We stayed in West Cowes in a newly renovated old seaman’s residence named “Marina View” which we quickly nicknamed “The House of Fun” because of its quaint sloping ceilings and floors, wonky windows and loads of wedges to level the furniture! However, renovations were to a very high standard. When we arrived this townhouse was above a card shop in the high street but by the end of the day the card shop had closed down! We’ve never had that effect before.
The Southampton Isle of Wight and South of England Royal Mail Steam Packet Company Limited, which now trades as Red Funnel, is a ferry company that carries passengers and vehicles on routes between
Southampton and
East Cowes, whilst the Red Jet branded high-speed foot passenger service operates between Southampton and West
Cowes. The origins of the Red Funnel line date back to 1820, when the Isle of Wight Royal Mail Steam Packet Company was established in Cowes to operate the first steamer service from there to Southampton. In 1826, the Isle of Wight Steam Packet Company was formed in Southampton, and by the following year the two companies had started co-ordinating their operations. In 1860, the Southampton, Isle of Wight & Portsmouth Improved Steamboat Company was created to compete with the two established operators, and the threat posed caused the two older companies to merge. In 1865 they acquired the assets of the Improved Steamboat Company.
Formed in 1861, and originally named as:
The Southampton, Isle of Wight and South of England Royal Mail Steam Packet Co. Limited. The merged company's name remains the longest for a registered company in the
United Kingdom. The shortened name of Red Funnel was adopted after 1935 when all vessels operated by the company adopted the black-topped red funnel in their livery.
During the
Norman Conquest, in the Middle Ages, there was created the position of
Lord of the Isle of Wight.
Carisbrooke Priory and the fort of
Carisbrooke Castle were founded. The island did not come under full control of the Crown until it was sold by the last Norman Lord, Lady
Isabella de Fortibus upon her death, to
Edward I in 1293. In 1374, the
Castilian fleet led by
Fernán Sánchez de Tovar, the 1st Lord of Belves in the Dordogne, France, sacked and burned the island.
Later
Henry VIII, who developed the
Royal Navy and its permanent base at
Portsmouth, fortified the island at
Yarmouth, Cowes, East Cowes, and
Sandown. Much later, after the
Spanish Armada in 1588, the threat of Spanish attacks remained and the outer fortifications of Carisbrooke Castle were built between 1597 and 1602.
During the
English Civil War King Charles fled to the Isle of Wight, believing he would receive sympathy from the governor, Robert Hammond. Hammond was appalled, and imprisoned the king in
Carisbrooke Castle. Charles had originally intended to flee to Jersey, but became lost in the New Forest and missed the boat.
During the
Second World War the island was frequently bombed. With its proximity to France the island also had a number of observation stations and transmitters, and was the starting-point for one of the earlier
Operation Pluto pipelines to feed fuel to the
Normandy landings. The
Needles battery was used as the site for testing and development of the
Black Arrow and
Black Knight space rockets, subsequently launched from
Woomera,
Australia.
The
Isle of Wight Festival is a very large
rock festival that took place near
Afton Down, West Wight in 1970, following two smaller concerts in 1968 and 1969. The 1970 show was notable for being one of the last public performances by
Jimi Hendrix. The festival was revived in 2002 in a different format and is now an annual event. In 2012 the site was so waterlogged that the islands roads became jammed with traffic trying to get on and off the site due to mud.