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English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
Timeline of Events
1120
11.25.1120
The ''White Ship'' sinks in the English Channel, drowning William Adelin, son of Henry I of England.
1588
5.28.1588
The Spanish Armada, with 130 ships and 30,000 men, sets sail from Lisbon heading for the English Channel. (It will take until May 30 for all ships to leave port).
5.30.1588
The last ship of the Spanish Armada sets sail from Lisbon heading for the English Channel.
1785
6.15.1785
Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier, co-pilot of the first-ever manned flight (1783), and his companion, Pierre Romain, become the first-ever casualties of an air crash when their hot air balloon explodes during their attempt to cross the English Channel.
1875
8.24.1875
Captain Matthew Webb became first person to swim the English Channel
1909
7.25.1909
Louis Blériot makes the first flight across the English Channel in a heavier-than-air machine from (Calais to Dover) in 37 minutes.
1912
4.16.1912
Harriet Quimby becomes the first woman to fly an airplane across the English Channel.
1926
8.6.1926
Gertrude Ederle becomes the first woman to swim across the English Channel.
1928
9.18.1928
Juan de la Cierva makes the first autogyro crossing of the English Channel.
1959
7.25.1959
SR-N1 hovercraft crosses the English Channel from Calais to Dover in just over 2 hours.
1979
6.12.1979
Bryan Allen wins the second Kremer prize for a man powered flight across the English Channel in the Gossamer Albatross.
1987
7.29.1987
British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and President of France François Mitterrand sign the agreement to build a tunnel under the English Channel (Eurotunnel).
2008
9.26.2008
Swiss pilot and inventor Yves Rossy becomes first person to fly a jet engine-powered wing across the English Channel.