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SKIDDAW, a mountain in the centre of Cumberland; on the E side of Bassenthwaite-water. It culminates 3½ miles N of Keswick, at an altitude of 3,022 feet above sea-level; spreads into an oblong mountain-mass 8 miles by 7; includes Saddleback, Linthwaite fell, and the Caldbeck fells, with altitudes of 2,856 and 2,101 feet; bears, in its central part, the name of Skiddaw-Forest; consists partly of granite, but chiefly of clay slate; commands very extensive and most gorgeous panoramic views; and has been celebrated by many poets, including Drayton, Lamb, Keats, and Wordsworth, the last of whom says,-
What was the great Parnassus' self to thee,
Mount Skiddaw In his natural sovereignty
Our British hill is nobler far; he shrouds
His double front among Atlantic clouds,
And pours forth streams more sweet than Castally.
(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))
Linked entities: | |
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Feature Description: | "a mountain" (ADL Feature Type: "mountains") |
Administrative units: | Cumberland AncC |
Place: | Skiddaw |
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