King Alfred Memorial
The memorial is a prominent feature of Swanage sea front.
It was erected by local John Mowlem a local resident who, after starting his working life as a quarryman, made good his fortune as a stonemason in London..When he retired back to Swanage, he was a great benefactor to the town, opening the Mowlem Institute in 1863, and Herston’s Reading Room in 1867. Near to the memorial is the Mowlem theatre and bar named after him.
The memorial is a granite Tuscan-style column set on 2 stone steps and inscribed - "In commemoration of a great naval battle fought with the Danes in Swanage Bay by Alfred the Great.". On top of the column is a mound of cannon balls brought back from the Crimean War.
In the battle, the fortunes of both sides swung back and forth with the Danes quick to make truces and quick to break them according to their fortunes. The battle commemorated here comes at a point when the Danes broke a truce and planned to attack Alfred's forces by land and sea. :
The Danish force came to Exeter from Wareham, and the ship-force sailed around from the west; when they met a great storm at sea,and one hundred and twenty ships were lost at Swanage.
Requirements to log this Virtual Cache:
To claim this virtual cache as found there are 3 tasks:
Go to the published co-ordinates and identify the following:
1 - Identify the year of the battle commemorated here
2 - Identify the year the memorial was erected
3 - Count the number of cannon balls on top of the memorial
Message CO with the answers to the above questions. Finds can be logged straight away (but CO reserves the right to delete logs if correct answers are not received within a realistic period). An optional photo of yourself on Swanage seafront can be added to your log if you like but please don't show the memorial.
Virtual Rewards 5.0 - 2026-2027
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between February 3, 2026 and February 3, 2027. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 5.0 on the Geocaching Blog.