The Geological History of the English Channel

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Abstract
Summary: The geology of the English Channel has long been known to be much more complex than might appear from a study of the land areas on either side. The most important work on the subject was that of Dangeard, who examined a number of dredge samples and published his results in 1929. In recent years investigations with a free-drop cover which collected samples of rock in place, and geophysical work, largely that of Dr. M. N. Hill, have added much new information. The data now available are brought together and analysed. Maps showing the areas where each major rock group occurs at surface or at depth and estimates of thicknesses have been prepared. From these a map of the outcrops under the Channel and a contour map of the sub-New Red Sandstone—Mesozoic surface (the so-called Palaeozoic floor) have been drawn. The history of the area is then reviewed and it is concluded that since the Armorican orogeny the Channel has been an area with a tendency to intermittent downwarps while the surrounding land areas cf Devon and Cornwall on the one hand and Brittany on the other have been areas with intermittent uplift. This leads to the conclusion that many of the present uplands of Palaeozoic rock were blocked out in early times and that the present edges of these areas are not far from the positions they have occupied since New Red Sandstone times. It is suggested that palaeogeographical maps of the Mesozoic in this region should show a

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