West Mersea Priory

West Mersea is a town and electoral ward in Essex, England. It is the larger (in terms of population) of two settlements on Mersea Island, south of Colchester.

West Mersea Yacht Club (WMYC) is a British yacht club that has its clubhouse in Coast Road, West Mersea, Mersea Island, Essex. It is on the estuary of the River Blackwater, approximately 12 km (7.5 mi) south of Colchester. The Blackwater estuary is a major sailing centre on the English east coast. Founded in 1899, the club has sponsored national and international yacht racing meetings. The club has competitive offshore racing fleets and run racing throughout the UK sailing season, a cadet week and an annual regatta during 'Mersea Week'. Of its many famous members, the most notable was probably Maurice Griffiths, the yacht designer and author. A club launch runs from Tuesdays to Sundays during the season; callsign on VHF Channel 37: YC1 (Why - See - One). The WMYC ensign is the Red Ensign defaced with three Saxon seaxes, the symbol of Essex.

West Mersea Lifeboat Station is located on the Coast Road in West Mersea, at the western end of Mersea Island, situated between the Blackwater and Colne river estuaries, 10 miles (16 km) south of Colchester, in the county of Essex. An Inshore lifeboat was first stationed at West Mersea by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in July 1963. The station currently operates a B-class (Atlantic 85) Inshore lifeboat, Just George (B-879), on station since 2014.

Barrow Hill is a hamlet in Essex, England. It is located on Mersea Island, approximately 2 km (1.2 mi) north-northeast of West Mersea near to where the Strood causeway meets the island. The hamlet is 33 km (21 mi) east-northeast of the county town, Chelmsford. Barrow Hill is in the borough of Colchester and in the parliamentary constituency of Harwich and North Essex. The population of the hamlet is included in the civil parish of West Mersea. It takes its name from a conspicuous Romano-British barrow.

Ray Island, also known as the Ray, is a 40.5-hectare (100-acre) nature reserve west of Mersea Island in Essex. It is owned by the National Trust, who bought it in 1970. It was leased by the National Trust to the Essex Wildlife Trust managed the site. Following the cessation of the lease associated with the associated with the island the National Trust has resumed responsibility for its management.

Mersea Island is an island in Essex, England, in the Blackwater and Colne estuaries to the south-east of Colchester. Its name comes from the Old English word meresig, meaning "island of the pool" and thus is tautological. The island is split into two main areas, West Mersea and East Mersea, and connected to the mainland by the Strood, a causeway that can flood at high tide. The island has been inhabited since pre-Roman times. It was used as a holiday destination in Roman Britain for occupants of Camulodunum (Colchester). Fishing has been a key industry on the island since then, particularly oysters, and along with tourism makes up a significant part of the island's economy. The Church of St Peter & St Paul in West Mersea is thought to have existed since the 7th century, while the Church of St Edmund in East Mersea dates from around the 12th or 13th century. The island became popular with smugglers from the 16th to the 19th century. It became a focal point for troops in both world wars, and a number of observation posts can still be found on the island. Tourism remains popular, and there are a number of beach huts and holiday parks on the island. A week-long festival of boat racing, Mersea Week, takes place every summer.

Great Cob island is a small island in the estuary of the River Blackwater in Essex, England, the United Kingdom. The island is an area of low-lying salt marsh in the tidal channel known as Virley Channel that runs to the east of the village of Tollesbury. Long and narrow in shape, it is around 900 metres (3,000 ft) in length and around 100 metres (330 ft) at its widest. It lies just to the south of the RSPB nature reserve of Old Hall Marshes.

Bradwell nuclear power station is a Magnox-design nuclear power station that is undergoing decommissioning. It is located on the Dengie peninsula at the mouth of the River Blackwater, Essex. In 2019, it was the first nuclear power station in the UK to be placed into long-term decommissioned management. As of 2016, China General Nuclear Power Group is considering Bradwell for the site of a new nuclear power station, named Bradwell B.

Bradwell B is a proposed nuclear power station at Bradwell-on-Sea in Essex, put forward by China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN). If constructed, the site will provide 2,200 MWe of nuclear power from two UK HPR1000 reactors developed by CGN and the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC). It will be located close to the decommissioned Bradwell nuclear power station.

Royal Air Force Bradwell Bay or more simply RAF Bradwell Bay is a former Royal Air Force station located 9.5 miles (15.3 km) east of Maldon, Essex, England and 3.1 miles (5 km) south west of West Mersea, Essex.

Peldon is a village and civil parish in the Colchester borough of Essex, England. With Salcott, Virley, Great Wigborough and Little Wigborough, it forms part of the Winstred Hundred parish council. Nearby villages include Langenhoe. The parish church is dedicated to St Mary the Virgin and is a Grade I listed building. The population of the parish as of the 2011 census is 559.In 1870-72 John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Peldon as: "Peldon, a parish and a sub-district in Lexden district, Essex. The parish lies near Mersea Island, 4½ miles S W of Wivenhoe r. station, and 5½ S by W of Colchester; and has a post-office under Colchester. Acres, 2,186. Real property, £3,591. Pop., 501. Houses, 106 The property is much subdivided."

The Colchester earthquake, also known as the Great English earthquake, occurred on the morning of 22 April 1884 at 09:18. It caused considerable damage in Colchester and the surrounding villages in Essex. In terms of overall destruction caused it is certainly the most destructive earthquake to have hit the United Kingdom in at least the last 400 years, since the Dover Straits earthquake of 1580.