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Dorset (pronounced 'DOR-sit' or [dɔ.sət], and sometimes in the past called Dorsetshire), is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester, situated in the south of the county at . Between its extreme points Dorset measures 50 miles (80 km) from east to west and 40 miles (64 km) north to south, and has an area of 1,024 square miles (2,653 km²). Dorset borders Devon to the west, Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north-east, and Hampshire to the east. The county is largely rural with a relatively low population and population density. Dorset's motto is 'Who's Afear'd'.
Dorset is famous for its beautiful coastline, the Jurassic Coast, which features landforms such as Lulworth Cove, the Isle of Portland, Chesil Beach and Durdle Door, as well as the holiday resorts of Poole, Bournemouth, Weymouth, Swanage, West Bay and Lyme Regis. Dorset is the setting of the novels of Thomas Hardy, who was born near the county town of Dorchester. The county has a long history of human settlement and some notable archaeology, including the hill forts of Maiden Castle and Hod Hill. (more...)
