Weymouth (a historic seaside resort in Dorset)
Weymouth is a popular seaside resort in Dorset, not least due to its wide sandy beach, most of which is dog-friendly. This historic town also has a beautiful old harbour, and is quite close to the Jurassic Coast (the local museum has a fossil of a dinosaur that could eat you in two bites!)
Nearby is Nothe Fort, a Victorian coastal defence fort, which today has underground passages and panoramic views of Weymouth Bay and Portland. Via a causeway you can also reach the Isle of Portland (with its well-known Portland Bill lighthouse) and the 18-mile long Chesil Beach.
If at the coast, keep away from nesting birds and never walk on sand dunes. Learn how to keep dogs safe by the seaside (check beach bans before travel). Join the campaign to ban flying rings, to help local seals.
The Black Death Plague arrived on these shores
The town has a grisly history too. It’s believed that it was here that the first innocent person with the Great Plague set foot, bringing it to our shores. The ‘Black Death’ was docked here at the harbour in 1348.
This was a global plague that killed around 25 to 50 million people (around half the popular of Europe) in just a few years. Spread by infected fleas, it was believed to have started in Central Asia or China (how history repeats itself).
First arriving in Europe via Italian ports, it was highly infectious through coughing. The most severe form turned skin black due to tissue death (hence the name).
The resulting mass loss of life resulted in not enough people to work. And this led to surviving peasants demanding higher wages and better conditions, and the end of them having to work on one plot owned by the landowner for life.
