Skokholm

Skokholm

Native name: Ynys Sgogwm
Skokholm from the mainland
Skokholm
Geography
Location	St George's Channel
Coordinates	Coordinates: 51°41′52″N 5°16′50″W / 51.69788°N 5.28047°W / 51.69788; -5.28047
Area	106 ha (260 acres)
Length	1.6 km (0.99 mi)
Width	.8 km (0.5 mi)
Administration
Wales
County	Pembrokeshire
Demographics
Population	2

Skokholm (Welsh: Ynys Sgogwm) is an island 2.5 miles (4.0 km) off the coast of south west Pembrokeshire in Wales, lying south of the neighbouring island of Skomer. The whole island is a Site of Special Scientific Interest as is Skomer. The surrounding waters are a marine reserve and all are part of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park.

At its greatest, Skokholm is 1 mile (1.6 km) long and 0.5 miles (0.80 km) wide, covering 106 ha (260 acres). Made up of Old Red Sandstone, its cliffs stand between 70 feet (21 m) in the northeast, to 160 feet (49 m) in the southwest. Battered by storms, the high cliffs and isolated nature of the island makes it a haven for seabirds. There is a rock outcrop close to the centre of the island, which provides shelter to the island's only structures. Its greatest height is 55 metres (180 feet).

Skokholm is Norse for "wooded island," very similar to the Swedish capital name , named by the Vikings who visited the Bristol Channel.

An undated charter is to be found in the British Museum by which William Marshal the Younger, Earl of Pembroke 1219-31, grants to a certain Gilbert de Vale, land in Ireland in exchange for lands in Pembrokeshire, including the island of 'Scoghholm'. The revenue from the island from 1324 to 1472 was recorded in Ministerial Accounts. Some years later, the islands were in the hands of Sir John Perrott, supposedly a natural son of Henry VIII. The island was bought for £300 in 1646 by William Philipps, a barrister, and it was kept in the family for the next 360 years. In 2005 his descendant Mrs. Osra Lloyd-Philipps (1920 - 24 March 2005) of Dale Castle died. The trustees of the estate decided to offer the island for sale, with first refusal going to the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, who had managed the island for the last 50 years on their behalf. After a large fundraising effort, the island was successfully purchased in April 2006 for £650,000, and designated a national nature reserve in December 2008.