The Farne Islands are a group of islands off the coast of
Northumberland
Northumberland () is a ceremonial counties of England, county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Ab ...
, England. The group has between 15 and 20 islands depending on the level of the
tide
Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another.
Tide tables can ...
.
[e travel guide to Northumbria.]
"There are between 15 and 20 islands in number, depending upon the tide". They form an archipelago, divided into the Inner Group and the Outer Group. The main islands in the Inner Group are Inner Farne, Knoxes Reef, the East and West Wideopens (all joined on very low tides), and (somewhat separated) the Megstone; the main islands in the Outer Group are
Staple Island, Brownsman, North and South Wamses, Big Harcar, and Longstone. The two groups are separated by Staple Sound. The highest point, on Inner Farne, is
above mean sea level
Height above mean sea level is a measure of the Vertical position, vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric h ...
.
History
Monks and hermits
The earliest recorded inhabitants of the Farne Islands were various
Culdees, some connected with
Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne, also called Holy Island, is a tidal island off the northeast coast of England, which constitutes the civil parish of Holy Island in Northumberland. Holy Island has a recorded history from the 6th century AD; it was an important ...
. This followed the old
Celtic Christian
Celtic Christianity ( kw, Kristoneth; cy, Cristnogaeth; gd, Crìosdaidheachd; gv, Credjue Creestee/Creestiaght; ga, Críostaíocht/Críostúlacht; br, Kristeniezh; gl, Cristianismo celta) is a form of Christianity that was common, or held ...
tradition of island hermitages, also found in Wales, Ireland, and Scotland.
The islands are first recorded in 651, when they became home to
Saint Aidan, followed by
Saint Cuthbert
Cuthbert of Lindisfarne ( – 20 March 687) was an Anglo-Saxon saint of the early Northumbrian church in the Celtic tradition. He was a monk, bishop and hermit, associated with the monasteries of Melrose and Lindisfarne in the Kingdom of Nor ...
.
[ Cuthbert isolated himself on the islands until he was called to the bishopric of Lindisfarne, but after two years, he returned to the solitude of the Inner Farne and died there in 687, when Saint Aethelwold took up residence, instead. Among other acts, Cuthbert introduced special laws in 676 protecting the eider ducks, and other seabirds nesting on the islands; these are thought to be the earliest bird-protection laws anywhere in the world.
The islands were used by hermits intermittently from the seventh century. These included Saint Bartholomew of Farne.][ The last hermit was Thomas De Melsonby, who died on the islands in 1246.][MONUMENT NO. 8298]
''English Heritage
English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses.
The charity states that i ...
: PastScape''
A formal monastic cell of Benedictine
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal
, abbreviation = OSB
, formation =
, motto = (English: 'Pray and Work')
, found ...
monks was established on the islands ''circa'' 1255. The cell was dependent on Durham Abbey, now Durham Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham, commonly known as Durham Cathedral and home of the Shrine of St Cuthbert, is a cathedral in the city of Durham, County Durham, England. It is the seat of ...
. A very small cell, it was usually home to only two monks, although on occasion this rose to as many as six. The cell was dissolved in 1536 as part of King Henry VIII
Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disagr ...
's Dissolution of the Monasteries.[ST CUTHBERTS CHAPEL]
''English Heritage
English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses.
The charity states that i ...
: PastScape''
Following the dissolution of the monastic cell on the islands, they became the property of the Dean and Chapter of Durham Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham, commonly known as Durham Cathedral and home of the Shrine of St Cuthbert, is a cathedral in the city of Durham, County Durham, England. It is the seat of ...
, who leased them to various tenants. The islands remained a detached part of County Durham until 1844, when the Counties (Detached Parts) Act transferred them to Northumberland. In 1861, the islands were sold to Charles Thorp
Charles Thorp, (13 October 1783 – 10 October 1862) was an English churchman, Rector (ecclesiastical), rector of the Holy Cross Church, Ryton, parish of Ryton, Tyne and Wear, Ryton and, later, Archdeacon of Durham and the first warden of the ...
, who was at the time Archdeacon of Durham.[ In 1894, the islands were bought by industrialist William Armstrong, 1st Baron Armstrong.][ The islands are currently owned by the ]National Trust
The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...
.[
Remains still exist of the seventh-century anchorite cell used by Saint Aidan and Saint Cuthbert,][ as do the remains of a 14th-century chapel associated with the cell. Known as St Cuthbert's Chapel, it is described as a "single-cell building of four bays". The remains of a second chapel have been incorporated into a later building.][
]
Grace Darling
The Farne Islands are associated with the story of Grace Darling and the wreck of the ''Forfarshire
Angus ( sco, Angus; gd, Aonghas) is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Dundee City and Perth and Kinross. Main industries include a ...
''. Grace Darling was the daughter of Longstone lighthouse-keeper (one of the islands' lighthouses), William Darling, and on 7 September 1838, at the age of 22 years, her father and she rescued nine people from the wreck of the ''Forfarshire'' in a strong gale and thick fog, the vessel having run aground on Harcar Rock. The story of the rescue attracted extraordinary attention throughout Britain, and made Grace Darling a heroine who has gone down in British folklore.[www.bamburgh.org.uk.]
Gives details of Grace Darling.
Today
The islands have no permanent population, but National Trust
The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...
rangers live on the islands for most of the year; they live in the old pele tower
Peel towers (also spelt pele) are small fortified keeps or tower houses, built along the English and Scottish borders in the Scottish Marches and North of England, mainly between the mid-14th century and about 1600. They were free-stan ...
on the Inner Farne (the largest and closest inshore of the islands), Lighthouse Cottage on Inner Farne and the lighthouse cottage on the Brownsman in the outer group. The pele tower was built around 1494, by or for Thomas Castell, Prior of Durham
The Prior of Durham was the head of the Roman Catholic Durham Cathedral Priory, founded c. 1083 with the move of a previous house from Jarrow. The succession continued until dissolution of the monastery in 1540, when the priory was replaced with a ...
.
Lighthouses
The lighthouse would not have been painted red and white in Grace Darling's day.
The first lighthouse was built on the islands in 1773;[ prior to that, a beacon may have been installed on Prior Castell's Tower, permission having first been given for a light on Inner Farne in 1669.
Currently, two lighthouses are operated by Trinity House on the Farne Islands:
* Farne Lighthouse was built in 1811 and originally named Inner Farne Lighthouse.
* Longstone Lighthouse was built in 1826 and originally named Outer Farne Lighthouse.
Former lighthouses on the islands include:
* Farne Island Lighthouse was built in 1673, but never lit; its replacement was built by Captain John Blackett in 1778, itself replaced by Trinity House with the current Farne Lighthouse in 1811. A minor light, called the Low Light, was also established by Trinity House on the north west of Farne between 1811 and 1910.] to aid navigation by lining this light up with the Inner Farne light
* Staple Island Lighthouse was built by Captain Blackett in 1778 and blown down in the Great Storm of 1784; a replacement, built either in the same place or on Brownsman Island, was knocked down by heavy seas in 1800.
* Brownsman Lighthouse, built in 1800, was replaced by Trinity House with a new tower in 1811 and closed in 1826 when Longstone Lighthouse was established.
All the operational lighthouses on the Farnes are now automatic and have no resident keepers, although in former years, they did. The lighthouse is now maintained by Trinity House via its local lighthouse attendant, George Shiel, who provides guided tours inside the lighthouse. Ruins of some of the older lighthouses may be seen, for example on the Brownsman, which has two. Before the lighthouses, beacons were on several of the islands. The prominent white streak on the cliff facing the mainland (see photo) is similar to bird droppings; although many parts of the islands do exhibit this colouring during the breeding season only, in this case it is the result of chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Cha ...
deposits from the many years of spent calcium carbide from the lighthouse being thrown down the cliff; this calcium carbide was used to generate acetylene
Acetylene ( systematic name: ethyne) is the chemical compound with the formula and structure . It is a hydrocarbon and the simplest alkyne. This colorless gas is widely used as a fuel and a chemical building block. It is unstable in its pur ...
, which was used as fuel for the light before electricity
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as describ ...
came.
Ecology and natural history
The Farne Islands are an internationally important wildlife habitat. In summer puffins, eider duck, Arctic tern, shag, guillemot, kittiwake, fulmar, razorbill, common tern and Sandwich tern all breed here, while in late autumn a large colony of grey seals pup on the islands. Summer visitors to Inner Farne are strongly advised to wear hats due to Arctic terns dive bombing to protect their chicks.
Breeding birds on the Farnes (as of 2012) include:
* Shelduck – 2 pairs
* Mallard
The mallard () or wild duck (''Anas platyrhynchos'') is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Arge ...
– 17 pairs
* Common eider – 443 pairs
* Fulmar
The fulmars are tubenosed seabirds of the family Procellariidae. The family consists of two extant species and two extinct fossil species from the Miocene.
Fulmars superficially resemble gulls, but are readily distinguished by their flight o ...
– 276 pairs
* Cormorant
Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the IOC adopted a consensus taxonomy of seven ge ...
– 135 pairs
* Shag – 965 pairs
* Oystercatcher
The oystercatchers are a group of waders forming the family Haematopodidae, which has a single genus, ''Haematopus''. They are found on coasts worldwide apart from the polar regions and some tropical regions of Africa and South East Asia. The e ...
– 39 pairs
* Herring gull – 72 pairs in 2011 (not counted in 2012)
* Lesser black-backed gull – 52 pairs in 2011 (not counted in 2012)
* Ringed plover – 4 pairs
* Black-headed gull
The black-headed gull (''Chroicocephalus ridibundus'') is a small gull that breeds in much of the Palearctic including Europe and also in coastal eastern Canada. Most of the population is migratory and winters further south, but some birds res ...
– 461 pairs
* Black-legged kittiwake – 4,241 pairs
* Sandwich tern – 966 pairs
* Roseate tern – no pairs, several individuals
* Common tern
The common tern (''Sterna hirundo'') is a seabird in the family Laridae. This bird has a circumpolar distribution, its four subspecies breeding in temperate and subarctic regions of Europe, Asia and North America. It is strongly migrat ...
– 88 pairs
* Arctic tern – 1,180 pairs in 2011 (not counted in 2012)
* Guillemot
Guillemot is the common name for several species of seabird in the Alcidae or auk family (part of the order Charadriiformes). In British use, the term comprises two genera: '' Uria'' and '' Cepphus''. In North America the ''Uria'' species a ...
– 49,076 birds
* Razorbill
The razorbill, razor-billed auk, or lesser auk (''Alca torda'') is a colonial seabird and the only extant member of the genus '' Alca'' of the family Alcidae, the auks. It is the closest living relative of the extinct great auk (''Pinguinis i ...
– 365 pairs
* Puffin – 36,285 pairs
* Barn swallow
The barn swallow (''Hirundo rustica'') is the most widespread species of swallow in the world. In fact, it appears to have the largest natural distribution of any of the world's passerines, ranging over 251 million square kilometres globally. ...
– 4 pairs
* Pied wagtail – 5 pairs
* Rock pipit – 20 pairs
A total of 290 bird species have been recorded on the Farnes, including in the 1760s, an example of the now extinct great auk
The great auk (''Pinguinus impennis'') is a species of flightless alcid that became extinct in the mid-19th century. It was the only modern species in the genus ''Pinguinus''. It is not closely related to the birds now known as penguins, w ...
.
On 28–29 May 1979, an Aleutian tern, a rare tern
Terns are seabirds in the family Laridae that have a worldwide distribution and are normally found near the sea, rivers, or wetlands. Terns are treated as a subgroup of the family Laridae which includes gulls and skimmers and consists o ...
from the Aleutian Islands
The Aleutian Islands ( ; ; ale, Unangam Tanangin, "land of the Aleuts"; possibly from the Chukchi ''aliat'', or "island")—also called the Aleut Islands, Aleutic Islands, or, before 1867, the Catherine Archipelago—are a chain of 14 main, ...
in the North Pacific Ocean, visited the Farnes. It was the first, and still the only, member of its species ever seen anywhere in Europe.[Incredible Birds.]
Documents Aleutian Tern on Inner Farne in May 1979.
A longer-staying unusual visitor was "Elsie" the lesser crested tern, which visited the Farnes every summer from 1984 to 1997; during that period (paired with a male Sandwich tern) she raised several hybrid chicks and attracted several thousand birders keen to see this species in Britain. Lesser crested terns normally nest on islands off the coast of Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Su ...
and migrate to West Africa for the winter; "Elsie" is thought to have taken a wrong turn at the Straits of Gibraltar
The Strait of Gibraltar ( ar, مضيق جبل طارق, Maḍīq Jabal Ṭāriq; es, Estrecho de Gibraltar, Archaic: Pillars of Hercules), also known as the Straits of Gibraltar, is a narrow strait that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Medi ...
on spring migration.[www.towhee.net.]
