History of Dorset facts for kids
Dorset is a rural county located in the southwest of England. Its rich archaeology helps us understand a lot about the history of southern England, going back thousands of years.
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Ancient Dorset: Before the Romans
The very first people known to live in Dorset were Mesolithic hunters. They came to Britain around 12,500 BC, when Britain was still connected to Europe by a land bridge. There weren't many people then, maybe just a few thousand in all of Britain. They mostly lived along the coast in places like the Isle of Purbeck, Weymouth, Chesil Beach, and Hengistbury Head. They also settled along the Stour valley. These early people used stone tools and fire to clear some of the oak forests. This helped them herd animals for hunting.
Scientists have studied a Mesolithic skeleton found in Cheddar Gorge (in nearby Somerset). Their research shows that many people living in Dorset today are related to these first inhabitants of Britain. This suggests that when new groups of farmers arrived from Europe in the Neolithic period, the original hunter-gatherers didn't disappear. Instead, they likely learned how to farm too.
More forests were cleared during the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods. This made space for agriculture (farming) and animal husbandry (raising animals). In areas where the soil wasn't good for farming, clearing the land created heathland. You can still find many burial mounds from the Neolithic and Bronze Age across Dorset.
Hill Forts and Early Trade
Dorset's high chalk hills were perfect for building defensive settlements for thousands of years. Many Iron Age hill forts, like Maiden Castle, Hod Hill, Badbury Rings, and Hambledon Hill, were built here. The chalk hills were mostly cleared of trees during these times, creating fields for crops and pastures for animals.
Archaeologists have found that the valley floors and wider hills were often ploughed. This means their ancient history isn't as well preserved as the steeper slopes. However, many experts believe that hill forts might not have been where most people lived all the time. Instead, they might have been used as marketplaces or safe places during danger. Most people probably lived in the valleys.
By the Late Iron Age, the people of Dorset, called the Durotriges, were making their own coins. They traded a lot with Northern Gaul (which is now Brittany in France). But after the Romans conquered Gaul in 56 BC, this trade stopped. The Romans then changed trade routes to benefit their allies in Essex. For about a century until the Roman conquest, Dorset's economy struggled. The population grew, but the soil quality got worse because it had been farmed for 4,000 years. By the time the Romans arrived, many people were likely struggling to find enough food. Bones found at Bere Regis show that some people suffered from severe malnourishment when they were children.
The Romans called the native tribe in Dorset the Durotriges. This tribe also lived in much of Somerset and possibly the New Forest. Their name might mean "water dwellers," possibly because they were seafarers or lived near the marshy River Frome. Another idea is "fort-dwellers," because they were still using their hill forts when the Romans invaded in 43 AD. This was unusual, as most other tribes had left their forts around 100 BC. Some also suggest "land-dwellers," referring to their strong farming traditions. We know they were already sending large amounts of grain to the Roman Empire by the first century BC.
Roman Dorset
The Romans arrived in Dorset by landing at Poole Harbour and the Fleet. They then moved inland. Other Roman groups traveled west from Old Sarum and Winchester. At Abbotsbury on the Fleet, the Romans quickly took the Abbotsbury Castle hill fort without a fight. They then moved on to Maiden Castle. There's some evidence of fighting at Maiden Castle and Badbury Rings, but archaeologists now think these forts, and Hod Hill, fell easily. However, 130 skeletons found at Spetisbury show that the invasion was not entirely peaceful.
Roman Towns and Roads
Dorset has many important Roman remains, especially around the Roman town of Dorchester. This was where Maiden Castle was captured early in the Roman occupation. In the grounds of the County Council offices, you can see a Roman house with well-preserved mosaic floors. There was also an aqueduct that brought water from a tributary of the Frome river. This water was held back by an earthen dam and flowed through a covered timber-lined channel about nine kilometers long. The dam broke, and the aqueduct was abandoned surprisingly early, in the mid-2nd century.
Roman roads spread out from Dorchester. They followed the tops of the chalk ridges northwest to Ilchester near Yeovil, and east to Badbury Rings. From Badbury Rings, a road forked to Winchester, Bath, and a very well-preserved route went northeast to Old Sarum near Salisbury. There were also tracks to many small Roman villages across the county.
During the Roman era, settlements moved from the hilltops down to the valleys. Roman finds, like the famous Hinton St Mary mosaic, have been found in the valleys. In the Isle of Purbeck, an Iron Age site at Worth Matravers was reorganized later in the Roman period to grow grain for the Roman army. It had a granary floor heated by a hypocaust (an underfloor heating system) to dry the grain. By the 4th century, the hilltops were no longer used for settlements.
