title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: Jordan was the ranking member of the House Oversight Committee from 2019 to 2020. In February 2020, he left his position on the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and replaced Doug Collins on the United States House Committee on the Judiciary. Collins was required to step down from the committee post after launching his bid in the 2020–21 United States Senate special election in Georgia. Jordan was replaced on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform by Mark Meadows.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: Jordan's district has been redrawn over time to minimize urban area and increase rural area; it is now gerrymandered to avoid containing Toledo, Columbus or Cleveland (or their respective suburbs); it stretches from Lake Erie nearly to Dayton. A three-judge federal panel unanimously ruled in May 2019 that Ohio's congressional district map is unconstitutional due to partisan gerrymandering and ordered Ohio to create a new map in time for the 2020 election. But after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in "Rucho v. Common Cause" that courts could not review allegations of gerrymandering, the district boundaries will not change until congressional district maps are redrawn in 2022.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: In December 2021, the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack released the partial contents of a text message sent by an unnamed lawmaker to White House chief of staff Mark Meadows before the scheduled final certification of presidential electors on January 6, 2021. The excerpt read: "On January 6, 2021, Vice President Mike Pence, as President of the Senate, should call out all the electoral votes that he believes are unconstitutional as no electoral votes at all." The day after the release, Jordan acknowledged sending the message, but said he had merely forwarded it after receiving it from attorney Joseph Schmitz. Both Jordan and Meadows asserted that the committee had altered the context of the excerpt by misplacing a period.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: During the 114th Congress, Jordan and eight other members of Congress founded the House Freedom Caucus, a bloc of conservatives working "to advance an agenda of limited constitutional government" in Congress. He served as the group's first chair. The caucus was ultimately credited with pushing Speaker John Boehner into retirement.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: On May 2, 2014, Jordan introduced House Resolution 565, "Calling on Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr., to appoint a special counsel to investigate the targeting of conservative nonprofit groups by the Internal Revenue Service". It passed on May 7, 2014. Holder, who had been previously been found to be in contempt of Congress, failed to appoint a special counsel to investigate the alleged procedural abuses of IRS employees, including Lois Lerner.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: In March 2017, Jordan criticized the newly introduced American Health Care Act, the Republican replacement bill for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, calling it an unacceptable form of "Obamacare Lite". On May 4, 2017, he voted to pass a revised version of the legislation.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: On June 13, 2018, Jordan and Representative Mark Meadows filed a resolution to compel the Department of Justice to provide certain documents to Congress relating to the ongoing congressional investigations of Russian interference in the 2016 election. The resolution asserted that the DOJ was stonewalling congressional oversight and sought to give the DOJ seven days from its enactment to turn over documents related to both Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein's appointment of Special Counsel Robert Mueller as well as various decisions made by the FBI during the 2016 presidential election. Jordan issued a press release that stated: This resolution gives the DOJ seven days to turn over the documents that they owe Congress. Rod Rosenstein threatened congressional staff. When the bully picks on your little brother, you have to respond. It's time for House Leadership to stand up and pass this resolution.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: On July 25, 2018, Jordan and Meadows introduced articles of impeachment against Rosenstein, whom they accused of "intentionally withholding embarrassing documents and information, knowingly hiding material investigative information from Congress, various abuses of the FISA process, and failure to comply with congressional subpoenas". Jordan stated that impeachment was necessary because: The DOJ is keeping information from Congress. Enough is enough. It's time to hold Mr. Rosenstein accountable for blocking Congress's constitutional oversight role.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: Jordan and Representative Warren Davidson were the only members of Ohio's congressional delegation and two of 60 members of Congress to vote in October 2019 against a bipartisan resolution that passed the House 354–60 condemning President Donald Trump's unilateral withdrawal of U.S. military forces from Syria.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: According to "The Dayton Daily News", Jordan "is known for being one of Congress' most conservative members".


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: Jordan has earned a perfect score from the American Conservative Union. He has voted consistently for anti-abortion legislation and was endorsed by Ohio Right to Life in 2012. During the 112th Congress, he was one of 40 "staunch" members of the Republican Study Committee who frequently voted against Republican party leadership and vocally expressed displeasure with House bills.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: Jordan was a leading critic of President Barack Obama's Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) program, advocating for its shutdown.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: Jordan, along with all other Senate and House Republicans, voted against the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: Jordan has been a stalwart supporter and close ally of Trump. Asked by Anderson Cooper in April 2018 whether he had ever heard Trump tell a lie, Jordan said "I have not" and "nothing comes to mind". He also said, "I don't know that [Trump has ever] said something wrong that he needs to apologize for."


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: In December 2017, Jordan sought to discredit the FBI and Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Jordan questioned Mueller's impartiality, and called on Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein to use his authority to disband the Mueller investigation or create a second special counsel to simultaneously investigate Mueller himself. Rosenstein rejected the request, saying that he could not appoint another special counsel as there was no credible allegation of a potential crime. "The New York Times" reported that Republicans were increasingly criticizing Mueller's investigation after it "delivered a series of indictments to high-profile associates of the president and evidence that at least two of them are cooperating with the inquiry". In July 2018, Jordan led efforts to impeach Rosenstein as a way to shut down the special counsel's investigation. During a hearing on July 12, 2018, Jordan repeatedly interrupted FBI agent Peter Strzok while Strzok tried to explain that he couldn't answer specific questions to preserve the confidentiality of an ongoing investigation. Jordan's behavior caused committee Democrats to protest his tactics and to allow Strzok to respond. They also objected to Jordan's exceeding his allowed time for questioning. House Judiciary Committee chairman Bob Goodlatte admonished Jordan for his repeated interruptions of the witness.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: In July 2018, Jordan and Mark Meadows called on the Department of Justice to "review allegations that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein threatened to subpoena phone records and documents from a House Intelligence Committee staffer". In their written request, the two wrote that in his use of investigative powers, Rosenstein had retaliated "against rank-and-file (congressional) staff members", thereby abusing his authority. Talking to John Catsimatidis on WNYM, Jordan said he would force a vote on Rosenstein's impeachment if the DOJ did not deliver documents Congress requested.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: In March 2019, House Judiciary chair Jerrold Nadler criticized Jordan for allegedly using anti-Semitic messaging by spelling 2020 presidential candidate Tom Steyer's name with a "$" in place of an "S" on Twitter while urging Nadler to resist calls for Trump's impeachment.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: During Mueller's testimony to two congressional committees on July 24, 2019, Jordan asked Mueller why he never charged Joseph Mifsud with lying to the FBI while George Papadopoulos was charged for lying about Mifsud. Jordan said: "Mifsud is the guy who told Papadopoulos [about Russian dirt]. He was the guy who started it all. Yet when the FBI interviews him, he lies three times; you don't charge him." Mueller responded, "Well, I can't get into it and it's obvious, I think, that we can't get into charging decisions."


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: On October 23, 2019, Jordan and two dozen other Republicans staged a protest that delayed a Trump impeachment inquiry hearing. The coordinated action disrupted the United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence where Republican and Democratic congressional members planned to take testimony from Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Laura Cooper. The group staged a sit-in outside the Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) hearing room. Some of the Republicans who participated already had access to the hearings since the members of the House Oversight, Intelligence and Foreign Affairs committees were welcome to attend and ask questions.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: Describing the sit-in, Jordan said, "The members have just had it, and they want to be able to see and represent their constituents and find out what's going on." The next day, he said on "Fox News", "Adam Schiff is doing this unfair, partisan process in secret and our members finally said, 'Enough'...We're so frustrated. They reached a boiling point and these guys marched in and said 'we want to know what's going on.'"


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson wrote to the House sergeant-at-arms about Jordan, Representative Bradley Byrne, and others, requesting that he take action regarding their "unprecedented breach of security". Senator Lindsey Graham admonished his House colleagues for their tactic, calling them "nuts" for having made a "run on the SCIF".


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: As the ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, during a July 2020 hearing with attorney general Bill Barr, Jordan presented a video montage that took statements by CNN reporters out of context to create the impression they were characterizing violent protests as "mostly peaceful".


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: In December 2020, Jordan was one of 126 Republican members of the House of Representatives to sign an amicus brief in support of "Texas v. Pennsylvania", a lawsuit filed at the United States Supreme Court contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which Joe Biden defeated Trump. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lacked standing under Article III of the Constitution to challenge the results of an election held by another state.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued a statement that called signing the amicus brief an act of "election subversion". She reprimanded Jordan and the other House members who supported the lawsuit: "The 126 Republican Members that signed onto this lawsuit brought dishonor to the House. Instead of upholding their oath to support and defend the Constitution, they chose to subvert the Constitution and undermine public trust in our sacred democratic institutions." New Jersey Representative Bill Pascrell, citing section three of the 14th Amendment, called for Pelosi to not seat Jordan and the other Republicans who signed the brief supporting the suit, arguing that "the text of the 14th Amendment expressly forbids Members of Congress from engaging in rebellion against the United States. Trying to overturn a democratic election and install a dictator seems like a pretty clear example of that."


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: On January 6-7, 2021, Jordan cast a vote to prevent the certification of the Electoral College in at least one state. He was one of the 139 representatives who voted to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Congress on January 7, 2021, the day after the storming of the Capitol. At a later virtual committee meeting, Jordan said the storming of the United States Capitol "was as wrong as wrong can be".


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: On January 11, 2021, Trump awarded Jordan the Presidential Medal of Freedom in a closed-door ceremony.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: Cassidy Hutchinson, a former aide to Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows, testified before the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack that Jordan had talked to the White House about presidential pardons for Republican members of Congress who participated in attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election. Hutchinson's allegations were never corroborated.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: Jordan opposes the Affordable Care Act, calling for it to be repealed. He opposes vaccine requirements, describing them as "un-American".


