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Panorama 50 contains
an article by Professor Stephen Rippon of Exeter
University about the marshland of south Essex, including
the Fobbing marshes. This article contains three maps
showing the extent of reclamation at different points in
time. These maps are very detailed and the A5 format of
Panorama does not do justice to them. The first map shows
how Canvey Island, and areas to the west, were in fact a
series of small islands. The second map shows the
earliest reclamation, probably during the medieval period
(around the 12th or 13th centuries?). At that time, the
remaining areas remained as intertidal saltmarshes used
for grazing sheep. The third map shows reclamation dating
to the 17th century, which was the work of Dutch
engineers. Note that the present sea wall along much the
southern coast of Canvey island and Shellhaven, and up
Holehaven Creek is relatively recent, having been moved
back to this location following rising sea level: the 17th
century sea walls in these areas have been lost to later
erosion (which is why we can only suggest their
approximate location). The A4,
pdf versions of the maps on this page enables those
interested to see the detail of the river channels and
sea walls - click on the image to open the pdf.
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The south Essex marshes before any
reclamation.
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The earliest phase of reclamation.
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The second phase of reclamation,
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To buy a copy of Panorama 50,
please contact publications@thurrock-history.org.uk.
The Panorama article was based on a
project entitled Our Wetland Heritage: An Integrated
Approach Towards Managing Coastal Landscapes. The
report on the first phase of the project gives more
details of the methodology and results. It can be found here.
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