The River Avon ( ) is in the south of England, rising in

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

, flowing through that county's city of

Salisbury Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...

and then west

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

, before reaching the

English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...

through

Christchurch Harbour Christchurch Harbour is a Harbor, natural harbour in the county of Dorset, on the south coast of England named after the nearby town of Christchurch, Dorset, Christchurch. Two rivers, the River Avon, Hampshire, Avon and the River Stour, Dorset ...

in the

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) is a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Dorset, England. It was created in 2019 and covers much of the area of the South Ea ...

conurbation of

Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...

. It is sometimes known as the Salisbury Avon or the Hampshire Avon to distinguish it from other rivers of the same name in Great Britain. It is one of the rivers in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

in which the phenomenon of anchor ice has been observed. The Avon is thought to contain more species of fish than any other river in Britain. Long-farmed pastures and planted, arable fields line much of the valley; an indication of the wealth these brought to landowners is in ten large listed houses with statutorily recognised and protected parks. Many prehistoric sites and broader "landscapes" are found on either side of the river, the largest being the World Heritage Site zone of

Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (WHS) in Wiltshire, England. The WHS covers two large areas of land separated by about , rather than a specific monument or building. The sites were inscribed as co-listing ...

, followed by the

Old Sarum Old Sarum, in Wiltshire, South West England, is the ruined and deserted site of the earliest settlement of Salisbury. Situated on a hill about north of modern Salisbury near the A345 road, the settlement appears in some of the earliest recor ...

knoll fortification and the Thornham Down prehistoric and medieval landscape.

Etymology

The river's name is a tautology: ''Avon'' is the Proto-Brythonic word meaning "river".

Course

The Avon begins as two separate bodies of water. The western arm rises to the east of

Devizes Devizes () is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It developed around Devizes Castle, an 11th-century Norman architecture, Norman castle, and received a charter in 1141. The castle was besieged during the Anarchy, a 12th-cent ...

, draining the

Vale of Pewsey The Vale of Pewsey or Pewsey Vale is an area of Wiltshire, England to the east of Devizes and south of Marlborough, centred on the village of Pewsey. Geography The vale is an extent of lower lying ground separating the chalk downs of Salisbury ...

, and is joined by Etchilhampton Water which rises in the Bishops Cannings area and flows south past Etchilhampton and through Patney. The eastern arm rises at Easton Royal, east of

Pewsey Pewsey is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish at the centre of the Vale of Pewsey in Wiltshire, about south of Marlborough, Wiltshire, Marlborough and west of London. It is within reach of the M4 motorway and the A303 and i ...

, and is joined by the Woodborough Stream which rises at Alton Priors and flows south through Woodborough and North Newnton. The two branches merge at Upavon, flowing southwards across

Salisbury Plain Salisbury Plain is a chalk plateau in southern England covering . It is part of a system of chalk downlands throughout eastern and southern England formed by the rocks of the Chalk Group and largely lies within the county of Wiltshire, but st ...

through Durrington,

Amesbury Amesbury () is a town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It is known for the prehistoric monument of Stonehenge which is within the parish. The town is claimed to be the oldest occupied settlement in Great Britain, having been first settl ...

and

. To the south of Salisbury the river enters the Hampshire Basin, flowing along the western edge of the

New Forest The New Forest is one of the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, heathland and forest in Southern England, covering southwest Hampshire and southeast Wiltshire. It was proclaimed a royal forest by William the Conqueror, featu ...

through Fordingbridge and Ringwood, meeting up with the River Stour at

Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...

, to flow into

. The harbour opens into the

past a cluster of small mouths of brooks from the New Forest and a broad sandbank, which is all built up as the Mudeford part of the harbour. All the significant direct and indirect tributaries of the Avon, including the Nadder, Wylye, Bourne and Ebble, converge within a short distance around Salisbury. A short distance north from the river's western source is Morgan's Hill, which marks the hydrological triple divide of Great Britain, where rainfall drains into the English Channel (via this River Avon), the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

(via the Bristol Avon and

Severn Estuary The Severn Estuary () is the estuary of the River Severn, flowing into the Bristol Channel between South West England (from North Somerset, Bristol and South Gloucestershire) and South Wales (from Cardiff, Newport to Monmouthshire). Its very h ...