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: In July 2008, Jordan was the first member of Congress to sign the "No Climate Tax" pledge drafted by the conservative political advocacy group Americans for Prosperity.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: In Congress, Jordan voted to open the Outer Continental Shelf to oil drilling, prevent the EPA from regulating greenhouse gases, and bar greenhouse gases from Clean Air Act rules. He voted against enforcing limits on carbon dioxide global warming pollution, tax credits for renewable electricity, tax incentives for renewable energy and energy conservation, and curtailing subsidies for oil and gas company exploration.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: On July 12, 2022, Jordan tweeted a reply to the "Washington Examiner" stating the report of a 10-year-old Ohio girl traveling to Indiana to obtain a legal abortion was a lie. He deleted the tweet on July 13 after the perpetrator was arrested by police and confessed to raping the young girl twice, and police confirmed that the report of her obtaining an abortion in Indiana was accurate.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: Jordan, a noted critic of "Big Tech" companies, opposes proposals backed by many Democrats and some Republicans (such as Ken Buck) to break up these companies through antitrust enforcement.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: He argues that the Democratic Party is beholden to the interests of Big Tech companies and supports the online censorship of conservatives.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: While serving in the Ohio Senate, Jordan supported the Tax and Expenditure Limitation Amendment, a state constitutional amendment that would require a vote of the people to raise taxes or increase spending over certain limits.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: Jordan was among 60 Republicans to oppose condemning Trump's action of withdrawing forces from Syria. According to "The American Conservative", along with Matt Gaetz and a handful of Republicans, he broke with the party and voted to end Saudi assistance to the war in Yemen.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: In 2015, Jordan cosponsored a resolution to amend the US constitution to ban same-sex marriage. Jordan condemned the Supreme Court ruling in "Obergefell v. Hodges", which held that same-sex marriage bans violated the constitution.


title: Jim Jordan (American politician)

text: Jordan and his wife, Polly, live near Urbana in central Champaign County. They were introduced by her brothers, with whom Jordan competed in wrestling. Polly and Jordan started dating when he was 13 and she was 14. They have four children and two grandchildren. Jordan's son-in-law, Jarrod Uthoff, is a professional basketball player.


title: Chloe Bridges

text: Chloe Marisa Suazo Bridges, (born December 27, 1991), known professionally as Chloe Bridges, is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Zoey Moreno in the sitcom "Freddie" (2005–2006) and as Dana Turner in the Disney Channel original film "" (2010). She has starred in the films "Forget Me Not" (2009), "Family Weekend" (2013), "Mantervention" (2014), "The Final Girls" (2015), and "Nightlight" (2015). She has also portrayed Donna LaDonna in "The Carrie Diaries", Sydney in "Pretty Little Liars", and Kibby in "Daytime Divas".


title: Chloe Bridges

text: From 2005 until 2006, Bridges portrayed the role of Zoey Moreno in the ABC sitcom "Freddie", starring alongside Freddie Prinze Jr. For this role, she was credited under her birth name, Chloe Suazo. In 2006, she guest-starred as the character in an episode of "George Lopez". She has appeared in commercials for Adelphia and AT&T.


title: Chloe Bridges

text: Bridges originally auditioned for the role of Mitchie Torres in the first "Camp Rock" film, the role ultimately went to Demi Lovato. She also appeared in the 2009 films "Legally Blondes" and "Forget Me Not". She secured the role of Dana Turner in the sequel, "", which aired on Disney Channel in 2010. In March 2012, Bridges was cast as Donna LaDonna in The CW's "Sex and the City" prequel, titled "The Carrie Diaries", which aired from 2013 to 2014 over two seasons.


title: Chloe Bridges

text: In April 2014, she landed a recurring role in the fifth season of the ABC Family teen drama series "Pretty Little Liars" as Sydney Driscoll, the newest member of the swim team, who befriends Emily (Shay Mitchell). Bridges portrayed the supporting role of Paula in the horror comedy film "The Final Girls" (2015), and starred as Nia in the supernatural thriller film "Nightlight" (2015). The film, directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, was released on March 27, 2015. In August 2016, Bridges was cast as Kibby, a former child star and recovering addict, in VH1's scripted drama series "Daytime Divas", which premiered on June 5, 2017.


title: Chloe Bridges

text: In 2018, Bridges starred as recurring role of Roxy Buckley in the American dark-comedy television web series, "Insatiable".


title: Chloe Bridges

text: After meeting on the set of "The Final Girls" in 2014, Bridges began dating Adam DeVine in February 2015. In October 2019, the couple announced their engagement. The couple were married on October 9, 2021.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: The Mini-14 is a lightweight semi-automatic rifle manufactured by Sturm, Ruger & Co. Introduced in 1973, it is based on the M14 rifle and is essentially a scaled-down version chambered in 5.56×45mm NATO.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: It is made in a number of variants, including: the Ranch Rifle (a basic, civilian variant), the Mini-14 GB, and the Mini Thirty, which is chambered for 7.62×39mm. The rifle is currently used by military personnel, law-enforcement personnel, and civilians in the United States and around the world.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: Introduced in 1973 by Sturm, Ruger & Co., the Mini-14 resembles a smaller version of the military M14 rifle. Designed by L. James Sullivan and William B. Ruger, it incorporated numerous innovations and cost-saving engineering changes. The Mini-14 rifle has an investment-cast, heat-treated receiver and is mechanically similar to the M1 rifle, with a self-cleaning, fixed-piston gas system.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: Initial rifles were produced with a complex, exposed-bolt hold-open device with no button for manual engagement. Stocks were somewhat angular, and heat shields were made of wood. These rifles, with serial number prefixes before 181, were tooled and redesigned with a new stock, new bolt hold-open mechanism, and other small changes.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: The original Mini-14 rifle had a rear aperture sight with large protective wings and no integral scope bases. In 1982, Ruger introduced the Ranch Rifle with an integral scope base on the receiver, a new folding-aperture rear sight, and factory scope rings.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: In 1987, Ruger introduced the Mini Thirty rifle chambered for the Russian 7.62×39mm cartridge. At the time, large quantities of surplus military ammunition were being imported into the United States at rock-bottom prices. Also, the 7.62×39mm is ballistically similar to the .30-30 Winchester cartridge. As a result, the Mini Thirty proved to be an effective deer rifle.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: In 2003, the design was overhauled to improve accuracy, update the styling, and reduce production costs. The standard Mini-14 was discontinued and the name became the family name for all Mini-14-type rifles. As of 2005, all Mini-14-type rifles are based on the Ranch Rifle design, with integral scope bases, a nonfolding ghost ring aperture rear sight, and a winged front sight similar to that used on the Ruger Police Carbine. They have serial numbers beginning with 580 and are sometimes referred to as 580-series Ranch Rifles. They also have a new modified gas system designed to reduce barrel vibration and can shoot two-inch groups at 100 yards, which is 2 minute of angle (MOA) accuracy.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: Around 2007 or 2008, Ruger added a heavier, larger-diameter barrel visibly tapered from gas block to muzzle. These changes combined with tighter tolerances result in greater potential accuracy.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: All Mini-14-type rifles are available in stainless steel or blued finish with hardwood, synthetic, or laminated stocks with or barrels.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: The Ranch Rifle is a basic model offered in a wood or synthetic rifle stock paired with a blued or stainless steel receiver and a standard 18.5" tapered barrel (1:9" RH twist rate). These rifles feature an adjustable ghost ring rear sight and winged front sight, and they are sold with a detachable Picatinny scope rail mount and a choice of two 20-round or 5-round detachable box magazines to comply with some U.S. states and other countries, which have laws restricting magazine capacity. All models are chambered in both .223 Remington and 5.56×45mm NATO ammunition except the Target Rifle variant (which is .223 only).


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: Introduced in 2007, the "Target Rifle" version has a cold hammer-forged heavy barrel, adjustable harmonic tuner with adjustable MOA accuracy, and either a laminated wood or Hogue overmolded synthetic stock. The Target Rifle does not have iron sights but includes the standard scope rings and Picatinny rail mount. It is designed for use with the .223 Remington round only; 5.56 NATO is not warranted by Ruger.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: Introduced in 2009, the "Tactical Rifle" is the newest variant, which includes the shorter 16.12" barrel with flash suppressor, and is available with a standard fixed stock/fore end, or a collapsible ATI-brand stock with Picatinny rails. This model is chambered in both .223 Remington/5.56×45mm NATO and .300 AAC Blackout as of 2015.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: In 1987, Ruger began production of the Mini Thirty, which is chambered for the Russian 7.62×39mm cartridge, used in the SKS and AK-47, as many states prohibit hunting of deer with calibers smaller than 6 mm (.243 in). The 7.62×39mm has ballistics similar to the well-known .30-30 Winchester. The Mini Thirty is available with a 16.12" (Tactical Model) or 18.50" barrel having a twist rate of 1:10" RH, and is sold with two 20-round or 5-round box magazines. Ruger does not currently produce 30-round Mini Thirty magazines. The Mini Thirty shares many of the same design and accessory options with those of the smaller caliber Mini-14 Ranch Rifle.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: The "Mini Thirty Tactical Rifle" variant was introduced in 2010. It closely mimics the Mini-14 Tactical Rifle variant, but in 7.62x39mm. It also has a shorter 16.12" barrel with flash suppressor, and is available with a standard fixed stock/fore end, or a collapsible ATI-brand stock with Picatinny rails.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: The Mini-14 GB ("government barrel") models feature either a pistol grip, side-folding stock, or a standard semipistol grip rifle stock, a 20- or 30-round magazine, bayonet lug, threaded barrel, and flash suppressor. Proof that GB stands for "government barrel" and not "government bayonet" can be seen in Ruger's new Tactical models and Ruger continuing to use "GB", which are catalogued for example KM-14/20GBCP. These models have no bayonet lug but do have the flash hider. Sales of the models with bayonet lug were intended only for law enforcement, military, and private security markets, and could only be found in Ruger's Law Enforcement Catalog. Many have entered the civilian market, though.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: Introduced in 1979, the AC-556 is a selective-fire version of the Mini-14 marketed for military and law-enforcement use. The design incorporates a selector on the right/rear of the receiver to select either semiautomatic, three-round burst, or full automatic fire modes; the manual safety at the front of the trigger guard operates the same as a standard Mini-14. The front sight is winged and incorporates a bayonet lug. The or barrel incorporates a flash suppressor, which can be used to launch approved tear-gas and smoke rifle grenades. A folding stock was used on the AC-556F and AC-556K. The rifle came equipped with 20-round magazines and a 30-round version was available for a time. The AC-556 was dropped from production in 1999 and Ruger stopped offering service for the rifle in 2009. By that time, some models became available for private civilian purchase in the NFA market.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: In France, the AC-556 is known as the Mousqueton A.M.D. where it was used by several governmental agencies within the French Interior Ministry: the Police Aux Frontières ("P.A.F."—Border Police), the Police Nationale Compagnies Républicaines de Sécurité (or "C.R.S."—Riot Control Brigade), and the Groupe d'Intervention de la Gendarmerie Nationale ("GIGN") special-operations unit. The A.M.D. was made in two versions, the first has the standard Ruger aperture rear sight. On the other, the aperture rear sight has been completely removed and replaced with a tangent rear sight located on top of the barrel just forward of the receiver.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: A small number of straight-pull only (or bolt-action only) Mini-14 and Mini Thirty rifles were manufactured for sale in the United Kingdom as a result of legislation that banned semiautomatic centerfire rifles in 1988.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: Ruger produced a .222 Remington caliber model as early as 1984. Designated Mini-14/5R.222, these rifles were made mostly for civilian markets overseas where .223 caliber and 5.56 mm firearms are generally banned. These were discontinued in the early 1980s.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: In 2007, Ruger began production of the Mini-6.8 using the commercial 6.8 mm Remington SPC cartridge. However, they were discontinued in 2012 and are no longer listed in the Ruger catalog.