Post-Roman and Saxon Dorset
After the Romans left Britain, people from Jutland and later Saxons settled in the Southampton area from the 5th century. However, the Britons in Dorset seemed to successfully stop their expansion for a long time. One important battle between the Britons and Saxons, called Mount Badon, might have happened at Badbury Rings, though this is debated. There might have been a Saxon raid at Bindon in 614, but its exact location is not certain.
Saxon Conquest and Early Wessex
A large defensive ditch on Cranborne Chase in northeast Dorset, called Bokerley Dyke, was built around 367 AD. It seems to have been strengthened, and along with blocking the Roman Road at Ackling Dyke, it helped delay the Saxon conquest of Dorset. This meant the Romano-British people stayed in Dorset for 200 years after the Roman legions left. Evidence suggests that the West Saxons had largely conquered Dorset by the time Caedwalla became king in 685. The difficult coastline prevented an invasion from the sea.
When the Roman road across Cranborne Chase was rebuilt in the 6th century, the Saxons advanced into Dorset. The Romano-British people retreated and built another defense, Combs Ditch, but this also fell within a century. It's thought that the Saxons captured east Dorset in the mid-7th century and west Dorset soon after, but the exact details are unknown.
Dorset was initially part of the Saxon kingdom of Wessex. The first written record of Dorset is from 841. Coenred, who was a sub-king of Dorset in the late 7th century, was the father of King Ine. St Martin's church in Wareham is believed to be the oldest church in Dorset. Many other Saxon religious sites were founded, including Shaftesbury Abbey and Sherborne Monastery. King Ethelred I (866–871) is buried at Wimborne, and St Cuthberga, an abbess of Wimborne, died in 725. Gillingham is first mentioned in a document from the 10th century.
Aldhelm was the first bishop of the Diocese of Sherborne, created in 705 AD. This diocese covered the part of Wessex "west of Selwood."
In 876, King Alfred the Great trapped a Danish fleet at Arne. He then drove them out, and 120 Danish ships were wrecked at Studland. In 978, Corfe Castle was the site of the murder of King Edward the Martyr. His body was taken first to Wareham and then to Shaftesbury.
Medieval Dorset
The Domesday Book, a great survey from 1086, lists many Saxon settlements that are now modern towns and villages, mostly in the valleys. There have been few changes to these local areas since then. Over the next few centuries, settlers created the pattern of farmland that lasted until the 19th century. Many monasteries were also built. These monasteries were important landowners and centers of power.
Wars, Plagues, and Prosperity
Several military events happened in Dorset during The Anarchy in the 12th century. This led to the building of defensive castles at Corfe Castle, Powerstock, Wareham, and Shaftesbury. In 1348, the terrible Black Death arrived in England. It likely landed in ports along the south coast, including Melcombe Regis, which is now part of Weymouth. This busy port was one of the first towns to experience the plague, which went on to kill a third of the country's population. In the 14th and 15th centuries, hilltop villages became smaller, and many disappeared completely.
Throughout the Medieval period, Dorset was popular with the nobility and even some kings for its hunting estates, like Gillingham and Sherborne. Several deer parks still exist in the county today.
The 12th and 13th centuries were a time of great prosperity in Dorset, and the population grew a lot. To feed more people, extra land was enclosed for farming. The quarrying of Purbeck Marble, a type of limestone that can be polished, brought wealth to the county. It also provided jobs for stonecutters and masons. Large amounts of this stone were used to build Salisbury Cathedral. This trade continues today but has decreased since the 15th century when alabaster from Derbyshire became more popular.
Another medieval industry that still exists today was rope making. Bridport was especially famous for its rope. The Royal Navy bought large quantities of Bridport rope. In the 15th century, King Henry VII ordered that all hemp within five miles of the town be saved for the navy.
Early Modern Dorset
From the Tudor to Georgian times, farming became more specialized. The large monastic estates were broken up, leading to more people and bigger settlements. The Dissolution of the Monasteries closed the abbeys at Sherborne, Shaftesbury, Milton Abbas, Abbotsbury, and Cerne Abbas. However, both Sherborne and Milton abbeys were saved from complete destruction.
In 1588, eight ships from Dorset helped defeat the Spanish Armada. The Spanish flagship, San Salvador, still lies at the bottom of Studland bay. Sir Walter Raleigh later lived in Sherborne and served as a Member of Parliament for Dorset.
The English Civil War and Rebellions
During the 17th-century English Civil War, Dorset had several Royalist strongholds, like Sherborne Castle and Corfe Castle. These castles were ruined during the war. The 1642 Battle of Babylon Hill ended without a clear winner. Corfe Castle had successfully defended against an attack in 1643. But due to betrayal during a second siege in 1646, it was captured and later destroyed.
