallis.com/Airships.htm inter-tidal mud ats & . Some of the most beautiful and http://www.dockmuseum.org.uk/archive/categories.asp?subject=Shipbuilding the diverse histories and qualities of the Islands of Barrow seen from the centuries, salt, sand and gravel were extracted leaving large lagoons and some industrial remains. Cumbria, just 1 metre taller than Barrow’s Town Hall. remote beaches in the UK with mountain views across the sea can be perspective of local people. Barrow Borough Council discovered to the North of the Island. Nobel Prize Winning Research: Between 1963 & 1975 Niko Tinbergen carried out ground breaking research Before the rst workers terrace houses & tenements were built by Industrialists http://www.barrowbc.gov.uk/ on South Walney into gull behaviour which led to him being awarded the Nobel Prize. for boom-town Barrow’s workforce, many lived in ad-hoc cabins around the The centre piece of the Kings Collection is the ancient grati carved oak orchid Six Spot Burnet Moth on a rare Islands of Barrow WW2 Gun Range, North Walney: A rare survivor A rare WW2Walney: North Gun Range, Sea Holly coastline close to their places of work. Little wonder then that sheds have throne of the Kings of Piel. An engraved knights table hangs on the wall The reserve’s most famous resident is the noisy natterjack toad; one of http://www.qwiki.com/q/#!/Furness What to see: Every spring, large numbers of lesser black backed and herring gulls return & begin to set up nest remained in the blood, not only as places of work but as places to seek respite behind it: taken down for use during special ceremonial occasions: the the UK's rarest amphibians. Nocturnal Natterjack’s are rarely seen, but http://www.walneyisle.co.uk during the spring, hundreds of males can be heard calling for a mate at territories. Other breeding birds inc. eider duck, greater black backed gull, shelduck, oystercatcher, mallard, from work. Allotment, boating & shing sheds punctuate the coastline amidst crowning of kings & the dubbing of knights. pill boxes & in some cases are still used as housing today. Historic Photographs dusk across the dunes. moorhen and coot. Of the 250 bird species recorded, most are passage migrants on their way to or from http://www.southlakes-uk.co.uk/ breeding grounds. These include common species such as wheatear, redstart, willow warbler and gold crest, as Each table top in the bar tells a dierent tale - under each stool are Particularly interesting examples can be seen within the Sandscale Haws Nature Furness Abbey others imparting fascinating snippets of information; even the beer Over 450 species of owering plants have been recorded within the well as more unusual species, which may have been blown o their normal migration route. In winter large Reserve at Lowsy Point, & along Walney Channel beside the Dock Museum in http://www.southlakes-uk.co.uk/ reserve; many are specialist species that cannot survive elsewhere. Look numbers of waders and wildfowl feed & roost around the nature reserve on ponds & intertidal areas. The the shadow of the Devonshire Dock Hall. mats combine to make a map of the islands exploring points of interest Piel Castle out for the rare dune helleborine, seaside centaury, coralroot orchid & vegetated shingle beaches are a rare habitat supporting many scarce plants inc. yellow horned poppy, sea and the hidden assets of the Islands of Barrow. Many of these vernacular o-grid structures were originally built on squatted http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/piel-castle/ the unique Walney geranium, which grows nowhere else in the world. http://www.visitcumbria.com/sl/piel-castle.htm campion & biting stonecrop. The dune grasslands support Pyramidal Orchid, Portland Spurge, Restharrow & land after WW1. They typically exhibit their history: phased additions in

Wild Pansy. In the old gravel workings striking plants such as Viper's Bugloss, Henbane & Alkanet bring a ush dierent styles, much like many of our most revered historic buildings. Each has Ship Inn Piel Island Lambert Simnal The reserve is a haven for bird life. From waders: Oystercatcher, Lapwing of colour. a dierent unsanctioned aesthetic. http://www.pielisland.co.uk/index.php?page=castle & Redshank to wildfowl such as the Tufted Duck . The reserve supports Nature Reserves Lands on Piel Island in 1487 & Claims English Throne Skylark & Barn Owl, & over-wintering birds including the Short-eared Saltmarsh occurs in Lighthouse Bay featuring species such as Thrift, Glasswort (Samphire) & Sea Purslane. They are structures ‘lived’ and living structures: recorded inventiveness in http://www.cumbriawildlifetrust.org.uk/south-walney.html Owl & Red-breasted Merganser. action. If we look closely they oer us a dierent perspective & inspire us to be http://www.cumbriawildlifetrust.org.uk/foulney-island.html http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/conservation/designatedareas/nnr/1006114.aspx was born c.1477. His real name is not known & there Walney SouthWW2 Emplacement Searchlight creatively free when considering future ecological buildings, homes &