title: Ruger Mini-14

text: A wide range of aftermarket accessories are available for the Mini-14 and Mini Thirty, including numerous stocks, magazines, and Weaver and Picatinny rail mounts.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth is the most densely populated city in the United Kingdom, with a population last recorded at 208,100. Portsmouth is located south-west of London and south-east of Southampton. Portsmouth is mostly located on Portsea Island; the only English city not on the mainland of Great Britain. Portsea Island has the third highest population in the British Isles after the islands of Great Britain and Ireland. Portsmouth also forms part of the regional South Hampshire conurbation, which includes the city of Southampton and the boroughs of Eastleigh, Fareham, Gosport, Havant and Waterlooville.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth is one of the world's best known ports, its history can be traced to Roman times and has been a significant Royal Navy dockyard and base for centuries. Portsmouth was first established as a town with a royal charter on 2 May 1194. Portsmouth was England's first line of defence during an attempted French invasion in 1545 at the Battle of the Solent, famously notable for the sinking of the carrack "Mary Rose" and witnessed by King Henry VIII of England from Southsea Castle. Portsmouth has the world's oldest dry dock, ""The Great Stone Dock""; originally built in 1698, rebuilt in 1769 and presently known as "No.5 Dock". The world's first mass production line was established at the naval base's Block Mills which produced pulley blocks for the Royal Navy fleet. By the early-19th century, Portsmouth was the most heavily fortified city in the world, and was considered "the world's greatest naval port" at the height of the British Empire throughout "Pax Britannica". By 1859, a ring of defensive land and sea forts, known as the Palmerston Forts had been built around Portsmouth in anticipation of an invasion from continental Europe.


title: Portsmouth

text: In the 20th century, Portsmouth achieved city status on 21 April 1926. During the Second World War, the city was a pivotal embarkation point for the D-Day landings and was bombed extensively in the Portsmouth Blitz, which resulted in the deaths of 930 people. In 1982, a large Royal Navy task force departed from Portsmouth for the Falklands War. Her Majesty's Yacht "Britannia" was formerly based in Portsmouth and oversaw the transfer of Hong Kong in 1997, after which, Britannia was retired from royal service, decommissioned and relocated to Leith as a museum ship.


title: Portsmouth

text: HMNB Portsmouth is an operational Royal Navy base and is home to two-thirds of the UK's surface fleet. The base has long been nicknamed Pompey, a nickname it shares with the wider city of Portsmouth and Portsmouth Football Club. The naval base also contains the National Museum of the Royal Navy and Portsmouth Historic Dockyard; which has a collection of historic warships, including the "Mary Rose", Lord Nelson's flagship, (the world's oldest naval ship still in commission), and , the Royal Navy's first ironclad warship.


title: Portsmouth

text: The former shore establishment has been redeveloped into a large retail outlet destination known as Gunwharf Quays which opened in 2001. Portsmouth is among the few British cities with two cathedrals: the Anglican Cathedral of St Thomas and the Roman Catholic Cathedral of St John the Evangelist. The waterfront and Portsmouth Harbour are dominated by the Spinnaker Tower, one of the United Kingdom's tallest structures at .


title: Portsmouth

text: Southsea is Portsmouth's seaside resort, which was named after Southsea Castle. Southsea has two piers; Clarence Pier amusement park and South Parade Pier. The world's only regular hovercraft service operates from Southsea Hoverport to Ryde on the Isle of Wight. Southsea Common is a large open-air public recreation space which serves as a venue for a wide variety of annual events.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth F.C. is the city's professional association football club and play their home games at Fratton Park. The city has several mainline railway stations that connect to London Victoria and London Waterloo amongst other lines in southern England. Portsmouth International Port is a commercial cruise ship and ferry port for international destinations. The port is the second busiest in the United Kingdom after Dover, handling around three million passengers a year. The city formerly had its own airport, Portsmouth Airport, until its closure in 1973. The University of Portsmouth enrols 23,000 students and is ranked among the world's best modern universities.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth is the birthplace of notable people such as author Charles Dickens, engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel, former Prime Minister James Callaghan, actor Peter Sellers and author-journalist Christopher Hitchens.


title: Portsmouth

text: The Romans built Portus Adurni, a fort, at nearby Portchester in the late third century. The city's Old English Anglo-Saxon name, "Portesmuða", is derived from "port" (a haven) and "muða" (the mouth of a large river or estuary). In the "Anglo-Saxon Chronicle", a warrior named Port and his two sons killed a noble Briton in Portsmouth in 501. Winston Churchill, in "A History of the English-Speaking Peoples", wrote that Port was a pirate who founded Portsmouth in 501.


title: Portsmouth

text: England's southern coast was vulnerable to Danish Viking invasions during the eighth and ninth centuries, and was conquered by Danish pirates in 787. In 838, during the reign of Æthelwulf, King of Wessex, a Danish fleet landed between Portsmouth and Southampton and plundered the region. Æthelwulf sent Wulfherd and the governor of Dorsetshire to confront the Danes at Portsmouth, where most of their ships were docked. Although the Danes were driven off, Wulfherd was killed. The Danes returned in 1001 and pillaged Portsmouth and the surrounding area, threatening the English with extinction. They were massacred by the English survivors the following year; rebuilding began, although the town experienced further attacks until 1066.


title: Portsmouth

text: Although Portsmouth was not mentioned in the 1086 Domesday Book, "Bocheland" (Buckland), "Copenore" (Copnor), and "Frodentone" (Fratton) were. According to some sources, it was founded in 1180 by the Anglo-Norman merchant Jean de Gisors.


title: Portsmouth

text: King Henry II died in 1189; his son, Richard I (who had spent most of his life in France), arrived in Portsmouth en route to his coronation in London. When Richard returned from captivity in Austria in May 1194, he summoned an army and a fleet of 100 ships to the port. Richard gave Portsmouth market-town status with a royal charter on 2 May, authorising an annual fifteen-day free-market fair, weekly markets and a local court to deal with minor matters, and exempted its inhabitants from an £18 annual tax. He granted the town the coat of arms of Isaac Komnenos of Cyprus, whom he had defeated during the Third Crusade in 1191: "a crescent of gold on a shade of azure, with a blazing star of eight points", reflecting significant involvement of local soldiers, sailors, and vessels in the holy war. The 1194 royal charter's 800th anniversary was celebrated in 1994 with ceremonies at the city museum.


title: Portsmouth

text: King John reaffirmed RichardI's rights and privileges, and established a permanent naval base. The first docks were begun by William of Wrotham in 1212, and John summoned his earls, barons, and military advisers to plan an invasion of Normandy. In 1229, declaring war against France, HenryIII assembled a force described by historian Lake Allen as "one of the finest armies that had ever been raised in England". The invasion stalled, and returned from France in October 1231. HenryIII summoned troops to invade Guienne in 1242, and EdwardI sent supplies for his army in France in 1295. Commercial interests had grown by the following century, and its exports included wool, corn, grain, and livestock.


title: Portsmouth

text: Edward II ordered all ports on the south coast to assemble their largest vessels at Portsmouth to carry soldiers and horses to the Duchy of Aquitaine in 1324 to strengthen defences. A French fleet commanded by David II of Scotland attacked in the English Channel, ransacked the Isle of Wight and threatened the town. EdwardIII instructed all maritime towns to build vessels and raise troops to rendezvous at Portsmouth. Two years later, a French fleet led by Nicholas Béhuchet raided Portsmouth and destroyed most of the town; only the stone-built church and hospital survived. After the raid, EdwardIII exempted the town from national taxes to aid its reconstruction. In 1377, shortly after Edward died, the French landed in Portsmouth. Although the town was plundered and burnt, its inhabitants drove the French off to raid towns in the West Country.


title: Portsmouth

text: Henry V built Portsmouth's first permanent fortifications. In 1416, a number of French ships blockaded the town (which housed ships which were set to invade Normandy); Henry gathered a fleet at Southampton, and invaded the Norman coast in August of that year. Recognising the town's growing importance, he ordered a wooden Round Tower to be built at the mouth of the harbour; it was completed in 1426. Henry VII rebuilt the fortifications with stone, assisted Robert Brygandine and Sir Reginald Bray in the construction of the world's first dry dock, and raised the Square Tower in 1494. He made Portsmouth a Royal Dockyard, England's only dockyard considered "national". Although King Alfred may have used Portsmouth to build ships as early as the ninth century, the first warship recorded as constructed in the town was the "Sweepstake" (built in 1497).


title: Portsmouth

text: Henry VIII built Southsea Castle, financed by the Dissolution of the Monasteries, in 1539 in anticipation of a French invasion. He also invested heavily in the town's dockyard, expanding it to . Around this time, a Tudor defensive boom stretched from the Round Tower to Fort Blockhouse in Gosport to protect Portsmouth Harbour.


title: Portsmouth

text: From Southsea Castle, Henry witnessed his flagship "Mary Rose" sink in action against the French fleet in the 1545 Battle of the Solent with the loss of about 500 lives. Some historians believe that the "Mary Rose" turned too quickly and submerged her open gun ports; according to others, it sank due to poor design. Portsmouth's fortifications were improved by successive monarchs. The town experienced an outbreak of plague in 1563, which killed about 300 of its 2,000 inhabitants.