) and the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

(via the Kennet and

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...

). About half of the river is in Wiltshire; the rest is split between Hampshire and (since the 1974 boundary changes) Dorset. As two Avons drain parts of Wiltshire, the river is popularly known as the Hampshire Avon or the Salisbury Avon (and the other as the Bristol Avon).

17th-century navigation

Construction of a

navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the motion, movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navig ...

from Salisbury to

was authorised by the River Avon Navigation (Christchurch to New Sarum) Act 1664 ( 16 & 17 Cha. 2. c. 12). Work began in 1675 and the route was completed in 1684, but it fell out of use around 1715. Canalised channels were dug to straighten sections of the river, including one through Britford parish just below Salisbury; a lock survives on this section near Longford Castle, having been rebuilt in brick as a pound lock soon after the original

flash lock A flash lock is a type of lock (water transport), lock for river or canal transport. Early locks were designed with a single gate, known as a flash lock or staunch lock. The earliest European references to what were clearly flash locks were in ...

was damaged by flooding in the early 18th century.

Paths

The Pewsey Avon Trail follows much of the river from Pewsey to Salisbury, using pre-existing rights of way. The Avon Valley Path follows the river between Salisbury and Christchurch.

Rights of way

Canoeists seeking lawful passage as high as Salisbury have attempted to invoke the 1644 Navigation Act in their favour. However, the Act was subject to enabling works, most of which were never completed, hence the right is disputed. Responsibility for delivery was given to private undertakers in the names of Hodges, Bennett and Dennett, who were to fund the canalisation between the places. They were allowed to charge their investment at 10% interest rate and could take full commercial advantage, which tripartite agreements from 1684 and 1685 evidence. The House of Commons Journal of 31 January 1699 records that the freeholders, inhabitants and residents of Ibsley and Fordingbridge petitioned the House on the fact that they could not comply with the 1664 Act and were never likely to do so. The House sided with them and effectively declared its view of the law, the finality of which, lacking

royal assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in othe ...

, the law of rights of way is unclear on but makes more likely the view that the Act became

voidable Voidable, in law, is a transaction or action that is valid but may be annulled by one of the parties to the transaction. Voidable is usually used in distinction to void ''ab initio'' (or void from the outset) and unenforceable. Definition The a ...

as the works to canalise the Avon were never implemented. Indecisive court cases were brought in 1737 and 1772 to enforce the alleged but not exercised right (to benefit barge owners).

Landowner's houses with parkland

The valley from north to south has the following houses with large parks and gardens, significantly funded in their original form by the rich, mixed agriculture from the little-wooded upper valley plains and sides: * Conock Manor, Chirton *

Amesbury Abbey Amesbury Abbey was a Benedictine abbey of women at Amesbury in Wiltshire, England, founded by Queen Ælfthryth in about the year 979 on what may have been the site of an earlier monastery. The abbey was dissolved in 1177 by Henry II, who founded ...

* Lake House, Wilsford *Heale House, Middle Woodford *

Wilton House Wilton House is an English country house at Wilton near Salisbury in Wiltshire, which has been the country seat of the Earls of Pembroke for over 400 years. It was built on the site of the medieval Wilton Abbey. Following the dissolution ...

