Christchurch, Dorset

Christchurch
Town and civil parish
Christchurch Priory, the longest parish church in England
Coat of arms
Motto(s):  'For Fidelity and Freedom'
Location of former Christchurch borough (dark red) within Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (red)
Coordinates: 50°44′N 1°47′W / 50.73°N 1.78°W / 50.73; -1.78
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Constituent country	England
Region	South West England
Ceremonial county	Dorset
Historic county	Hampshire
Unitary authority	Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
Government
• Type	Borough council
• Body	Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council
• MP:	Christopher Chope (C)
Area [2]
• Total	19.5 sq mi (50.4 km2)
Population
• Total	31,372 (2,021 Census)[1]
• Density	2,350/sq mi (909/km2)
Time zone	UTC+0 (Greenwich Mean Time)
Postcode	BH23
Post town	christchurch
Area code(s)	01202 01425
ISO 3166-2	GB-DOR (Dorset)
ONS code	19UC (ONS) E07000048 (GSS)
OS grid reference	SZ156923
Website	Town Council

Christchurch (/ˈkraɪs(t)tʃɜːrtʃ/) is a town and civil parish on the south coast^[3] of Dorset, England. The parish had a population of 31,372 in 2021.^[1] It adjoins Bournemouth to the west, with the New Forest to the east. Part of the historic county of Hampshire, Christchurch was a borough within the administrative county of Dorset from 1974 until 2019, when it became part of the new Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority.

Founded in the 7th century at the confluence of the rivers Avon and Stour which flow into Christchurch Harbour, the town was originally named Twynham but became known as Christchurch following the construction of the priory in 1094. The town developed into an important trading port, and was fortified in the 9th century. Further defences were added in the 12th century with the construction of a castle, which was destroyed during the English Civil War by the Parliamentarian Army. During the 18th and 19th centuries, smuggling flourished and became one of the town's most lucrative industries. The town was heavily fortified during the Second World War as a precaution against an expected invasion, and in 1940 an Airspeed factory was established on the town's airfield to make aircraft for the Royal Air Force.

The town's harbour, beaches, nature reserves and historically important buildings have made Christchurch a popular tourist destination. Bournemouth Airport, an international airport which handled around 800,000 passengers in 2019, is within the former borough boundary at Hurn. The airport's industrial park contains a number of aerospace and engineering businesses and is one of the largest employment sites in Dorset.