title: Portsmouth

text: In 1623, Charles I (then Prince of Wales) returned to Portsmouth from France and Spain. His unpopular military adviser, George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, was stabbed to death in an Old Portsmouth pub by war veteran John Felton five years later. Felton never attempted to escape, and was caught walking the streets when soldiers confronted him; he said, "I know that he is dead, for I had the force of forty men when I struck the blow". Felton was hanged, and his body chained to a gibbet on Southsea Common as a warning to others. The murder took place in the Greyhound public house on High Street, which is now Buckingham House and has a commemorative plaque.


title: Portsmouth

text: Most residents (including the mayor) supported the parliamentarians during the English Civil War, although military governor Colonel Goring supported the royalists. The town, a base of the parliamentarian navy, was blockaded from the sea. Parliamentarian troops were sent to besiege it, and the guns of Southsea Castle were fired at the town's royalist garrison. Parliamentarians in Gosport joined the assault, damaging St Thomas's Church. On 5 September 1642, the remaining royalists in the garrison at the Square Tower were forced to surrender after Goring threatened to blow it up; he and his garrison were allowed safe passage.


title: Portsmouth

text: Under the Commonwealth of England, Robert Blake used the harbour as his base during the First Anglo-Dutch War in 1652 and the Anglo-Spanish War. He died within sight of the town, returning from Cádiz. After the end of the Civil War, Portsmouth was among the first towns to declare CharlesII king and began to prosper. The first ship built in over 100 years, , was launched in 1650; twelve ships were built between 1650 and 1660. After the Restoration, CharlesII married Catherine of Braganza at the Royal Garrison Church. During the late 17th century, Portsmouth continued to grow; a new wharf was constructed in 1663 for military use, and a mast pond was dug in 1665. In 1684, a list of ships docked in Portsmouth was evidence of its increasing national importance. Between 1667 and 1685, the town's fortifications were rebuilt; new walls were constructed with bastions and two moats were dug, making Portsmouth one of the world's most heavily fortified places.


title: Portsmouth

text: In 1759, General James Wolfe sailed to capture Quebec; the expedition, although successful, cost him his life. His body was brought back to Portsmouth in November, and received high naval and military honours. Two years later, on 30 May 1775, Captain James Cook arrived on after circumnavigating the globe. The 11-ship First Fleet left on 13 May 1787 to establish the first European colony in Australia, the beginning of prisoner transportation; Captain William Bligh of also sailed from the harbour that year. After the 28 April 1789 mutiny on the "Bounty", was dispatched from Portsmouth to bring the mutineers back for trial. The court-martial opened on 12 September 1792 aboard in Portsmouth Harbour; of the ten remaining men, three were sentenced to death. In 1789, a chapel was erected in Prince George's Street and was dedicated to St John by the Bishop of Winchester. Around this time, a bill was passed in the House of Commons on the creation of a canal to link Portsmouth to Chichester; however, the project was abandoned.


title: Portsmouth

text: The city's nickname, Pompey, is thought to have derived from the log entry of Portsmouth Point (contracted "Po'm.P." – "Po"'rts"m"outh "P."oint) as ships entered the harbour; navigational charts use the contraction. According to one historian, the name may have been brought back from a group of Portsmouth-based sailors who visited Pompey's Pillar in Alexandria, Egypt, around 1781. Another theory is that it is named after the harbour's guardship, , a 74-gun French ship of the line captured in 1793.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth's coat of arms is attested in the early 19th century as "azure a crescent or, surmounted by an estoile of eight points of the last." Its design is apparently based on 18th-century mayoral seals. A connection of the coat of arms with the Great Seal of Richard I (which had a separate star and crescent) dates to the 20th century.


title: Portsmouth

text: Marc Isambard Brunel established the world's first mass-production line at Portsmouth Block Mills, making pulley blocks for rigging on the navy's ships. The first machines were installed in January 1803, and the final set (for large blocks) in March 1805. In 1808, the mills produced 130,000 blocks. By the turn of the 19th century, Portsmouth was the largest industrial site in the world; it had a workforce of 8,000, and an annual budget of £570,000.


title: Portsmouth

text: In 1805, Admiral Nelson left Portsmouth to command the fleet which defeated France and Spain at the Battle of Trafalgar. The Royal Navy's reliance on Portsmouth led to its becoming the most fortified city in the world. The Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron, tasked with halting the slave trade, began operating out of Portsmouth in 1808. A network of forts, known as the Palmerston Forts, was built around the town as part of a programme led by Prime Minister Lord Palmerston to defend British military bases from an inland attack following an Anglo-French war scare in 1859. The forts were nicknamed "Palmerston's Follies" because their armaments were pointed inland and not out to sea.


title: Portsmouth

text: In April 1811, the Portsea Island Company constructed the first piped-water supply to upper- and middle-class houses. It supplied water to about 4,500 of Portsmouth's 14,000 houses, generating an income of £5,000 a year. HMS "Victory"s active career ended in 1812, when she was moored in Portsmouth Harbour and used as a depot ship. The town of Gosport contributed £75 a year to the ship's maintenance. In 1818, John Pounds began teaching working-class children in the country's first ragged school. The Portsea Improvement Commissioners installed gas street lighting throughout Portsmouth in 1820, followed by Old Portsmouth three years later.


title: Portsmouth

text: During the 19th century, Portsmouth expanded across Portsea Island. Buckland was merged into the town by the 1860s, and Fratton and Stamshaw were incorporated by the next decade. Between 1865 and 1870, the council built sewers after more than 800 people died in a cholera epidemic; according to a by-law, any house within of a sewer had to be connected to it. By 1871 the population had risen to 100,000, and the national census listed Portsmouth's population as 113,569. A working-class suburb was constructed in the 1870s, when about 1,820 houses were built, and it became Somerstown. Despite public-health improvements, 514 people died in an 1872 smallpox epidemic. On 21 December of that year, the "Challenger" expedition embarked on a circumnavigation of the globe for scientific research.


title: Portsmouth

text: When the British Empire was at its height of power, covering a quarter of Earth's total land area and 458 million people at the turn of the 20th century, Portsmouth was considered "the world's greatest naval port". In 1900, Portsmouth Dockyard employed 8,000 people– a figure which increased to 23,000 during the First World War. The whole of Portsea Island came united under the control of Portsmouth borough council in 1904.


title: Portsmouth

text: A major terrorist incident occurred in the city in 1913, which led to the deaths of two men. During the suffragette bombing and arson campaign of 1912–1914, militant suffragettes of the Women's Social and Political Union carried out a series of politically motivated bombing and arson attacks nationwide as part of their campaign for women's suffrage. In one of the more serious suffragette attacks, a fire was purposely started at Portsmouth dockyard on 20 December 1913, in which two sailors were killed after it spread through the industrial area. The fire spread rapidly as there were many old wooden buildings in the area, including the historic semaphore tower which dated back to the eighteenth century, which was completely destroyed. The damage to the dockyard area cost the city £200,000 in damages, equivalent to £23,600,000 today. In the midst of the firestorm, a battleship, , had to be towed to safety to avoid the flames. The two victims were a pensioner and a signalman.


title: Portsmouth

text: The attack was notable enough to be reported on in the press in the United States, with the "New York Times" reporting on the disaster two days after with the headline "Big Portsmouth Fire Loss". The report also disclosed that at a previous police raid on a suffragette headquarters, "papers were discovered disclosing a plan to fire the yard".


title: Portsmouth

text: On 1 October 1916, Portsmouth was bombed by a Zeppelin airship. Although the Oberste Heeresleitung (German Supreme Army Command) said that the town was "lavishly bombarded with good results", there were no reports of bombs dropped in the area. According to another source, the bombs were mistakenly dropped into the harbour rather than the dockyard. About 1,200 ships were refitted in the dockyard during the war, making it one of the empire's most strategic ports at the time.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth's boundaries were extended onto the mainland of Great Britain between 1920 and 1932 by incorporating Paulsgrove, Wymering, Cosham, Drayton and Farlington into Portsmouth. Portsmouth was granted city status in 1926 after a long campaign by the borough council. The application was made on the grounds that it was the "first naval port of the kingdom". In 1929, the city council added the motto "Heaven's Light Our Guide" to the medieval coat of arms. Except for the celestial objects in the arms, the motto was that of the Star of India and referred to the troopships bound for British India which left from the port. The crest and supporters are based on those of the royal arms, but altered to show the city's maritime connections: the lions and unicorn have fish tails, and a naval crown and a representation of the Tudor defensive boom which stretched across Portsmouth Harbour are around the unicorn.


title: Portsmouth

text: During the Second World War, the city (particularly the port) was bombed extensively by the Luftwaffe in the Portsmouth Blitz.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth experienced 67 air raids between July 1940 and May 1944, which destroyed 6,625 houses and severely damaged 6,549. The air raids caused 930 deaths and wounded almost 3,000 people, many in the dockyard and military establishments. On the night of the city's heaviest raid (10 January 1941), the Luftwaffe dropped 140 tonnes of high-explosive bombs which killed 171 people and left 3,000 homeless. Many of the city's houses were damaged, and areas of Landport and Old Portsmouth destroyed; the future site of Gunwharf Quays was razed to the ground. The Guildhall was hit by an incendiary bomb which burnt out the interior and destroyed its inner walls, although the civic plate was retrieved unharmed from the vault under the front steps. After the raid, Portsmouth mayor Denis Daley wrote for the "Evening News":


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth Harbour was a vital military embarkation point for the 6 June 1944 D-Day landings. Southwick House, just north of the city, was the headquarters of Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower. A V-1 flying bomb hit Newcomen Road on 15 July 1944, killing 15 people.


title: Portsmouth

text: Much of the city's housing stock was damaged during the war. The wreckage was cleared in an attempt to improve housing quality after the war; before permanent accommodations could be built, Portsmouth City Council built prefabs for those who had lost their homes. More than 700 prefab houses were constructed between 1945 and 1947, some over bomb sites. The first permanent houses were built away from the city centre, in new developments such as Paulsgrove and Leigh Park; construction of council estates in Paulsgrove was completed in 1953. The first Leigh Park housing estates were completed in 1949, although construction in the area continued until 1974. Builders still occasionally find unexploded bombs, such as on the site of the destroyed Hippodrome Theatre in 1984. Despite efforts by the city council to build new housing, a 1955 survey indicated that 7,000 houses in Portsmouth were unfit for human habitation. A controversial decision was made to replace a section of the central city, including Landport, Somerstown and Buckland, with council housing during the 1960s and early 1970s. The success of the project and the quality of its housing are debatable.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth was affected by the decline of the British Empire in the second half of the 20th century. Shipbuilding jobs fell from 46 percent of the workforce in 1951 to 14 per cent in 1966, drastically reducing manpower in the dockyard. The city council attempted to create new work; an industrial estate was built in Fratton in 1948, and others were built at Paulsgrove and Farlington during the 1950s and 1960s. Although traditional industries such as brewing and corset manufacturing disappeared during this time, electrical engineering became a major employer. Despite the cutbacks in traditional sectors, Portsmouth remained attractive to industry. Zurich Insurance Group moved their UK headquarters to the city in 1968, and IBM relocated their European headquarters in 1979. Portsmouth's population had dropped from about 200,000 to 177,142 by the end of the 1960s. Defence Secretary John Nott decided in the early 1980s that of the four home dockyards, Portsmouth and Chatham would be closed. The city council won a concession, however, and the dockyard was downgraded instead to a naval base.


title: Portsmouth

text: On 2 April 1982, Argentine forces invaded two British territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. The British government's response was to dispatch a naval task force, and the aircraft carriers and sailed from Portsmouth for the South Atlantic on 5 April. The successful outcome of the war reaffirmed Portsmouth's significance as a naval port and its importance to the defence of British interests. In January 1997, Her Majesty's Yacht "Britannia" embarked from the city on her final voyage to oversee the handover of Hong Kong; for many, this marked the end of the empire. She was decommissioned on 11 December of that year at Portsmouth Naval Base in the presence of the queen, the Duke of Edinburgh, and twelve senior members of the royal family.


title: Portsmouth

text: Redevelopment of the naval shore establishment began in 2001 as a complex of retail outlets, clubs, pubs, and a shopping centre known as Gunwharf Quays. Construction of the Spinnaker Tower, sponsored by the National Lottery, began at Gunwharf Quays in 2003. The Tricorn Centre, called "the ugliest building in the UK" by the BBC, was demolished in late 2004 after years of debate over the expense of demolition and whether it was worth preserving as an example of 1960s brutalist architecture. Designed by Owen Luder as part of a project to "revitalise" Portsmouth in the 1960s, it consisted of a shopping centre, market, nightclubs, and a multistorey car park. Portsmouth celebrated the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar in 2005, with Queen Elizabeth II present at a fleet review and a mock battle. The naval base is home to two-thirds of Britain's surface fleet.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth is by road from central London, west of Brighton, and east of Southampton. It is located primarily on Portsea Island and is the United Kingdom's only island city, although the city has expanded to the mainland. Gosport is a borough to the west. Portsea Island is separated from the mainland by Portsbridge Creek, which is crossed by three road bridges (the M275 motorway, the A3 road, and the A2030 road), a railway bridge, and two footbridges. Portsea Island, part of the Hampshire Basin, is low-lying; most of the island is less than above sea level. The island's highest natural elevation is the Kingston Cross road junction, at above ordinary spring tide.


title: Portsmouth

text: Old Portsmouth, the original town, is in the south-west part of the island and includes Portsmouth Point (nicknamed Spice Island). The main channel entering Portsmouth Harbour, west of the island, passes between Old Portsmouth and Gosport. Portsmouth Harbour has a series of lakes, including Fountain Lake (near the commercial port), Portchester Lake (south central), Paulsgrove Lake (north), Brick Kiln Lake and Tipner (east), and Bombketch and Spider Lakes (west). Further northwest, around Portchester, are Wicor, Cams, and Great Cams Lakes.


title: Portsmouth

text: The large tidal inlet of Langstone Harbour is east of the island. The Farlington Marshes, in the north off the coast of Farlington, is a 125-hectare (308-acre) grazing marsh and saline lagoon. One of the oldest local reserves in the county, built from reclaimed land in 1771, it provides a habitat for migratory wildfowl and waders.


title: Portsmouth

text: South of Portsmouth are Spithead, the Solent, and the Isle of Wight. Its southern coast was fortified by the Round Tower, the Square Tower, Southsea Castle, Lumps Fort and Fort Cumberland. Four sea forts were built in the Solent by Lord Palmerston: Spitbank Fort, St Helens Fort, Horse Sand Fort and No Man's Land Fort.


title: Portsmouth

text: The resort of Southsea is on the central southern shoreline of Portsea Island, and Eastney is east. Eastney Lake covered nearly in 1626. North of Eastney is the residential Milton and an area of reclaimed land known as Milton Common (formerly Milton Lake), a "flat scrubby land with a series of freshwater lakes". Further north on the east coast is Baffins, with the Great Salterns recreation ground and golf course around Portsmouth College.


title: Portsmouth

text: The Hilsea Lines are a series of defunct fortifications on the island's north coast, bordering Portsbridge Creek and the mainland. Portsdown Hill dominates the skyline in the north, and contains several large Palmerston Forts such as Fort Fareham, Fort Wallington, Fort Nelson, Fort Southwick, Fort Widley, and Fort Purbrook. Portsdown Hill is a large band of chalk; the rest of Portsea Island is composed of layers of London Clay and sand (part of the Bagshot Formation), formed principally during the Eocene.


title: Portsmouth

text: Northern areas of the city include Stamshaw, Hilsea and Copnor, Cosham, Drayton, Farlington, Paulsgrove and Port Solent. Other districts include North End and Fratton. The west of the city contains council estates, such as Buckland, Landport, and Portsea, which replaced Victorian terraces destroyed by Second World War bombing. After the war, the Leigh Park estate was built to address the chronic housing shortage during post-war reconstruction. Although the estate has been under the jurisdiction of Havant Borough Council since the early 2000s, Portsmouth City Council remains its landlord (the borough's largest landowner).


title: Portsmouth

text: The city's main station, Portsmouth and Southsea railway station, is in the city centre near the Guildhall and the civic offices. South of the Guildhall is Guildhall Walk, with a number of pubs and clubs. The city's other railway station, Portsmouth Harbour railway station, is located on a pier at the harbour's edge, near Old Portsmouth. Edinburgh Road contains the city's Roman Catholic cathedral and Victoria Park, a park which opened in 1878.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth has a mild oceanic climate, with more sunshine than most of the British Isles. Frosts are light and short-lived and snow quite rare in winter, with temperatures rarely dropping below freezing. The average maximum temperature in January is , and the average minimum is . The lowest recorded temperature is . In summer, temperatures sometimes reach . The average maximum temperature in July is , and the average minimum is . The highest recorded temperature is . The city gets about of rain annually, with a minimum of of rain reported 103 days per year.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth is the only city in the United Kingdom whose population density exceeds that of London. In the 2021 census, the city had 208,100 residents. The city used to be even more densely populated, with the 1951 census showing a population of 233,545. In a reversal of that decrease, its population has been gradually increasing since the 1990s. With about 860,000 residents, South Hampshire is the fifth-largest urban area in England and the largest in South-East England outside London; it is the centre of one of the United Kingdom's most-populous metropolitan areas.


title: Portsmouth

text: The city is predominantly white (91.8% of the population). However, Portsmouth's long association with the Royal Navy ensures some diversity. Some large, well-established non-white communities have their roots in the Royal Navy, particularly the Chinese community from British Hong Kong. Portsmouth's long industrial history with the Royal Navy has drawn many people from across the British Isles (particularly Irish Catholics) to its factories and docks. According to the 2011 census, Portsmouth's population was 84% White British, 3.8% other White, 1.3& Chinese, 1.4% Indian, 0.5% mixed race, 1.8% Bangladeshi, 0.5% other, 1.4% Black African, 0.5% white Irish, 1.3% other Asian, 0.3% Pakistani, 0.3% Black Caribbean and 0.1% other Black.


title: Portsmouth

text: The city is administered by Portsmouth City Council, a unitary authority which is responsible for local affairs. Portsmouth was granted its first market town charter in 1194. In 1904, its boundaries were extended to all of Portsea Island and were later expanded onto the mainland of Great Britain between 1920 and 1932 by incorporating Paulsgrove, Wymering, Cosham, Drayton and Farlington into Portsmouth. Portsmouth was granted city status on 21 April 1926.


title: Portsmouth

text: On 1 April 1974, it formed the second tier of local government (below Hampshire County Council); Portsmouth and Southampton became administratively independent of Hampshire with the creation of the unitary authority on 1 April 1997.


title: Portsmouth

text: The city is divided into two parliamentary constituencies, Portsmouth South and Portsmouth North, represented in the House of Commons by Stephen Morgan of the Labour Party and Penny Mordaunt of the Conservative Party respectively. The two Parliamentary constituencies each contain 7 electoral wards, giving an overall total of 14 electoral wards. Portsmouth's inner city centre is located in the Portsmouth South constituency.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth City Council has 14 electoral wards, each ward returns three councillors, making 42 in total. Each councillor serves a four-year term. After the May 2018 local elections, the Liberal Democrats formed a minority administration, they have run the city since then. The leader of the council is the Liberal Democrat, Gerald Vernon-Jackson. The lord mayor usually has a one-year term.


title: Portsmouth

text: The council is based in the civic offices, which house the tax support, housing-benefits, resident-services, and municipal-functions departments. They are in Guildhall Square, with the Portsmouth Guildhall and Portsmouth Central Library. The Guildhall, a symbol of Portsmouth, is a cultural venue. It was designed by Leeds-based architect William Hill, who began it in the neo-classical style in 1873 at a cost of £140,000. It was opened to the public in 1890.


title: Portsmouth

text: Ten per cent of Portsmouth's workforce is employed at Portsmouth Naval Dockyard, which is linked to the city's biggest industry, defence; the headquarters of BAE Systems Surface Ships is in the city. BAE's Portsmouth shipyard received construction work on the two new s. A £100 million contract was signed to develop needed facilities for the vessels. A ferry port handles passengers and cargo, and a fishing fleet of 20 to 30 boats operates out of Camber Quay, Old Portsmouth; most of the catch is sold at the quayside fish market.