Arctic Tern returns to breed on Foulney Island on Foulney breed to returns Tern Arctic http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-daysout/w-daysout-coast/w-daysout-coast-northwest.htm are dierent claims as to his parentage. Most de nitely, he was of Book: Archive County Visitor in Piel 1887 Drawing Rare invertebrates are attracted by the sun-soaked micro-climate of the Cumbria Wildlife Trust sustainable communities. humble origin. At the age of ten, he was taken as a pupil by an dunes. These inc. Digger Wasps, Solitary Bees & predatory Robber-ies, Oxford-trained priest named Roger Simon who apparently decided to which hunt on the wing. Some 400 dierent species of butteries & Foulney Island Nature Reserve become a king-maker & tutored the boy in courtly manners. moths have been recorded, inc. the Shore Wainscot, Portland & Grass Eggar Moths, & Grayling Buttery. Foulney Island, the largest of a group of 3 small islands, was formed from pebbles carried by glaciers from the to the coast during the last ice age. In the 19th century Simon noticed a striking resemblance between Lambert & the industrialists built a causeway designed to prevent Walney Channel from silting up. It connected Foulney, Little Foulney & Michael islands to the mainland. The current saltmarsh to the east developed as a direct result & features rare Sea Purslane, Sea Lavender & Glasswort. supposedly murdered sons of Edward IV, so he initially intended to There are also a series of rare WW1 and WW2 features within the reserve present Simnel as Richard, Duke of York, son of King Edward IV, the inc. WW1 Practice Trenches, a WW2 Gun Range & Aircraft Dispersal Pads associated with the nearby air eld; remnants of the former ‘Fort Walney’ The vegetated shingle of the reserve is nationally important. Species inc. Sea Kale, Sea Campion & Yellow Horned Poppy; all having special adaptations enabling them to survive where younger of the vanished Princes in the Tower. However, when he fresh water is scarce. During the summer, the reserve’s main conservation feature is its breeding Terns which travel vast distances to nest on the island's shingle banks. Other breeding birds Training Camp. heard rumours that the Earl of Warwick had died during his include Ringed Plover, Oystercatcher, Eider, Skylark & Meadow Pipit. The island has a resident warden (accommodated in a temporarily sited caravan sited caravan) during the breeding imprisonment in the Tower of , he altered his plans & spread a season to monitor & protect the birds. rumour that Warwick had actually escaped from the Tower and was under his guardianship. Island Eider: Foulney In autumn & winter, Curlew, Dunlin, Knot & Oystercatcher may be seen in their thousands & Great-crested Grebe, Red-breasted Merganser, Cormorant & Common Scoter are frequently The King’s Cabinet of Curiosities, Ship Inn of Curiosities, Cabinet King’s The

present. Sandscale Boat, Wooden old made from Cabin He gained some support from Yorkists, took Simnel to Ireland where there was still support for the Yorkist cause, & presented him to the Earl of Kildare; head of the Irish government. Kildare was willing to support the story & invade England to overthrow King Henry.

Simnel's army (mainly Flemish & Irish troops with some English supporters) landed on Piel Island on 5 June 1487 whereupon Simnal immediately laid claim to the English Throne. His army clashed with the King Henry’s on 16 June at the Battle of Stoke Field & Simnal was defeated. Simon avoided execution due to his priestly status, but was imprisoned for life.

King Henry pardoned young Simnel, probably because he had mostly been a puppet in the hands of adults, & gave him a job in the royal kitchen as a spit-turner. When he grew older, he became a falconer. He died around 1525 but his memory lives on in the tradition of the Kings En-Route to Piel at Low Tide Evening at Sandscale Haws, sand dune coastline with a Lake District mountain backdrop Foulney Island: Warden in a caravan on Tower , Walney Island with OS Trig Point Below Grey (Atlantic) Seals , Walney Island Dahlia Anemone, Piel Harbour ‘Black Huts’, Lowsy Point, Sandscale Reed Beds near Cavendish Dock Walney Channel Sea Kale (Sea Cabbage) of Piel. Night Watch during Breeding season: