![Gibraltar Dockyard](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Gibraltar_Dockyard.JPG)
The South Mole is a
breakwater
Breakwater may refer to:
* Breakwater (structure), a structure for protecting a beach or harbour
Places
* Breakwater, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria, Australia
* Breakwater Island
Breakwater Island () is a small island in the Palme ...
located in the southern section of
Gibraltar Harbour
The Port of Gibraltar, also known as Gibraltar Harbour, is a seaport in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar. It was a strategically important location during the Napoleonic Wars and after 1869 served as a supply point for ships travelling ...
, in the
British Overseas Territory
The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), also known as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), are fourteen dependent territory, territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom. They are the last remna ...
of
Gibraltar
)
, anthem = " God Save the King"
, song = " Gibraltar Anthem"
, image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg
, map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe
, map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green
, mapsize =
, image_map2 = Gib ...
, at the southern end of the
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
. Previously known as the New Mole and New Mole Extension, the South Mole, with the rest of harbour, is just north of the east entrance to the
Strait 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 ...
.
History
![1890s G Washington Wilson View from New Mole](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/1890s_G_Washington_Wilson_View_from_New_Mole.jpg)
The South Mole at Gibraltar Harbour is one of a trio of breakwaters that provides protection to the harbour, in addition to that which results from the presence of the
Rock of Gibraltar
The Rock of Gibraltar (from the Arabic name Jabel-al-Tariq) is a monolithic limestone promontory located in the British territory of Gibraltar, near the southwestern tip of Europe on the Iberian Peninsula, and near the entrance to the Mediterr ...
on its east side. The South Mole is positioned at the southwestern aspect of the harbour, and is in length. The
Gibdock shipyard and Royal Naval base are also in the southern section of the harbour,
the wharfage of the shipyard including of the South Mole. Repair berths along the breakwater can accommodate vessels up to 150,000
deadweight tonnage
Deadweight tonnage (also known as deadweight; abbreviated to DWT, D.W.T., d.w.t., or dwt) or tons deadweight (DWT) is a measure of how much weight a ship can carry. It is the sum of the weights of cargo, fuel, fresh water, ballast water, provi ...
(dwt). During construction in the 1880s, a railway and two new tunnels were created to take large quantities of quarried stone to assist in the Mole's creation. One of these tunnels was by
Camp Bay and the other was under the
Parson's Lodge Battery
Parson's Lodge Battery is a coastal battery and fort in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar.
History
The Moors had been in Gibraltar, and the Spanish had occupied The Rock for over 250 years. In 1704, the British took possession and ...
.
The north end of the South Mole, its "A" Head, is the site of the
Gibraltar South Mole Lighthouse. The location gives the tower its alternate name of the Gibraltar "A" Head Lighthouse. Its
light characteristic
A light characteristic is all of the properties that make a particular navigational light identifiable. Graphical and textual descriptions of navigational light sequences and colours are displayed on nautical charts and in Light Lists with the cha ...
is a quick, flashing white light, with a range of fifteen
nautical mile
A nautical mile is a unit of length used in air, marine, and space navigation, and for the definition of territorial waters. Historically, it was defined as the meridian arc length corresponding to one minute ( of a degree) of latitude. Today ...
s. The black, cast-iron, skeletal tower continues to be active as an
aid to navigation
In international relations, aid (also known as international aid, overseas aid, foreign aid, economic aid or foreign assistance) is – from the perspective of governments – a voluntary transfer of resources from one country to another.
Ai ...
and is operated by the Gibraltar Port Authority.
The south entrance to Gibraltar Harbour, between the "A" Head of the South Mole and the "B" Head of the
Detached Mole, is controlled by the Queen's
Harbourmaster
A harbourmaster (or harbormaster, see spelling differences) is an official responsible for enforcing the regulations of a particular harbour or port, in order to ensure the safety of navigation, the security of the harbour and the correct operat ...
. Berths utilised by U.S. Navy ships on the South Mole include Piers 48, 49, and 50.
The South Mole was formerly known as the New Mole and New Mole Extension, to distinguish it from the Old Mole at the northeastern corner of the harbour. Construction of the New Mole was begun by the Spanish in 1620.
It underwent extension a variety of times, eventually reaching a length of . It was built of rubble stone. The New Mole Extension was added about the turn of the twentieth century. The extension, together with the New Mole length of , resulted in a total length of for the New Mole and New Mole Extension together, by 1911.
This is more than the length indicated by the Gibraltar Port Authority one hundred years later, in 2011.
In 1916, the length of the south entrance to the harbour was reported to be . At that time, coal stores lined almost the entire length of the South Mole.
SS Rosslyn
In January 1916, the SS Rosslyn, a more than 3,600 ton steamship commanded by Captain William Fishey, departed from Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
, England. The ship was 340 feet long and built in 1902. After the ship's cargo was unloaded at Muros
Muros may refer to:
*Muros, A Coruña, a municipality in the province of A Coruña in the autonomous community of Galicia, Spain
* Muros, Sardinia, a comune in the province of Sassari in the region Sardini, Italy
* Muros (comarca), a comarca in the ...
, Spain, the captain was directed to set a course for Gibraltar, where he was instructed to anchor off the South Mole, outside the harbour. After an uneventful week at anchor, the weather changed for the worse on 27 February 1916. The following day, gale-force winds repeatedly dashed the ship against the recently completed South Mole. Despite the efforts of tugs provided by the Royal Navy and the Gibraltar Harbour authority, the ship sank off the South Mole. The ''Gibraltar Chronicle
The ''Gibraltar Chronicle'' is a national newspaper published in Gibraltar since 1801. It became a daily in 1821. It is Gibraltar's oldest established daily newspaper and the world's second oldest English language newspaper to have been in pri ...
'' of 1 March 1916 reported:
The SS Rosslyn was the largest wreck in Gibraltar and is now a popular site with divers.[
]
References
External links
{{Buildings in Gibraltar, state=autocollapse
Buildings and structures in Gibraltar
Breakwaters