title: Portsmouth

text: The city is host to IBM's UK headquarters and Portsmouth was also the UK headquarters of Zurich Financial Services until 2007. City shopping is centred on Commercial Road and the 1980s Cascades Shopping Centre. The shopping centre has 185,000 to 230,000 visitors weekly. Redevelopment has created new shopping areas, including the Gunwharf Quays (the repurposed shore establishment, with stores, restaurants and a cinema) and the Historic Dockyard, which caters to tourists and holds an annual Victorian Christmas market. Ocean Retail Park, on the north-eastern side of Portsea Island, was built in September 1985 on the site of a former metal-box factory.


title: Portsmouth

text: Development of Gunwharf Quays continued until 2007, when the No.1 Gunwharf Quays residential tower was completed. The development of the former Brickwoods Brewery site included the construction of the 22-storey Admiralty Quarter Tower, the tallest in a complex of primarily low-rise residential buildings. Number One Portsmouth, a proposed 25-storey tower opposite Portsmouth & Southsea station, was announced at the end of October 2008. In August 2009, internal demolition of the existing building had begun. A high-rise student dormitory, nicknamed "The Blade", has begun construction on the site of the swimming baths at the edge of Victoria Park. The tower will be Portsmouth's second-tallest structure, after the Spinnaker Tower.


title: Portsmouth

text: In April 2007, Portsmouth F.C. announced plans to move from Fratton Park to a new stadium on reclaimed land next to the Historic Dockyard. The £600 million mixed-use development, designed by Herzog & de Meuron, would include shops, offices and 1,500 harbourside apartments. The scheme was criticised for its size and location, and some officials said that it would interfere with harbour operations. The project was rejected by the city council due to the 2008 financial crisis.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth's two Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers, and , were ordered by defence secretary Des Browne on 25 July 2007. They were built in the Firth of Forth at Rosyth Dockyard and BAE Systems Surface Ships in Glasgow, Babcock International at Rosyth, and at HMNB Portsmouth. The government announced before the 2014 Scottish independence referendum that military shipbuilding would end in Portsmouth, with all UK surface-warship construction focused on the two older BAE facilities in Glasgow. The announcement was criticised as a political decision to aid the referendum's "No" campaign.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth has several theatres. The New Theatre Royal in Guildhall Walk, near the city centre, specialises in professional drama. The restored Kings Theatre in Southsea features amateur musicals and national tours. The Groundlings Theatre, built in 1784, is housed at the Old Beneficial School in Portsea. New Prince's Theatre and Southsea's Kings Theatre were designed by Victorian architect Frank Matcham.


title: Portsmouth

text: The city has three musical venues: the Guildhall, the Wedgewood Rooms (which includes Edge of the Wedge, a smaller venue), and Portsmouth Pyramids Centre. Portsmouth Guildhall is one of the largest venues in South East England, with a seating capacity of 2,500. A concert series is presented at the Guildhall by the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. The Portsmouth Sinfonia approached classical music from a different angle during the 1970s, recruiting players with no musical training or who played an instrument new to them. The Portsmouth Summer Show is held at King George's Fields. The 2016 show held during the last weekend of April, featured cover bands such as the Silver Beatles, the Bog Rolling Stones, and Fleetingwood Mac.


title: Portsmouth

text: A number of musical works are set in the city. "H.M.S. Pinafore" is a comic opera in two acts set in Portsmouth Harbour, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W.S. Gilbert. "Portsmouth Point" is a 1925 overture for orchestra by English composer William Walton, inspired by Thomas Rowlandson's etching of Portsmouth Point in Old Portsmouth. The overture was played during a 2007 BBC Proms concert. John Cranko's 1951 ballet "Pineapple Poll", which features music from Gilbert and Sullivan's operetta "The Bumboat Woman's Story", is also set in Portsmouth.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth hosts yearly remembrances of the D-Day landings, attended by veterans from Allied and Commonwealth nations. The city played a major role in the 50th D-Day anniversary in 1994; visitors included US President Bill Clinton, Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating, King Harald V of Norway, French President François Mitterrand, New Zealand Prime Minister Jim Bolger, Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, Prime Minister John Major, the Queen, and the Duke of Edinburgh. The 75th Anniversary of D-Day was similarly commemorated in the city. Prime Minister Theresa May led the event, and was joined by leaders of the US, Canada, Australia, France and Germany.


title: Portsmouth

text: The annual Portsmouth International Kite Festival, organised by the city council and the Kite Society of Great Britain, celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2016.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth is frequently used as a filming location for television and film productions. The Historic Dockyard has featured in several productions including the Hollywood adaptation of "Les Miserables".


title: Portsmouth

text: In 2005, Portsmouth featured in the first series of ITV's "Britain's Toughest Towns". As this documentary also indicated, Portsmouth has issues with gangs and anti-social behaviour.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth is the hometown of Fanny Price, the main character of Jane Austen's novel "Mansfield Park", and most of its closing chapters are set there. Nicholas and Smike, the main protagonists of Charles Dickens' novel "The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby", make their way to Portsmouth and become involved with a theatrical troupe. Portsmouth is most often the port from which Captain Jack Aubrey's ships sail in Patrick O'Brian's seafaring historical Aubrey-Maturin series. Portsmouth is the main setting of Jonathan Meades's 1993 novel "Pompey". Since the novel was published, Meades has presented a TV programme documenting Victorian architecture in Portsmouth Dockyard.


title: Portsmouth

text: Victorian novelist and historian Sir Walter Besant documented his 1840s childhood in "By Celia's Arbour: A Tale of Portsmouth Town", precisely describing the town before its defensive walls were removed. Southsea (as Port Burdock) features in "The History of Mr Polly" by H. G. Wells, who describes it as "one of the three townships that are grouped around the Port Burdock naval dockyards". The resort is also the setting of the graphic novel "The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr. Punch" by high fantasy author Neil Gaiman, who grew up in Portsmouth. A Southsea street was renamed The Ocean at the End of the Lane by the city council in honour of Gaiman's novel of the same name.


title: Portsmouth

text: Crime novels set in Portsmouth and the surrounding area include Graham Hurley's D.I.Faraday/D.C.Winter novels and C. J. Sansom's Tudor crime novel, "Heartstone"; the latter refers to the warship "Mary Rose" and describes Tudor life in the town. "Portsmouth Fairy Tales for Grown Ups", a collection of short stories, was published in 2014. The collection, set around Portsmouth, includes stories by crime novelists William Sutton and Diana Bretherick.


title: Portsmouth

text: The University of Portsmouth was founded in 1992 as a new university from Portsmouth Polytechnic; in 2016, it had 20,000 students. The university was ranked among the world's top 100 modern universities in April 2015. In 2013, it had about 23,000 students and over 2,500 staff members. Several local colleges also award Higher National Diplomas, including Highbury College (specialising in vocational education), and Portsmouth College (which offers academic courses). Admiral Lord Nelson School and Miltoncross Academy were built in the late 1990s to meet the needs of a growing school-age population.


title: Portsmouth

text: After the cancellation of the national building programme for schools, redevelopment halted. Two schools in the city were judged "inadequate", and 29 of its 63 schools were considered "no longer good enough" by Ofsted in 2009. Before it was taken over by Ark Schools and became Ark Charter Academy, StLuke's Church of England secondary school was one of England's worst schools in GCSE achievement. It was criticised by officials for its behavioural standards, with students reportedly throwing chairs at teachers. Since it became an academy in 2009, the school has improved; 69 per cent of its students achieved five GCSEs with grades of A* to C, including English and mathematics. The academy's intake policy is for a standard comprehensive school, drawing from the community rather than by religion.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth Grammar School, the city's oldest independent school was founded in 1732. Other independent schools include Portsmouth High School, and Mayville High School (founded in 1897),


title: Portsmouth

text: Many of Portsmouth's former defences are now museums or event venues. Several Victorian-era forts on Portsdown Hill are tourist attractions; Fort Nelson, a its summit, is home to the Royal Armouries museum. Tudor-era Southsea Castle has a small museum, and much of the seafront defences leading to the Round Tower are open to the public. The castle was withdrawn from active service in 1960, and was purchased by Portsmouth City Council. The southern part of the Royal Marines' Eastney Barracks is now the Royal Marines Museum, and was opened to the public under the National Heritage Act 1983. The museum received a £14 million grant from the National Lottery Fund, and was scheduled to relocate to Portsmouth Historic Dockyard in 2019. The birthplace of Charles Dickens, at Mile End Terrace, is the Charles Dickens' Birthplace Museum; the four-storey red brick building became a GradeI listed building in 1953. Other tourist attractions include the Blue Reef Aquarium (with an "underwater safari" of British aquatic life) and the Cumberland House Natural History Museum, housing a variety of local wildlife.


title: Portsmouth

text: Most of the city's landmarks and tourist attractions are related to its naval history. They include the D-Day Story in Southsea, which contains the Overlord Embroidery. Portsmouth is home to several well-known ships; Horatio Nelson's flagship , the world's oldest naval ship still in commission, is in the dry dock of Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. The "Victory" was placed in a permanent dry dock in 1922 when the Society for Nautical Research led a national appeal to restore her, and 22million people have visited the ship. The remains of Henry VIII's flagship, "Mary Rose", was rediscovered on the seabed in 1971. She was raised and brought to a purpose-built structure in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard in 1982. Britain's first iron-hulled warship, , was restored and moved to Portsmouth in June 1987 after serving as an oil fuel pier at Pembroke Dock in Pembrokeshire for fifty years. The National Museum of the Royal Navy, in the dockyard, is sponsored by an charity which promotes research of the Royal Dockyard's history and archaeology. The dockyard hosts the Victorian Festival of Christmas, featuring Father Christmas in a traditional green robe, each November.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth's long association with the armed forces is demonstrated by a large number of war memorials, including several at the Royal Marines Museum and a large collection of memorials related to the Royal Navy in Victoria Park. The Portsmouth Naval Memorial, in Southsea Common, commemorates the 24,591 British sailors who died during both World Wars and have no known grave. Designed by Sir Robert Lorimer, it was unveiled by George VI on 15 October 1924. In the city centre, the Guildhall Square Cenotaph contains the names of the fallen and is guarded by stone sculptures of machine gunners by Charles Sargeant Jagger. The west face of the memorial reads:


title: Portsmouth

text: The city has three cemeteries: Kingston, Milton Road, and Highland Road. Kingston Cemetery, opened in 1856, is in east Fratton. At , it is Portsmouth's largest cemetery and has about 400 burials a year. In February 2014, a ceremony celebrating the 180th anniversary of Portsmouth's Polish community was held at the cemetery. The approximately Milton Road Cemetery, founded on 8 April 1912, has about 200 burials per year. There is a crematorium in Portchester.


