There are no active volcanoes in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, although a few do exist in some British Overseas Territories, including Queen Mary's Peak in Tristan da Cunha, Soufrière Hills volcano on the Caribbean island of Montserrat, as well as Mount Belinda and Mount Michael in the British Overseas Territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.
The last time that volcanoes were active in what is now the United Kingdom was the early Palaeogene period, just over 50 million years ago (Ma), associated with the opening of the Atlantic Ocean. Modern day hills and mountains within the UK which are sometimes described as extinct volcanoes are usually the deeply eroded roots of volcanoes active in prehistoric times. Some locations popularly believed to be volcanoes, such as The Wrekin, actually have different origins, such as being sites where volcanic material was deposited.
List Below is a list of extinct volcanoes in the United Kingdom.
England Name Elevation Coordinates Last eruption metresfeet Bardon Hill 276 912 570 Ma Barrow Hill - - 311 Ma Calton HillBritish GS Calton Hill, accessed 21 October 2008 - - 330 Ma Cawsand volcano - - 280 Ma The Cheviot 815 2674 390 Ma Gurnard's Head - - 400 Ma Haweswater calderaGeology of England and Wales, pp118ff - - - Helvellyn 950 3118 - Langdale caldera - - Ordovician Lundy (?) 143 369 50 Ma Scafells (including Scafell Pike) 978 3209 430 Ma Speedwell vent - - Carboniferous Warboys - - Hercynian orogeny
Northern Ireland Name Elevation Location Last eruption metresfeetCoordinates Carrickarede - - 60 Ma Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland - - Palaeogene Scawt Hill 378 1240 - Slemish 437 1434 Palaeogene Slieve Gallion 528 1732 - Slieve Gullion 573 1880 Palaeocene Tievebulliagh 402 1319 -
Scotland Name Elevation Location Last eruption metresfeetCoordinates Anton Dohrn Seamount - - 40-70 Ma Ardnamurchan - - early Eocene: c.55 Ma Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh 251 824 298.9 Ma Ben Nevis13454411 56°47′49″N 5°00′13″W 298.9 Ma Cuillin Hills (on Isle of Skye) 992 3,255 43 Ma Dundee Law extinct volcano in Dundee 500 443.8 Elie Ness - - - Erlend - - 58 Ma Eshaness stratovolcano - - - Glen Coe Caldera - - 416.0 Ma Hebrides Terrace Seamount - - 48 Ma North Berwick Law 187 613 298.9 Ma Peniel Heugh 237 778 -Buchan-Glenn Fissure System (Rattray)-- - 165 MaRockall1756 -Rùm volcanoHamilton MA, Pearson DG, Thompson RN, Kelly SP, Emeleus CH (1998) Rapid eruption of Skye lavas inferred from precise U-Pb and Ar-Ar dating of the Rum and Cuillin plutonic complexes. Nature 394: 260-2638122,664-
Wales Name Elevation Coordinates Last eruption metresfeet Deganwy Castle volcano 110 631 - Conwy Mountain ()BBC website 244 801 450 Ma Rhobell Fawr 734 2408 - Snowdon () 1085 3560 - Treffgarne Rocks - - Ordovician
See also List of volcanoes in Montserrat List of volcanoes in South Sandwich Islands
References