Confirms "Elsie" the lesser crested tern visited Farnes.
An Arctic tern from the Farnes, ringed as a chick not yet old enough to fly in summer 1982, reached Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...
, Australia, in October 1982, a sea journey over in just three months from fledging. This remains one of the longest known distances travelled by any bird.
Geology
The Farnes are resistant igneous
Igneous rock (derived from the Latin word ''ignis'' meaning fire), or magmatic rock, is one of the three main rock types, the others being sedimentary and metamorphic. Igneous rock is formed through the cooling and solidification of magma o ...
dolerite
Diabase (), also called dolerite () or microgabbro,
is a mafic, holocrystalline, subvolcanic rock equivalent to volcanic basalt or plutonic gabbro. Diabase dikes and sills are typically shallow intrusive bodies and often exhibit fine-grained ...
outcrops. These would originally have been connected to the mainland and surrounded by areas of less resistant limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms wh ...
. Through a combination of erosion
Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is di ...
of the weaker surrounding rock, and sea level rise
Globally, sea levels are rising due to human-caused climate change. Between 1901 and 2018, the globally averaged sea level rose by , or 1–2 mm per year on average.IPCC, 2019Summary for Policymakers InIPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cry ...
following the last ice age
An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gre ...
, the Farnes were left as islands. Because of the way the rock is fissured, dolerite forms strong columns. This gives the islands their steep, in places vertical cliff
In geography and geology, a cliff is an area of rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. Cliffs are common on ...
s, and the sea around the islands is scattered with stacks up to 66 ft (20 m) high. Many of the small islands are bare rock, but the larger islands have a layer of clay
Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4).
Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay part ...
subsoil and peat
Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficien ...
soil supporting vegetation. The rock strata
In geology and related fields, a stratum ( : strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as e ...
slope slightly upwards to the south, giving the highest cliffs on the south and some beach
A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shell ...
es to the north.[www.seahouses.org.]
Gives geology details.
One classic view of the Farnes, very popular with photographers, is that from the harbour at Seahouses, but they are closer to the mainland further up the road northwards towards Bamburgh, and excellent views may be seen from here, in the vicinity of the Monks House Rocks, as well as from Bamburgh Castle and beach
Shipwrecks and diving
The Farne Islands are popular with bird watchers, and as scuba diving
Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for "Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Chri ...
locations, with a variety of sites suitable for all levels of divers, for the seals and wrecks.
Hundreds of ships have been wrecked on the Farnes over the years, providing plenty for wreck divers to explore. Among them are:
:
Dive sites and wrecks
* ''Chris Christenson'', a Danish steamer that sank on 16 February 1915, lies close into the reef off the south tip of Longstone, Outer Farnes, in about at ().
* , a German steamship that drove onto Knifestone, Outer Farnes, on 3 September 1921, lies in about at ().
* ''Brittania'', a , British cargo/passenger steamship that struck the Callers, Outer Farnes, in thick fog on 25 September 1915 lies between at ().
* ''St Andre'' was a French steamship carrying pig iron. On 28 October 1908, she hit the Crumstone and floated off to sink finally at Staple Island. She lies in about at ().
Diving at the Farnes is generally possible, regardless of wind direction; shelter is always available somewhere. Some dive locations even provide the opportunity to combine diving and birdwatching, in particular the Pinnacles, where guillemot
Guillemot is the common name for several species of seabird in the Alcidae or auk family (part of the order Charadriiformes). In British use, the term comprises two genera: '' Uria'' and '' Cepphus''. In North America the ''Uria'' species a ...
s can be found fishing at safety-stop depth.[The Guardian Travel.]
Gives some details of scuba diving in Farnes.
Civil parish
Farne Islands was a civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of Parish (administrative division), administrative parish used for Local government in England, local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below district ...
, in 1951 the parish had a population of 3. On 1 April 1955 the parish was abolished and merged with North Sunderland.
References
External links
Farne Islands information at the National Trust
Farne Islands access and information (commercial)
Northumberland Coast — Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB)
— Northumberland Coast AONB Site
Lighthouse access & boat trips
{{Authority control
National nature reserves in England
National Trust properties in Northumberland
Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Northumberland
Uninhabited islands of Northumberland
Underwater diving sites in England
Nature reserves in Northumberland
Former civil parishes in Northumberland