Cowes is an English seaport town and civil parish on the Isle of Wight. Cowes is located on the west bank of the estuary of the River Medina, facing the smaller town of East Cowes on the east bank. The two towns are linked by the Cowes Floating Bridge, a chain ferry.
The population was 9,663 in the 2001 census, which doubled during the regatta in early August. The population at the 2011 census was 10,405.
Charles Godfrey Leland‘s 19th century verses describe the towns poetically as “The two great Cowes that in loud thunder roar/This on the eastern, that the western shore”.
Cowes has been seen as a home for international yacht racing since the founding of the Royal Yacht Squadron in 1815. It gives its name to the world’s oldest regular regatta, Cowes Week, which occurs annually in the first week of August. Later, powerboat races are held.
Much of the town’s architecture is still heavily influenced by the style of ornate building that Prince Albert popularised.