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Ravenspurn

Coastal erosion in the United KingdomEast Riding of Yorkshire geography stubsHoldernessLost villages and towns of the East Riding of YorkshireUnderwater ruins
United Kingdom geography stubsUse British English from June 2015
Henry of Lancaster's cross, C.W. Mason
Henry of Lancaster's cross, C.W. Mason

Ravenspurn was a town in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, which was lost due to coastal erosion, one of more than 30 along the Holderness Coast which have been lost to the North Sea since the 19th century. The town was located close to the end of a peninsula near Ravenser Odd, which had been flooded in the 14th century. The peninsula still survives and is known as Spurn Head. The North Sea lies to the east of the peninsula, the Humber estuary to the west. The nearest major city was Kingston upon Hull. The region of coastline is known as the Holderness Coast; geologically the land is formed of glacial tills (boulder clay), which are subject to coastal erosion. Now at sea, areas around the site are being drilled for natural gas. Ravenspurn appears in William Shakespeare's plays Richard II, Henry IV, Part 1, and Henry VI, Part 3, under the spelling "Ravenspurgh". Two medieval English kings landed at Ravenspurn: Henry IV in 1399, on his way to dethrone Richard II, and Edward IV in 1471, on his way back from exile in the Netherlands, where he was resisted by the local lord, Sir Martin de la See.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Ravenspurn (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

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N 53.60278 ° E 0.167357 °
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England



England, United Kingdom
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Henry of Lancaster's cross, C.W. Mason
Henry of Lancaster's cross, C.W. Mason
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Nearby Places

Ravenser Odd
Ravenser Odd

Ravenser Odd, also spelled Ravensrodd, was a port in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, during the medieval period, built on the sandbanks at the mouth of the Humber estuary. The name Ravenser comes from the Old Norse Hrafn's Eyr or 'Raven's Ear' referring to the lost sandbank promontory, the modern successor of which is now known as Spurn Point. The town was founded by the Count of Aumale in the mid-13th century, and had more than 100 houses and a flourishing market by 1 April 1299, when it was granted a borough charter. The town had wharves, warehouses, a court and a prison. It collected dues from more than 100 merchant ships a year. In the 13th century the town was a more important port than Kingston upon Hull further up the Humber, and sent two members to the Model Parliament of 1295. As the sandbanks shifted the town was swept away. The king granted them quayage, providing them funds to repair their damaged quay, in 1329, 1333, 1335, 1340, 1344, and 1347. An inquisition held in 1346 determined ongoing flood damage was so severe that only 1/3 of the townsfolk remained. Storms over the winter of 1356–57 completely flooded the town, leading to its abandonment, and it was largely destroyed by the Grote Mandrenke storm or Saint Marcellus's flood of January 1362. The site is now completely underwater. In 2022 the site was being searched for off Spurn Point, with hope that the foundations of the seawall and harbour would still remain.

Easington, East Riding of Yorkshire
Easington, East Riding of Yorkshire

Easington is a small village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, in the area known as Holderness. A coastal settlement, it is situated between the Humber estuary and the North Sea at the south-eastern corner of the county, and at the end of the B1445 road from Patrington. The coastal town of Withernsea is approximately 6 miles (10 km) to the north-west. The civil parish is formed by the village of Easington and the hamlets of Kilnsea, Out Newton and Spurn Head. Bull Sand Fort is administered as part of the parish. According to the 2011 UK Census, Easington parish had a population of 691, a small decrease on the 2001 UK Census figure of 698. The parish church of All Saints' is a Grade I listed building. In 1823 the ecclesiastical parish incumbency was a perpetual curacy under the patronage of the Archbishop of York. The parish had a population of 488, with occupations that included a butcher, a corn miller, a weaver, two blacksmiths, two wheelwrights, two grocers, three shoemakers, four tailors, twelve farmers, two schoolmasters, a land surveyor, a yeoman, and the landlord of the Granby's Head public house. There were two carriers who operated between the village and Hull weekly. Many years ago, the parish of Easington included Turmarr, Hoton, Northorpe, Dimlington, Old Kilnsea and Ravenser. These villages have been lost to the ever-encroaching sea, and some had disappeared as early as 1400. The thatched tithe barn is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a Grade II* listed building, having been designated in 1987. Easington is significant for being the birthplace of the Anglo-Canadian poet and literary scholar, Robin Skelton (1925–97).