Southern England Canals

Mostly early attempts at canalising rivers, these were classic examples of the Canal Mania. Not supporting heavy industry they had precarious revenue streams and, having done the hard work, were often welcomed into the embrace of the railway companies that were spreading their wings.

The Wey & Arun / Portsmouth & Arundel were built to provide a secure route from London to Portsmouth for the supply of the Royal Navy impervious to predation by the French. The French had previously done the same with the Nantes a Brest Canal.

Canals covered:

  • Salisbury & Southampton

  • Andover Canal

  • Wey & Arun Junction Canal

  • Portsmouth & Arundel Canal

  • Chichester Ship Canal

  • Basingstoke Canal

  • West Sussex River Rother Navigation and Petworth Canal

Want to download the map to help you explore?

Here are two Google Maps that you can download for your personal use. (You will need to zoom in a lot to see the detail).

The map titled RSL shows canal as single lines, that titled RPL shows them as polygons that can be clicked to show more detail. Clicking the square brackets at the top right corner of the map will open it in your ‘Google My Maps’. See the ‘Explanatory Notes’ page for more detail.