The lovely seaside town of Ryde is definitely a unique place to call home and, though it has long been a popular destination for tourists looking to let it all hang out on the Isle of Wight, there is far more to Ryde than fun in the sun. For one, Ryde is far older than many seaside towns in England and the United Kingdom. Most seaside resort towns like Blackpool only arose after the boom in the seaside market as a result of English doctors advocating the therapeutic benefits of salt and ocean water. Around the mid 1800s many towns that were quaint fishing villages blew up overnight thanks to the wealthy Victorians who flocked to the coastal burgs in order to enliven and enlighten their bodies and minds. Hotels and resorts sprang up overnight and forever altered England's landscape. Ryde, on the other hand, has been an important and popular town for far longer though it did of course see some growth and benefit as a result of the seaside resort town boom.
Whereas other coastal towns offer visceral thrills and shallow pleasures, Ryde lets its storied reputation speak for itself. Its pier has long been a source of pride as well as a sought after destination for tourists. Ryde Pier was a necessary part of the coast because of how low the low tide is in the area. As such, a pier that accommodated this was of the utmost importance. At any rate, there are only three piers in the United Kingdom that are longer than Ryde Pier and the Pier is also one of the oldest in the U.K.
Ryde's history isn't always sunny, though. There have been several occasions where tragedy struck the town and the most notable of these instances is likely the awful wreck of the HMS Royal George that occurred in 1782. The HMS Royal George was one of the shining beacons of the Royal Navy, boasting over one hundred guns. At its inception it was the largest warship in the entire fleet and this was during the time that Britain had the most powerful navy in history. The wreck actually occurred at Spithead which was one of the most esteemed areas of the Navy because it was where the monarch would review and rate the many ships in the fleet. Spithead isn't far from Ryde, though, and when the HMS Royal George capsized over eight hundred people lost their lives in a very short amount of time. A very large amount of these people washed ashore dead on the beaches of Ryde and may of these corpses were not just sailors but women and children. In 2004 the town paid due homage to these unfortunate sufferers by erecting a monument to all those who lost their lives on the Royal George. Though dark and morbid, this is still a part of the history of Ryde and evidence of how long this town has been in our collective conscious. We must always remember all parts of history no matter how gruesome and it is refreshing to see that Ryde follows this mindset admirably, honoring those who perished rather than burying the disaster from public memory.
| 
+44 (0)1983 564777
+44 (0)1983 564704
.jpg)
