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Dorset is a predominately rural county in southwest England bounded by Devon, Somerset, Wiltshire, Hampshire, Bournemouth, Poole and the English Channel. It has many small villages but few large urban or industrial areas and no motorways. The county town is Dorchester which is adjoined by the new urban development of Poundbury designed by the Prince of Wales. Traditional market towns of note include Shaftesbury, Sturminster Newton, Blandford Forum and Wimborne Minster, whilst on the coast are the holiday resorts of Lyme Regis, Bridport, Weymouth and Swanage. The Stour, Frome and Piddle or Trent are among numerous small rivers which which cut green fertile valleys.

One unique area of Dorset is the Isle of Purbeck; although described as an island it is in reality a peninsular of around 60 square miles (155sq.km) with water on three sides, the English Channel, the River Frome and Poole Harbour.

Dorset is noted for its agricultural and dairy produce and for Portland Stone, a white-grey limestone which has been used extensively as a building stone, notably in major public buildings in London such as Buckingham Palace and St Paul’s Cathedral. Stone has been quarried in the Isle of Portland and the Isle of Purbeck since the Middle Ages. Tourism is very important to the economy of Dorset and has developed due to the beautiful scenery and coastline, the proliferation of prehistoric remains and the connection with Thomas Hardy.

The county has a long history of human settlement. Cave dwellers lived in the area in the middle of the Ice Age, about half a million years ago, while agriculture has been dated back to 4000BC. By about 500BC present day Dorset was the territory of the Durotriges, who built impressive hillforts, such as that at Maiden Castle just outside Dorchester. They could not stop the Romans, however, who established their culture here for 400 years and founded the town of Dunrovia (Dorchester).