Plymouth, Ferries and Ferry Crossings

Welcome to the Plymouth (UK) section of FerryCrossings.org, the site for information about major UK and continental ports and the ferries between them. Our site includes an introduction to a number of ports and feature pages about the various crossing ways, lanes and routes and companies operating between them to help you plan your journey and discover interesting travel destinations along the way. You can even compare prices and save money on your ferry tickets with ads from selected major booking sites and ferry operators.

Port of Plymouth

Plymouth. The city and port of Plymouth is to be found in Devon, between the mouth of the River Plym and that of the River Tamar. Its long history goes back to the Bronze Age, in nearby Mount Batten which is on the opposite side of the estuary, on Plymouth Sound. Archaeological evidence in Mount Batten points to its being the earliest known community, in Britain, trading with Europe. It became an important defensive point for the growing town of Sutton (now known as Plymouth, as Plymouth overtook Mount Batten in importance as a port when the river mouth at Mount Batten began to silt up.

It was from Plymouth that the Pilgrim Fathers finally left England in 1620 to found a new colony in the Americas. The 'Mayflower' had originally set our from Southampton with another ship, the 'Speedwell', but hardly had their journey started when delays and problems forced them to return to Plymouth, so it was from here, in September, that they finally set sail on their epic journey to found the new colony of Plymouth in America (Massachusetts). Plymouth's importance as a major trading and passenger port, together with its ship building industry, continued to increase over the centuries.

In the mid 14th century it actually suffered attack by a French force during what came to be known as the 100 Years War. Although the nearby area suffered some damage by fire Plymouth itself withstood the attack and the invaders were unable to enter the town. During the 1500s Plymouth's main export was wool but the port was also the home base for many other sea-going trading vessels. During the Civil War of the mid 17th century Plymouth remained steadfast for Parliament even though she suffered four years of constant attack by forces loyal to King Charles 1. After the Restoration of the Monarchy, when King Charles ll was on the throne, the defensive Royal Citadel was constructed with cannon facing out to sea but, interestingly, some were turned inland pointing at the town. At the same time a tiny island, in Plymouth Sound was fortified and became the prison for leading Parliamentarians.The island was originally known as St Michael, after its 12th century chapel, (then St Nicholas when the chapel was re-named) and then, eventually as Drake's island. This was for the 16th century Sir Francis Drake who is famously reputed to have finished a game of bowls on Plymouth Hoe before setting out to defeat the Spanish Armada which was intent on invasion of England. As Plymouth's importance as a trading port declined to some extent it moved into shipbuilding and the first dockyard was started in the early 1690s, by King William lll (William of Orange). This was His Majesty's Naval Base at Devonport. Further docks followed in the 18th century. The dockyard became the cornerstone of Plymouth's prosperity. Today it is one of only three HMNB, UK naval bases. The others are HMNB Portsmouth and HMNB Clyde. Devonport has become the largest naval base in Western Europe and is the base port for the largest ships in the Royal Navy. It is also the only UK yard equipped to conduct refits on nuclear submarines.

Portsmouth's naval ship building industry attracted hostile attention from the German Luftwaffe, during the Second World War, who targeted the dockyard at Devonport. The attacks were at their height in 1940/41 and became known as the Plymouth Blitz. In all, the city suffered over 50 major bombing raids. The old Charles Church, founded in 1634, was hit by an incendiary bomb in 1941 and completely burned out. After the war the decision was taken not to rebuild the church in its present position as the numbers in the congregation were dwindling as members moved further away from the city centre and the chuch. It was decided that it should be preserved as a permanent memorial to the city's sacrifice in the 1939 - 1945 war.

Today Plymouth isn't 'all work and no play', it hosts an annual fireworks display and championship in August of each year. It's a spectacular display over the waterfront attracting thousands of visitors to see it. The city's main theatre, the Theatre Royal, with its small experimental theatre, The Drum, has been joined by the recently built production and learning centre, The TR2, an award winning waterfront building which was a runner-up for the prestigious architectural RIBA Stirling Prize in 2003. This theatre has tremendous production facilities and attracts some of the most successful producers in the UK. The Plymouth Pavilions is a multi purpose modern building offering sports and large concert facilities. Also in Plymouth is the Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery. This has been extensively refurbished and is due to re-open fully in 2009. Its extensive collections include archaelogical artefacts from the surrounding area, Dartmoor, Ancient Egypt, the Middle East and Europe. It has extensive Natural History collections. The massive art collections hold thousands of drawings, easel paintings, watercolours, oils, prints and sculptures.