In the mid-18th century, gentlemen with lots of money and little to do would take themselves off to Europe for the Grand Tour. In Paris, they polished their social skills. In Italy, they admired the ruins, learned about classical architecture and studied old masters. In 1789, the French Revolution put a stop to all that. Britain was at war with France for the best part of the next quarter of a century, and the continent was closed to travellers. Stuck at home, gentlemen of leisure swapped culture for the countryside and ruins for remote and rugged landscapes - places where those who liked to stretch their minds as well as their legs could dabble in the fashionable new science of geology. Where wealthy travellers went, writers and artists in need of patrons followed. The new breed of traveller headed north to the glacier-scoured Lake District and the mountains of northern Wales and Scotland. For drama and variety they went south to the Isle of Wight, just a short boat ride off the coast of southern England. For the geologically inclined, the island had everything: "The northern side is marked by all that is lovely, rich and picturesque; the southern side... abounds in bold wild rocks, precipitous projections, ravines, fearful chasms," wrote author and engraver William Cooke in 1808.
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