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History Of Portsmouth
ortsmouth is commonly issued by King John, reaffirming
regarded as having been the rights and privileges awarded
founded in 1180 by John of by King Richard. Portsmouth was
Gisors, although there had been established as a permanent naval
settlements in the area since base as a result of King John’s
before Roman times, mostly being desire to invade Normandy. 1212
offshoots of Portchester. John of saw the start of construction on
Gisors purchased the manor of the first docks in Portsmouth.
Buckland, whilst the protected
harbour gave safe haven to his During the 13th century
merchant ships and an ideal Portsmouth was commonly used by
location to trade with Normandy. Henry III and Edward I as a base
for attacks on France.
In 1194, King Richard I returned
from being held captive by Duke In the 14th Century Portsmouth
Leopold V of Austria and set was invaded by the French four
about summoning a fleet and an times. The first in 1338 when
army to Portsmouth, which he had they sailed into the docks under
taken over from John of Gisors. English flags, no one noticing
until it was to late. Ten years
On May 2 1194, King Richard I later the city was struck by the
gave Portsmouth its first Royal plague known as Black Death. The
Charter granting permission to French then sacked the city in
hold an annual fifteen day market 1369,1377 and 1380 to prevent it
and exemption from paying the recovering.
annual tax of £18 a year that
could now be spent on local In 1418, Henry V was the first
matters. king to decide to build a
permanent fortification in
In 1200 another Charter was Portsmouth. He ordered a wooden
Round tower to be built at the
mouth of the harbour, this was At the beginning of the 19th
finished in 1426. century Portsmouth and Portsea
became increasingly overcrowded
It was not until Henry VIII that and housing spread across more of
defence was seriously delt with. the island including the more
He ordered the round tower to be fashionable suburbs of Southsea
rebuilt of stone and a square in the south.
tower built. At this time
building also commenced on the In 1805 Admiral Lord Nelson left
first dry dock in the country. In Portsmouth for the final time to
1527 with money from the command the fleet that would
dissolution of the monasteries defeat the larger Franco –
Henry VIII built the fort of Spanish fleet at Trafalgar. From
Southsea Castle. 1808 the Royal Navy’s West
African Squadron operated out of
In 1545, Henry VIII saw his Portsmouth as they were tasked
flagship Maryrose founder off with stopping the slave trade.
Southsea Castle whilst going into
action against the French Fleet, As always, the presence of the
with the loss of over 500 lives. dockyard made Portsmouth a prime
target for attack and in 1916 the
In the 18th century regular wars, city experienced its first aerial
principally with the French, bombardment when a zeppelin
meant the dockyard flourished. airship bombed it during World
Homes were built outside the town War 1.
walls in Portsea to house the
growing population. Trade in During World War 2, again
Portsmouth quickly increased and Portsmouth was devastated from
with it the cities prosperity. the air, between July 1940 and
July 1944 the city was attacked Portsmouth Harbour. To the north,
67 times, 930 people killed and Southwick House had been chosen
many wounded. as the headquarters for the
supreme Allied commander, US
On June 6th 1944 saw the General Dwight D Eisenhower,
embarkation of the D-Day Landings during D-Day.
from Southsea beach and
About the Author:
Matt Land
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