Forewick Holm
| Gaelic name | Unknown |
|---|---|
| Location | |
 Forewick Holm
Forewick Holm shown within Scotland
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| OS grid reference | HU186594 |
| Coordinates | 60°12′N 1°24′W / 60.20°N 1.40°W |
| Physical geography | |
| Island group | Shetland |
| Area | 1 hectare (2.5 acres) |
| Area rank | na |
| Highest elevation | 10 metres (33 ft) |
| Administration | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Country | Scotland |
| Council area | Shetland |
| Demographics | |
| Population | Nil |
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| References | |
Forewick Holm is a 1-hectare (2.5-acre) island in the Sound of Papa in the Shetland islands, Scotland. located between Papa Stour and the Sandness peninsula. Since 2008 it has also been referred to as Forvik Island as a result of Stuart "Captain Calamity" Hill's protest around constitutional matters.
About 200 metres (656 ft) south of Forewick Ness headland on Papa Stour and 1.5 kilometres (0.9 mi) north of Melby on the Sandness peninsula. 60°19′07″N 01°39′49″W / 60.31861°N 1.66361°W
A small islet called Scarf's Head is accessible from Forewick Holm at low tide.
The island is officially named Forewick Holm. Wick is an anglicisation of vik, a Norse and modern Norwegian word for bay. Får is sheep in modern Norwegian, Danish and Swedish. Holm is a common name in the Orkney and Shetland islands, and elsewhere, for a small, rounded island, an example is .
There are no records of the island being permanently inhabited at any time, and in 2008 Stuart Hill was residing there for a few days a year. Its small size renders it unable to support any significant population. However, there is some evidence of a circular construction on its SSE tip, which could represent anything from a sheep pen, to a Pictish era building.
The SS Highcliffe was wrecked on the islet on 6 February 1940. It was carrying a cargo of iron ore from Narvik, bound for Immingham.
Current ownership of the islet is in dispute between Papa Stour resident Mark King and Cunningsburgh resident Stuart Hill. Hill is an Englishman who settled in Shetland after being shipwrecked there in 2001 during a failed attempt to circumnavigate the British Isles, earning him the nickname "Captain Calamity". Hill claims that the island's udal title (allodial title) was donated to him in 2008 by the owner Mark King. He claims to have a signed, witnessed document confirming this. King has stated this is not the case, but that he had agreed to sell the island to Hill. In March 2009 King still claimed ownership stating that Hill had not paid for the island as agreed.
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Wikipedia