Whale Island is a small island in
Portsmouth Harbour, close by
Portsea Island. It is home to
HMS ''Excellent'', the oldest shore training establishment within the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
, and the location of the
Navy Command Headquarters. The island is linked to Portsea Island and thence to the mainland by road bridges.
Early history
Ordnance Survey
The Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see Artillery, ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of ...
maps of Portsmouth Harbour from 1862 show Whale Island as a narrow strip: its east-to-west dimensions were similar to present times, but north to south it measured only tens of yards. To its northwest was Little Whale Island.
[Maps, documents and photographs on display in the Quarterdeck building, HMS Excellent.] Modern Whale Island is predominantly
reclaimed land, using the deposits dredged from Portsmouth harbour during the 19th century, increasing the land area by about 125%. It was constructed with the help of the many prisoners taken in the
Napoleonic Wars
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Napoleonic Wars
, partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars
, image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg
, caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
.
Expansion
During 1867 a
viaduct was constructed from the north wall of the dockyard to the south-east corner of Big Whale Island which allowed spoil to be moved from dredging the docks (part of the expansion of
HMNB Portsmouth
His Majesty's Naval Base, Portsmouth (HMNB Portsmouth) is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy (the others being HMNB Clyde and HMNB Devonport). Portsmouth Naval Base is part of the city of Portsmouth; it is loc ...
), reclaiming the land between Big Whale Island and Little Whale Island, forming the basis of the island as it is today.
The railway which ran on the viaduct was extended around the island to help with the distribution of the spoil and much of the track is still present today, buried under the roads. Manual construction work was mostly undertaken by convicts; a favourable assignment because of the extra food.
By 1885 the island had five rifle ranges, but three of these were soon decommissioned to make room for the Gun Drill Battery and Drill Ground (today this is the Summer Parade Ground).
Photos on display in Whale Island Quarterdeck (constructed 1888) show that a footbridge to Stamshaw,
Portsea Island, was added sometime before 1898 (incorporating a swing-bridge). A small road-bridge now joins the islands at the same point.
From September 1916, the island was home to the
Anti-Aircraft Experimental Section.
Before
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
Whale Island was home to a zoo which gave a home to several animals presented to British representatives by friendly countries.
Ceremony
The gun carriage that carries the coffin in
British state funerals is maintained on Whale Island.
Visiting
HMS ''Excellent'' is an active naval base so it is not open to the general public, but there are occasional open days
HMS Excellent Opened to the Public, Navy News
/ref> and prospective visitors are advised to contact the base.
References
{{coord, 50, 49, N, 1, 06, W, display=title, region:GB_type:isle_source:GNS-enwiki
Artificial islands of England
Islands of Hampshire
Portsmouth
Royal Navy bases in Hampshire