English Channel

The English Channel, also for some time known as the British Sea (French: La Manche, "the sleeve") is the part of the Atlantic Ocean that separates the island of Great Britain from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. It is about 563 km (350 mi) long and at its widest is 240 km (150 mi). The Strait of Dover ("Pas de Calais" to the French) is the narrowest part of the channel, being only 34 km (21 mi) from Dover to Cap Gris-Nez, and is located at the eastern end of the English Channel, where it meets the North Sea.

Related Topics:
British Sea - French - Atlantic Ocean - Island - Great Britain - France - North Sea - Km - Mi - Strait of Dover - Dover

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The Channel is quite shallow, with an average depth of about 120 meters at its widest part, reducing to about 45 metres between Dover and Calais, then remaining shallow where it lies over the remains of the former land bridge between East Anglia and the Low Countries. (See 'Formation of the Channel' below)

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The Channel Islands lie in the Channel, close to the French side. The Isles of Scilly in the UK and Ushant in France mark the western end of the Channel.

Related Topics:
Channel Islands - Isles of Scilly - UK - Ushant

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The French département of Manche, which incorporates the Cotentin Peninsula that juts out into the Channel, takes its name from the surrounding seaway.

Related Topics:
Département - Manche - Cotentin Peninsula

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