The people of Lyme Regis were strong supporters of Parliament. In 1644, they fought off three attacks by a Royalist army led by King Charles's nephew, Prince Maurice. Maurice lost 2,000 men in these attacks, which severely damaged his reputation.
The largest Civil War battle in Dorset wasn't between Cavaliers and Roundheads. It was between Parliamentarian troops and the Dorset clubmen. These clubmen were angry civilians who were tired of the war's disruption. They didn't support either side. In 1645, about 5,000 of them gathered at Shaftesbury to fight Parliamentarian troops. They were only armed with clubs and farm tools, so they were easily defeated. A smaller group of about 2,000 regrouped on Hambledon Hill but were again routed. Many were taken prisoner, which effectively ended their organization.
In 1685, James Scott Monmouth, the illegitimate son of King Charles II, and 150 supporters landed at Lyme Regis. After his rebellion failed, the 'Bloody Assizes' trials took place in Dorchester. Over five days, Judge Jeffreys oversaw 312 cases. 74 people were executed, and 175 were sent away to other countries. In 1686, a secret meeting happened at Charborough Park to plan the overthrow of James II of England. This meeting was the start of the Glorious Revolution.
Smuggling and Industries
During the 18th century, the Dorset coast was a hot spot for smuggling. Its coves, caves, and sandy beaches made it easy to bring smuggled goods ashore. In 1747, a famous gang of armed smugglers broke into the customs house in Poole to get back their captured goods.
Making cloth was a profitable business in Dorset during the 17th and 18th centuries. Blandford became known for its fine lace, and Stalbridge for its stockings. Shaftesbury, Sturminster Marshall, Beaminster, Burton Bradstock, Gillingham, Cerne Abbas, and Winterbourne Stickland produced many different materials, including sailcloth, linen, and even silk. However, Dorset didn't have coal. This meant that during the Industrial Revolution, it couldn't compete with the large, machine-powered mills in Lancashire. So, Dorset remained mostly rural. The Tolpuddle Martyrs, who were important in starting the trade union movement, lived in Dorset. The county's farming economy played a key role in their story.
Modern Dorset
The industrial revolution mostly passed Dorset by, so it has stayed largely rural. However, the farming economy sparked the Trade Union movement. In the 1820s, a group of farm laborers formed one of the first unions. In 1832, unions were made illegal, and these six men, now known as the Tolpuddle Martyrs, were sent away to Australia. They became national heroes for working-class people.
Railways and Wars
In the 19th century, railways brought more travel and communication to British people. Lines through Dorset included the South West Main Line, connecting London to Bournemouth, Poole, Dorchester, and Weymouth. The Heart of Wessex Line went from Bristol to Sherborne, Dorchester, and Weymouth. The West of England Main Line connected London to Exeter, with stations at Sherborne and Gillingham. There were also smaller branch lines, like those to Bridport and Swanage, which were closed in the 1960s. The Swanage Railway has since been reopened as a heritage railway.
During World War I and II, Dorset, located on the English Channel, was both a target and very important to the Royal Navy. The large Portland Harbour, built in the late 19th century, was protected by Nothe Fort and the Verne Citadel. For many years, including during the wars, it was one of the largest Royal Navy bases. British, American, and Canadian ships gathered in the harbor and nearby Weymouth Bay before the D-Day landings. Training for the landings also took place in Dorset, on the long sandy beach at Studland. Portland Harbour continued to be used as a Royal Navy and NATO training base until the 1990s. It is now a civilian port and recreation area, and it was used for the sailing events in the 2012 Olympic Games.
Tourism and Local Government Changes
Since the early 19th century, when King George III took holidays in Weymouth when he was unwell, Dorset's tourism industry has grown. The seaside resorts of Bournemouth and Weymouth, the Jurassic Coast, and the county's quiet rural areas attract millions of visitors each year. With farming declining across the country, tourism now competes with agriculture as the main economy of the county.
In 1974, Dorset's political boundaries were changed. A small area of southwest Hampshire, including the towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch, became part of Dorset. In 1996, Bournemouth and Poole became administratively independent from the county.
In the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum, Dorset voted in favor of Brexit.
In 2019, there were big changes to local government in England. The ceremonial county of Dorset changed from having a non-metropolitan county and two unitary authorities to having two new unitary authorities. These new authorities are Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (combining the old Bournemouth and Poole unitary authorities with Christchurch) and Dorset Council (which merged the five remaining non-metropolitan districts and the former county council).
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