<P> The Isle was owned by a Norman family until 1293 and was earlier a kingdom in its own right . The island has played an important part in the defence of the ports of Southampton and Portsmouth , and been near the front - line of conflicts through the ages , including the Spanish Armada and the Battle of Britain . Rural for most of its history , its Victorian fashionability and the growing affordability of holidays led to significant urban development during the late 19th and early 20th centuries . Historically part of Hampshire , the island became a separate administrative county in 1890 . It continued to share the Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire until 1974 , when it was made its own ceremonial county . Apart from a shared police force , there is now no administrative link with Hampshire , although a combined local authority with Portsmouth and Southampton was considered , this is now unlikely to proceed . Until 1995 the island had a governor . </P>
<P> The Isle was owned by a Norman family until 1293 and was earlier a kingdom in its own right . The island has played an important part in the defence of the ports of Southampton and Portsmouth , and been near the front - line of conflicts through the ages , including the Spanish Armada and the Battle of Britain . Rural for most of its history , its Victorian fashionability and the growing affordability of holidays led to significant urban development during the late 19th and early 20th centuries . Historically part of Hampshire , the island became a separate administrative county in 1890 . It continued to share the Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire until 1974 , when it was made its own ceremonial county . Apart from a shared police force , there is now no administrative link with Hampshire , although a combined local authority with Portsmouth and Southampton was considered , this is now unlikely to proceed . Until 1995 the island had a governor . </P>
when did the isle of wight become a county
when did the isle of wight become a county
1890
1890