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Sully Island
Sully Island (Welsh: Ynys Sili) is a small tidal island of 14.5 acres (5.9 ha) by the hamlet of Swanbridge in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. It is located 400 m (440 yd) off the northern coast of the Bristol Channel, midway between the towns of Penarth and Barry and 10 km (6 mi) south of the Welsh capital city of Cardiff. It is part of the parish of Sully, after which it is named, and is registered as a Site of Special Scientific Interest. Sully island is one of 43 unbridged tidal islands that can be reached on foot from the mainland of Great Britain.
Access to the island is on foot at low tide from the car park of the Captain's Wife pub. A rocky causeway connecting the island to the mainland is uncovered for approximately 3 hours either side of low tide, the island being cut off from the mainland for the rest of the day. A tide table is displayed to indicate when it is safe to cross.
During the 13th century, the island was the base for Alfredo de Marisco,[citation needed] a Norman pirate known locally as the Night Hawk. In the Middle Ages the island was well known for its involvement in the local smuggling trade.
There is evidence that the island was frequently visited by both Romans and Vikings. There is also archeological evidence for remains of a Saxon multivallate promontory fort occupying the eastern end of the Island, on the summit of which is a Bronze Age barrow. It has been suggested by some that this was an armed stronghold, but it was more likely to have been a defended residence and farm homestead.
Swanbridge and the waterfront protected by Sully Island had been used as a commercial harbour and port for several hundred years, although there is no sign of this today. Cargo arrived and departed via the St Mary's Well Bay Road, which is now blocked off to through traffic, en route for the traditional market at Canton Cross in Cardiff. As late as the early 1970s, the harbour's iron mooring rings could still be seen at the eastern end of the bay.
During the 16th century several historical records show that the trader masters were supposed to pay an import duty to local officials, but many attempted to avoid the payments by smuggling the cargoes ashore. In 1569 court records show that the harbour official seized contraband consisting of 28,000 lb (13,000 kg) of cheese and eighty barrels of butter arriving illegally at Swanbridge. In 1658 the harbour was being used as a landing place for illegal immigrants, described at the time as "undesirables".
A small fleet of fishing vessels were located at Swanbridge harbour and it is likely that the row of cottages, that were converted during 1976 and 1977 into the Captain's Wife pub, were the traditional homes of the local fishermen and their families.
Owing to the tricky tides and narrow access, many ships have sunk in the vicinity of the island. Several sources record that the famous Antarctic survey vessel, the SY Scotia, was wrecked on the island during 18 January 1916. Local children from as far away as Barry went to Swanbridge with sacks to collect coal spilled on the foreshore from the wreck, over several weeks. There is a skeleton of a wreck still visible on the island's north foreshore facing Swanbridge, but this vessel's keel is too short to have been the Scotia.
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Sully Island AI simulator
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Sully Island
Sully Island (Welsh: Ynys Sili) is a small tidal island of 14.5 acres (5.9 ha) by the hamlet of Swanbridge in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. It is located 400 m (440 yd) off the northern coast of the Bristol Channel, midway between the towns of Penarth and Barry and 10 km (6 mi) south of the Welsh capital city of Cardiff. It is part of the parish of Sully, after which it is named, and is registered as a Site of Special Scientific Interest. Sully island is one of 43 unbridged tidal islands that can be reached on foot from the mainland of Great Britain.
Access to the island is on foot at low tide from the car park of the Captain's Wife pub. A rocky causeway connecting the island to the mainland is uncovered for approximately 3 hours either side of low tide, the island being cut off from the mainland for the rest of the day. A tide table is displayed to indicate when it is safe to cross.
During the 13th century, the island was the base for Alfredo de Marisco,[citation needed] a Norman pirate known locally as the Night Hawk. In the Middle Ages the island was well known for its involvement in the local smuggling trade.
There is evidence that the island was frequently visited by both Romans and Vikings. There is also archeological evidence for remains of a Saxon multivallate promontory fort occupying the eastern end of the Island, on the summit of which is a Bronze Age barrow. It has been suggested by some that this was an armed stronghold, but it was more likely to have been a defended residence and farm homestead.
Swanbridge and the waterfront protected by Sully Island had been used as a commercial harbour and port for several hundred years, although there is no sign of this today. Cargo arrived and departed via the St Mary's Well Bay Road, which is now blocked off to through traffic, en route for the traditional market at Canton Cross in Cardiff. As late as the early 1970s, the harbour's iron mooring rings could still be seen at the eastern end of the bay.
During the 16th century several historical records show that the trader masters were supposed to pay an import duty to local officials, but many attempted to avoid the payments by smuggling the cargoes ashore. In 1569 court records show that the harbour official seized contraband consisting of 28,000 lb (13,000 kg) of cheese and eighty barrels of butter arriving illegally at Swanbridge. In 1658 the harbour was being used as a landing place for illegal immigrants, described at the time as "undesirables".
A small fleet of fishing vessels were located at Swanbridge harbour and it is likely that the row of cottages, that were converted during 1976 and 1977 into the Captain's Wife pub, were the traditional homes of the local fishermen and their families.
Owing to the tricky tides and narrow access, many ships have sunk in the vicinity of the island. Several sources record that the famous Antarctic survey vessel, the SY Scotia, was wrecked on the island during 18 January 1916. Local children from as far away as Barry went to Swanbridge with sacks to collect coal spilled on the foreshore from the wreck, over several weeks. There is a skeleton of a wreck still visible on the island's north foreshore facing Swanbridge, but this vessel's keel is too short to have been the Scotia.