Plymouth Breakwater Lighthouse

Plymouth Breakwater is a massive stone barrier built in 1812 to shelter ships in Plymouth Sound. Stretching 1,560 metres, it lies in about 10 metres of water and uses nearly four million tons of rock. The breakwater was designed by John Rennie and Joseph Whidbey under orders from Lord St Vincent during the Napoleonic Wars. Its construction required careful engineering and political skill, with Whidbey even discovering fossils while quarrying stone. Napoleon himself remarked on its grandeur as he passed by in 1815 on his way to exile. The breakwater’s western tip holds the granite Plymouth Breakwater Lighthouse, built between 1841 and 1843 by Walker & Burgess. The lighthouse originally used a large catadioptric lens by Henry Lepaute of Paris, showing a fixed red light with a white sector marking safe anchorage. A fog bell weighing 32 cwt was added in 1879, sounding four strokes every minute in poor visibility. The light was later automated in 1920 and now flashes white every ten seconds, with a red sector to the north-east. Nearby stands the Breakwater Fort, built in 1865 to defend Plymouth Sound. Designed by Captain Siborne, it sits on Shovel Rock inside the breakwater and once held fourteen 12.5-inch guns. The fort later served as a signal station and anti-aircraft training school before being handed over in 1976. Visitors can walk the breakwater’s wide top path and see the lighthouse’s sturdy tower rising from the waves. The eastern end once had a spherical cage beacon for shipwrecked sailors. The views stretch across the Sound to the city and distant hills.