(including orangery, loggietta, whispering seat, classical bridges, follies, columns, Holbein porch,

James Wyatt James Wyatt (3 August 1746 – 4 September 1813) was an English architect, a rival of Robert Adam in the Neoclassicism, neoclassical and neo-Gothic styles. He was elected to the Royal Academy of Arts in 1785 and was its president from 1805 to ...

architecture) * Longford Castle (including two listed bridges over the river, parterre, statues of fame and Diana) * Trafalgar Park, Downton (including chapel) * Hale Park (includes lodge, barns and granaries) * Breamore House (includes tower, and museum cottage) * Somerley (includes salmon huts, farmhouses and extensive water meadows) * Avon Tyrrell House, Sopley (includes lodge and gazebo)

Scheduled monument landscapes

The largest of this type is England's main

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

of this category, which includes

Stonehenge Stonehenge is a prehistoric Megalith, megalithic structure on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, to ...

. Others include massive earthworks at

, and across the larger, separate Thornham Down area.

Settlements

Wiltshire

* Upavon * East and West Chisenbury * Enford * Coombe * Fittleton * Haxton *

Netheravon Netheravon is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish on the River Avon (Hampshire), River Avon and A345 road, about north of the town of Amesbury in Wiltshire, South West England. It is within Salisbury Plain. The village is on ...

* Figheldean * Milston * Durrington *

Bulford Bulford is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Wiltshire, England, near Salisbury Plain. The village is close to Durrington, Wiltshire, Durrington and about north of the town of Amesbury. The Bulford Camp army base is sep ...

West Amesbury West is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some Romance langu ...

* Wilsford cum Lake * Great Durnford * The Woodfords * Little Durnford * Stratford-sub-Castle *

* Britford * Bodenham * Charlton All Saints * Downton

Hampshire

* Breamore * Burgate * Fordingbridge * Bickton * Ibsley * Ringwood * Sopley

Dorset

* St Ives * Burton * Fairmile *

Designations

In 1993 the Avon valley in Hampshire between Bickton (downstream of Fordingbridge) and

was designated as a

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

(SSSI). In 1996 almost the entire river, from Patney (Wiltshire) to Christchurch, together with its tributaries the Wylye, Nadder, Bourne and Dockens Water, was designated as the River Avon System SSSI.

Conservation initiatives in the 2000s

A four-year project called STREAM began in September 2005. This £1 million project was designed to benefit the habitats of species such as water-crowfoot,

Atlantic salmon The Atlantic salmon (''Salmo salar'') is a species of ray-finned fish in the family Salmonidae. It is the third largest of the Salmonidae, behind Hucho taimen, Siberian taimen and Pacific Chinook salmon, growing up to a meter in length. Atlan ...

, brook lamprey,

sea lamprey The sea lamprey (''Petromyzon marinus'') is a parasitic lamprey native to the Northern Hemisphere. It is sometimes referred to as the "vampire fish". It was likely introduced to the Great Lakes region through the Erie Canal in 1825 and the Wel ...

, bullhead, Desmoulin's whorl snail,

gadwall The gadwall (''Mareca strepera'') is a common and widespread dabbling duck in the family Anatidae. Taxonomy The gadwall was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. DNA studies have shown th ...

and '' Cygnus columbianus'' (Berwick's swan). A sister project called Living River ran from 2006 to 2010, aiming to providing better access and recreation, as well as aid biodiversity. Both these projects were shortlisted for the 200
Thiess International Riverprize
competing against four other projects: the

Yellow River The Yellow River, also known as Huanghe, is the second-longest river in China and the List of rivers by length, sixth-longest river system on Earth, with an estimated length of and a Drainage basin, watershed of . Beginning in the Bayan H ...

in China,

Lake Simcoe Lake Simcoe is a lake in southern Ontario, Canada, the fourth-largest lake wholly within the province, after Lake Nipigon, Lac Seul, and Lake Nipissing. At the time of the first European contact in the 17th century, the lake was called ''Ouentir ...

in Canada, the Polochic Basin in Guatemala and the Lower Owens River in the USA. The prize for 2009 was awarded to Lake Simcoe.2009 International Theiss River''prize''
/ref>

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Avon, Hampshire Rivers of Dorset Rivers of Hampshire Rivers of Wiltshire Nature Conservation Review sites Rivers of Christchurch, Dorset Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Hampshire Ramsar sites in England 1Avon