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Chiltern Hills

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Geography of Great
Britain

   Chiltern Hills near Nettlebed
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   Chiltern Hills near Nettlebed

   The Chiltern Hills are a chalk escarpment in England that stretches in
   a south-west to north-east diagonal from Goring-On-Thames in
   Oxfordshire through Buckinghamshire to Dunstable in Bedfordshire. They
   are known locally as "the Chilterns", with the adjectival form of
   "Chiltern". The ridge overlooks the Vale of Aylesbury, and
   approximately coincides with the southernmost extent of the ice sheet
   during the last ice age. The Chilterns are part of the Southern England
   Chalk Formation which also includes Salisbury Plain, Cranborne Chase,
   the Isle of Wight and the South Downs.

   Their highest point — 267  m (876  ft) — is at Haddington Hill in
   Wendover Woods, Buckinghamshire, near Wendover; a stone marks the
   summit. A prominent hill is the nearby Ivinghoe Beacon, standing 249m
   (817ft) above sea level, the starting point of the Icknield Way and The
   Ridgeway long distance path, which follows the line of the Chilterns
   for many miles to the west, where they merge with the Wiltshire downs
   and southern Cotswolds. To the east of Ivinghoe Beacon is Dunstable
   Downs, a steep section of the Chiltern scarp that is the site of the
   famous London Gliding Club and Whipsnade Zoo. Near Wendover is Combe
   Hill which is 260 m (853 ft) above sea level.

   The more gently sloping country - the dip slope - to the south-east of
   the Chiltern scarp is also generally referred to as The Chilterns,
   containing much beech woodland and many pretty villages. Due to the
   quality hardwood, the area was once renowned for its chair making
   industry, centred on the towns of Chesham and High Wycombe.

   For planning purposes a large portion is designated officially as an
   Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Administratively the central area
   of the Bucks Chilterns comes under Chiltern District Council.

   This area is also known as the Chiltern Hundreds, an administrative
   area of convenience used to subvert an archaic rule, which permits a
   Member of Parliament, who is not allowed to resign, to apply for
   tenureship of the Chiltern Hundreds, thus relieving him of his
   parliamentary duty.

   Rivers that drain from the Chiltern Hills include the River Lee, River
   Ver, River Bulbourne, River Misbourne, River Chess, River Wye and River
   Gade and are classified as chalk streams.

List of notable towns and villages in, or adjacent to, the Chilterns

     * Aldbury, Amersham, Apsley, Ashridge
     * Beaconsfield, Berkhamsted, Bledlow Ridge, Bovingdon, Bradenham
     * Chalfont St Giles, Chesham, Chinnor, Cholesbury
     * Dunstable
     * Edlesborough, Ellesborough
     * Fingest, Frieth
     * Goring-On-Thames, Great Missenden, Great Hampden
     * Halton, Hambleden, Hawridge, Hemel Hempstead, Henley-on-Thames,
       High Wycombe, Hughenden
     * Jordans
     * Ley Hill, Little Missenden, Luton
     * Naphill, Nettlebed
     * Pishill, Princes Risborough, Prestwood, Reading
     * Skirmett, Stokenchurch, Stonor, Studham
     * Tring, Turville
     * Watlington, Wendover, West Wycombe, Whipsnade

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiltern_Hills"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
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