Moving to Portsmouth?
The city of Portsmouth was granted city status in 1926. The application was made
on the grounds that the town deserved to be a city due to it being the “first naval
port of the kingdom”.
The city is situated in Hampshire, on Portsea Island, which earns it the prestige
of being the UK’s only island city!
The city and the football club share a rather exotic nickname, this being, Pompey.
Ships, as they entered Portsmouth Harbour, often logged it down in their logbooks
as ‘Pom.P’ (an abbreviation of Portsmouth Point) so it seems fairly obvious that
this is where the nickname originated. Sadly the city was bombed very badly during
World War II, inevitably, due to its importance as a port, and although the city
was largely rebuilt, developers still occasionally find unexploded bombs!!
Portsmouth is a very popular destination for school-trips, due to its extensive
nautical and naval history, and especially as it is home to some world-famous ships:
the ‘HMS Warrior’, (the first iron-hulled, armour-plated warship, built in 1861),
the ‘HMS Victory’, and the remains of the ‘Mary Rose’. The harbour also has the
world’s oldest dry dock, which is still very much in use.
There has been much redevelopment over the years and some exciting and innovative
buildings have been constructed here, including the tallest observation tower in
the UK; The ‘Spinnaker’ stands at 552ft tall, and has four viewing decks situated
at various levels.
Portsmouth can boast a fairly impressive list of one-time residents, including;
Joe Jackson, Rudyard Kipling, Charles Dickens, H.G.Wells, and even Arnold Shwarzenegger
lived here for a short time!! It would appear that it is an inspirational place
to be!
Being on the waterfront Portsmouth has many water-oriented activities on offer,
including, sailing, windsurfing, kiteboarding, scuba diving, etc. However it also
has a number of well-respected theatres, galleries, clubs, wine bars, etc, for the
less outdoorsy folk! Then of course one could always take a day-trip to France!
Portsmouth has a very busy commercial ferry port with services operating daily across
to Europe and the Channel Islands.
An impressive and fun city, it has a lot to offer people, of all ages and from all
walks of life.