title: Portsmouth

text: The naval shore establishment contained the Royal Navy's arsenal; weapons and ammunition which would be taken from ships at its 'Gun Wharf' as they entered the harbour, and resupplied when they headed back to sea. The 1919 "Southsea and Portsmouth Official Guide" described the establishment as "the finest collections of weapons outside the Tower of London, containing more than 25,000 rifles". During the early nineteenth century, the 'Gunwharf' supplied the fleet with a "grand arsenal" of cannons, mortars, bombs, and ordnance. Although gunpowder was not provided due to safety concerns, it could be obtained at Priddy's Hard (near Gosport). An armoury sold small arms to soldiers, and the stone frigate also had blacksmith and carpenter shops for armourers. It was run by three officers: a "viz" (storekeeper), a clerk, and a foreman. By 1817, Gunwharf reportedly employed 5,000 men and housed the world's largest naval arsenal.


title: Portsmouth

text: HMS "Vernon" was closed on 1 April 1996 and was redeveloped by Portsmouth City Council as Gunwharf Quays, a mixed residential and retail site with outlet stores, restaurants, pubs, cafés and a cinema. Construction of the Spinnaker Tower began in 2001, and was completed in the summer of 2005. The project exceeded its budget and cost £36million, of which Portsmouth City Council contributed £11 million. The tower is visible at a distance of in clear weather, and its viewing platforms overlook the Solent (towards the Isle of Wight), the harbour and Southsea Castle. The tower weighs over .and has the largest glass floor in Europe.


title: Portsmouth

text: Southsea is a seaside resort and residential area of Portsmouth located at the southern end of Portsea Island. Its name originates from Southsea Castle, a seafront castle built in 1544 by HenryVIII to help defend the Solent and Portsmouth Harbour. The area was developed in 1809 as Croxton Town; by the 1860s, the suburb of Southsea had expanded to provide working-class housing. Southsea developed as a seaside and bathing resort. A pump room and baths were built near the present-day Clarence Pier, and a complex was developed which included vapour baths, showers, and card-playing and assembly rooms for holiday-goers.


title: Portsmouth

text: Clarence Pier, opened in 1861 by the Prince and Princess of Wales, was named after Portsmouth military governor Lord Frederick FitzClarence and was described as "one of the largest amusement parks on the south coast". South Parade Pier was built in 1878, and is among the United Kingdom's 55 remaining private piers. Originally a terminal for ferries travelling to the Isle of Wight, it was soon redeveloped as an entertainment centre. The pier was rebuilt after fires in 1904, 1967 and 1974 (during the filming of "Tommy"). Plans were announced in 2015 for a Solent Eye at the pier: a £750,000, 24-gondola Ferris wheel similar to the London Eye.


title: Portsmouth

text: Southsea is dominated by Southsea Common, a grassland created by draining the marshland next to the vapour baths in 1820. The common met the demands of the early-19th-century military for a clear firing range, and parallels the shore from Clarence Pier to Southsea Castle. A popular recreation area, it hosts a number of annual events which include carnivals, Christmas markets, and Victorian festivals. The common has a large collection of mature elm trees, believed to be the oldest and largest surviving in Hampshire and which have escaped Dutch elm disease due to their isolation. Other plants include the Canary Island date palms ("Phoenix canariensis"), some of Britain's largest, which have recently produced viable seed.


title: Portsmouth

text: Southsea is often mistaken as a town separate from Portsmouth, mainly due to the confusing Portsmouth & Southsea railway station name. The resort of Southsea previously had its own dedicated light railway line; the Southsea Railway and its own terminus, East Southsea railway station. The Southsea Railway and station were closed in 1914, with the station's name merged into that of Portsmouth's main railway station name in 1925.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth has two cathedrals: the Anglican Cathedral of St Thomas in Old Portsmouth and the Roman Catholic Cathedral of St John the Evangelist. The city is one of 34 British settlements with a Roman Catholic cathedral. Portsmouth's first chapel, dedicated to Thomas Becket, was built by Jean deGisors in the second half of the 12th century. It was rebuilt and developed into a parish church and an Anglican cathedral. Damaged during the 1642 Siege of Portsmouth, its tower and nave were rebuilt after the Restoration. Significant changes were made when the Diocese of Portsmouth was founded in 1927. It became a cathedral in 1932 and was enlarged, although construction was halted during the Second World War. The cathedral was re-consecrated before Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother in 1991.


title: Portsmouth

text: The Royal Garrison Church was founded in 1212 by Peter des Roches, Bishop of Winchester. After centuries of decay, it became an ammunition store in 1540. The 1662 marriage of CharlesII and Catherine of Braganza was celebrated in the church, and large receptions were held there after the defeat of Napoleon at the 1814 Battle of Leipzig. In 1941, a firebomb fell on its roof and destroyed the nave. Although the church's chancel was saved by servicemen shortly after the raid, replacing the roof was deemed impossible due to the large amounts of salt solution absorbed by the stonework.


title: Portsmouth

text: The Cathedral of St John the Evangelist was built in 1882 to accommodate Portsmouth's increasing Roman Catholic population, and replaced a chapel built in 1796 to the west. Before 1791, Roman Catholic chapels in towns with borough status were prohibited. The chapel opened after the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1791 was passed, and was replaced by the cathedral. It was constructed in phases; the nave was completed in 1882; the crossing in 1886, and the chancel by 1893. During the blitz, the cathedral was badly damaged when Luftwaffe bombing destroyed Bishop's House next door; it was restored in 1970, 1982, and 2001. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth was founded in 1882 by Pope Leo XIII. Smaller places of worship in the city include StJude's Church in Southsea, StMary's Church in Portsea, StAnn's Chapel in the naval base and the Portsmouth and Southsea Synagogue, one of Britain's oldest. Other places of worship include the Immanuel Baptist Church, Southsea; Trinity Methodist Church, Highland Road; Buckland United Reformed Church; The Oasis Centre Elim Penteostal Church; Jubilee Pentecostal Church, Somers Road; Kings Church Assemblies of God (St Peter's Somers Road); Family Church; Christ Central Church, John Pounds Centre; The Jami Mosque, Bradford Junction; The Sikh Gurudwara, Margate Road.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth F.C. play their home games at Fratton Park. They have won two Football League titles (1949 and 1950), and won the FA Cup in 1939 and 2008. The club returned to the Premier League in 2003. They were relegated to the Championship in 2010 and, experiencing serious financial difficulties in February 2012, were relegated again to League One. The club was relegated the following year to League Two, the fourth tier of English football. PortsmouthF.C. was purchased in April 2013 by the Pompey Supporters Trust, becoming the largest fan-owned club in English Football history. In May 2017, as League Two champions, they were promoted to League One for the 2017–18 season.


title: Portsmouth

text: Moneyfields F.C. have played in the Wessex Football League Premier Division since 1998. United Services Portsmouth F.C. (formerly known as Portsmouth Royal Navy) and Baffins Milton Rovers F.C. compete in Wessex League Division One; United Services was founded in 1962, and Baffins Milton Rovers in 2011. The rugby teams United Services Portsmouth RFC and Royal Navy Rugby Union play their home matches at the United Services Recreation Ground. Royal Navy Rugby Union play in the annual Army Navy Match at Twickenham.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth began hosting first-class cricket at the United Services Recreation Ground in 1882, and Hampshire County Cricket Club matches were played there from 1895 to 2000. In 2000, Hampshire moved their home matches to the new Rose Bowl cricket ground in West End. Portsmouth is home to four hockey clubs: City of Portsmouth Hockey Club, based at the university's Langstone Campus; Portsmouth & Southsea Hockey Club and Portsmouth Sharks Hockey Club, based at the Admiral Lord Nelson School; and United Services Portsmouth Hockey Club, based on Burnaby Road. Great Salterns Golf Club, established in 1926, is an 18-hole parkland course with two holes played across a lake; there are coastal courses at Hayling and the Gosport and Stokes Bay Golf Club. Boxing was a popular sport between 1910 and 1960, and a monument commemorating the city's boxing heritage was built in 2017.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth Harbour has passenger-ferry links to Gosport and the Isle of Wight, with car-ferry service to the Isle of Wight nearby. Hovertravel, Britain's longest-standing commercial hovercraft service, begun in the 1960s, runs from near Clarence Pier in Southsea to Ryde, Isle of Wight. Portsmouth International Port has links to Caen, Cherbourg-Octeville, St Malo and Le Havre in France, Santander and Bilbao in Spain, and the Channel Islands. Ferry services from the port are operated by Brittany Ferries and Condor Ferries.


title: Portsmouth

text: On 18 May 2006, Trasmediterranea began service to Bilbao in competition with P&O's service. Its ferry, "Fortuny", was detained in Portsmouth by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency for a number of safety violations. They were quickly corrected and the service was cleared for passengers on 23 May of that year. Trasmediterránea discontinued its Bilbao service in March 2007, citing a need to deploy the "Fortuny" elsewhere. P&O Ferries ended their service to Bilbao on 27 September 2010 due to "unsustainable losses". The second-busiest ferry port in the UK (after Dover), Portsmouth handles about three million passengers per year.


title: Portsmouth

text: Local bus services are provided by Stagecoach South and First Hampshire & Dorset to the city and its surrounding towns. Hovertravel and Stagecoach operate a Hoverbus service from the city centre to Southsea Hovercraft Terminal and the Hard Interchange, near the seafront. National Express service from Portsmouth operates primarily from the Hard Interchange to Victoria Coach Station, Cornwall, Bradford, Birkenhead and Bristol.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth has four railway stations on Portsea Island: , , and , with a fifth station at in the northern mainland suburb of Cosham, Portsmouth. Portsmouth previously had additional stations at Southsea, Farlington and Paulsgrove, but these were closed during at various periods of the twentieth century.


title: Portsmouth

text: The city of Portsmouth is on two direct South Western Railway routes to , via and via . There is a South Western Railway stopping service to and Great Western Railway service to via Southampton, , and Bristol. Southern has service to , , Croydon and .


title: Portsmouth

text: Southsea once had its own branch line, the Southsea Railway, which opened in 1885 between Southsea railway station and Fratton; it was closed in 1914 due to competition from tram services.


title: Portsmouth

text: Farlington Halt railway station was built to serve Portsmouth Park racecourse, opening as Farlington Race Course on 26 June 1891. The racecourse was closed during World War One, but the station was retained to serve the ammunition dump put in its place. The station closed in 1917. Re-opened in 1922 until 1927. Under the Southern Railway, it re-opened as a general public halt in 1928 named "Farlington Halt"; however, this was short-lived as the station closed due to insufficient customers on 4 July 1937.


title: Portsmouth

text: Paulsgrove Halt railway station was a railway station opened in 1928 to serve the adjacent Portsmouth Racecourse, a pony racing stronghold. The station was formerly located between Cosham and Portchester stations. Paulsgrove Halt was closed along with the racecourse when the land was acquired by the military in 1939, at the outbreak of World War II.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth Airport, with a grass runway, was in operation from 1932 to 1973. After it closed, housing (Anchorage Park) and industry were built on the site. The nearest airport is Southampton Airport in the Borough of Eastleigh, away. It has a South Western Railway rail connection, requiring a change at Southampton Central or Eastleigh. Heathrow and Gatwick are and away, respectively. Gatwick is linked by Southern train service to London Victoria station and Heathrow is linked by coach to Woking, which is on both rail lines to London Waterloo and the London Underground. Heathrow is linked to Portsmouth by National Express coaches.


title: Portsmouth

text: The Portsmouth and Arundel Canal ran between the towns and was built in 1823 by the Portsmouth & Arundel Navigation Company. Never financially successful, and found to be contaminating Portsea Island fresh water wells, it was abandoned in 1855 and the company was wound up in 1888. The canal was part of a larger scheme for a secure inland canal route from London to Portsmouth, allowing boats to avoid the English Channel. It had three sections: a pair of ship canals (one on Portsea Island and one to Chichester) and a barge canal from Ford on the River Arun to Hunston, where it joined the canal's Chichester section.


title: Portsmouth

text: The route through Portsea Island began from a basin formerly located on Arundel Street and cut through Landport, Fratton and Milton, ending at the eastern end of Locksway Road in Milton (where a set of lock gates accessed Langstone and Chichester Harbours. After the island route was closed, the drained canal-bed sections through Landport and Fratton were reused for the Portsmouth Direct line, or filled-in to surface level to form a new main road route to Milton, named Goldsmith Avenue.


title: Portsmouth

text: The brick-lined canal walls are clearly visible between the Fratton and Portsmouth & Southsea railway stations. The canal lock entrance at Locksway Road in Milton is east of the Thatched House pub.


title: Portsmouth

text: A new public transport structure was once under discussion, including monorails and light rail. Although a light-rail link to Gosport was authorised in 2002 (with completion expected to be in 2005), the project was in jeopardy as the Department for Transport refused to fund it in November 2005. In April 2011, "The News" reported a scheme to replace conventional rail lines to Southampton via Fareham, Bursledon and Sholing with light rail.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth, Southampton and their adjacent towns are served primarily by programming from the Rowridge and Chillerton Down transmitters on the Isle of Wight, although the transmitter at Midhurst can substitute for Rowridge. Portsmouth was one of the first cities in the UK to have a local TV station (MyTV), although the Isle of Wight began local television broadcasting in 1998. In November 2014, That's Solent was introduced as part of a nationwide roll-out of local Freeview channels in south-central England. The stations broadcast from Rowridge.


title: Portsmouth

text: According to RAJAR, popular radio stations include regional Wave 105 and Global Radio's Heart South and Capital South. Greatest Hits Radio South West broadcasts from Southampton to the city on 107.4 MHz, and the non-profit community station, Express FM, broadcasts on 93.7. Patients at Queen Alexandra Hospital (Portsmouth's primary hospital) receive local programming from Portsmouth Hospital Broadcasting, which began in 1951. When the first local commercial radio stations were licensed during the 1970s by the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA), Radio Victory received the first licence and began broadcasting in 1975. In 1986, the IBA increased the Portsmouth licence to include Southampton and the Isle of Wight. The new licence went to Ocean Sound (later known as Ocean FM), with studios in Fareham; Ocean FM became Heart Hampshire. For the city's 800th birthday in 1994, VictoryFM broadcast for three 28-day periods over 18 months. It was purchased by TLRC, who relaunched the station in 2001 as the Quay; Portsmouth Football Club became a stakeholder in 2007, selling it in 2009.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth's daily newspaper is "The News", founded in 1873 and previously known as the "Portsmouth Evening News". "The Journal", a free weekly newspaper, is published by "News" publisher Johnston Press.


title: Portsmouth

text: Portsmouth has been home to a number of famed authors; Charles Dickens, whose works include "A Christmas Carol", "Great Expectations", "Oliver Twist" and "A Tale of Two Cities", was born there. Arthur Conan Doyle, author of the Sherlock Holmes stories, practised medicine in the city and played in goal for the amateur Portsmouth Association Football Club. Rudyard Kipling (poet and author of "The Jungle Book") and H. G. Wells, author of "The War of the Worlds" and "The Time Machine", lived in Portsmouth during the 1880s. Novelist and historian Walter Besant, author of "By Celia's Arbour, A Tale of Portsmouth Town", was born in Portsmouth. Historian Frances Yates, known for her work on Renaissance esotericism, was born in the city. Francis Austen, brother of Jane Austen, briefly lived in the area after graduating from Portsmouth Naval Academy. Contemporary literary figures include social critic, journalist and author Christopher Hitchens, who was born in Portsmouth. Nevil Shute moved to the city in 1934 when he relocated his aircraft company, and his former home is in Southsea. Fantasy author Neil Gaiman grew up in Purbrook and Southsea.


title: Portsmouth

text: Industrial Revolution engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel was born in Portsmouth. His father, Marc Isambard Brunel, worked for the Royal Navy and developed the world's first production line to mass-produce pulley blocks for ship rigging. James Callaghan, British prime minister from 1976 to 1979, was born and raised in Portsmouth. Son of a Protestant Northern Irish petty officer in the Royal Navy, Callaghan was the only person to hold all four Great Offices of State: foreign secretary, home secretary, chancellor and prime minister. John Pounds, the founder of ragged schools (which provided free education to working-class children), lived in Portsmouth and founded England's first ragged school there.


title: Portsmouth

text: Comedian and actor Peter Sellers was born in Southsea, and Arnold Schwarzenegger briefly lived and trained in Portsmouth. Other actors who were born or lived in the city include "EastEnders" actresses Emma Barton and Lorraine Stanley, and Bollywood actress Geeta Basra. Cryptozoologist Jonathan Downes was born in Portsmouth, and lived there for a time. Ant Middleton, former SBS, current television presenter and author was born in Portsmouth.


title: Portsmouth

text: Helen Duncan, the last person to be imprisoned under the 1735 Witchcraft Act, was arrested in Portsmouth.


title: Portsmouth

text: Notable sportspeople include Commonwealth Games gold medalist Michael East, Olympic medallist in cycling Rob Hayles, former British light-heavyweight boxing champion Tony Oakey, Olympic medallist Alan Pascoe as well as professional footballer Mason Mount. Single-handed yachtsman Alec Rose, 2003 World Aquatics Championships gold medallist Katy Sexton, and Olympic medallist Roger Black were also born in the city. Jamshid bin Abdullah of Zanzibar, the last constitutional monarch of the island state, lives in exile in Portsmouth with his wife and six children.


title: Portsmouth

text: According to the Portsmouth City Council website, the following individuals and military units have received the Freedom of the City in Portsmouth.


title: Cardinal Richelieu

text: Armand Jean du Plessis, Duke of Richelieu (; 9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a French clergyman and statesman. He was also known as "l'Éminence rouge", or "the Red Eminence", a term derived from the title "Eminence" applied to cardinals and the red robes that they customarily wear.


title: Cardinal Richelieu

text: Consecrated a bishop in 1607, Richelieu was appointed Foreign Secretary in 1616. He continued to rise through the hierarchy of both the Catholic Church and the French government by becoming a cardinal in 1622 and chief minister to King Louis XIII of France in 1624. He retained that office until his death in 1642, when he was succeeded by Cardinal Mazarin, whose career he had fostered. He also became engaged in a bitter dispute with the king's mother, Marie de Médicis, who had once been a close ally.


title: Cardinal Richelieu

text: Richelieu sought to consolidate royal power and restrained the power of the nobility in order to transform France into a strong centralized state. In foreign policy, his primary objectives were to check the power of the Habsburg dynasty in Spain and Austria and to ensure French dominance in the Thirty Years' War after the conflict engulfed Europe. Despite suppressing the Huguenot rebellions, he made alliances with Protestant states like the Kingdom of England and the Dutch Republic to help him achieve his goals. However, although he was a powerful political figure in his own right, events such as the Day of the Dupes, or "Journée des Dupes", showed that Richelieu's power was still dependent on the king's confidence.


title: Cardinal Richelieu

text: An alumnus of the University of Paris and headmaster of the College of Sorbonne, Richelieu renovated and extended the institution. He was famous for his patronage of the arts and founded the Académie Française, the learned society responsible for matters pertaining to the French language. As an advocate for Samuel de Champlain and New France, he founded the Compagnie des Cent-Associés; he also negotiated the 1632 Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye under which Quebec City returned to French rule after its loss in 1629.


title: Cardinal Richelieu

text: Richelieu is also known for being the inventor of the table knife. Annoyed by the bad manners that were commonly displayed at the dining table by users of sharp knives, who would often use them to pick their teeth, in 1637 Richelieu ordered that all of the knives on his dining table have their blades dulled and their tips rounded. The design quickly became popular throughout France and later spread to other countries.


title: Cardinal Richelieu

text: Richelieu has frequently been depicted in popular fiction, principally as the lead villain in Alexandre Dumas's 1844 novel "The Three Musketeers" and its numerous film adaptations.


title: Cardinal Richelieu

text: Born in Paris on 9 September 1585, Armand du Plessis was the fourth of five children and the last of three sons: he was delicate from childhood, and suffered frequent bouts of ill-health throughout his life. His family belonged to the lesser nobility of Poitou: his father, François du Plessis, seigneur de Richelieu, was a soldier and courtier who served as the Grand Provost of France, and his mother, Susanne de La Porte, was the daughter of a famous jurist.