Eddystone Lighthouse

The Eddystone Lighthouse stands on the Eddystone Rocks, fourteen kilometres south of Rame Head in Cornwall. The rocks lie submerged beneath the sea and are made of Precambrian gneiss. The present tower is the fourth to be built on this dangerous reef. The first three lighthouses were destroyed by storms, fire and time, each leaving its mark on lighthouse engineering. Smeaton’s tower became famous for its oak-like design and underwater-setting concrete. Its upper parts now stand in Plymouth as a monument to early engineering skill. The need for a light on the Eddystone Rocks was clear to every mariner. The reef lies midway between Lizard Point and Start Point, where tides and currents meet. High spring tides cover the rocks completely, and ships often wrecked themselves rather than risk the passage. The first open-ocean lighthouse in the world was built here in 1698 by Henry Winstanley. His wooden tower survived only five years before a great storm swept it away with its builder and five others. Visitors today see the fourth lighthouse, a sturdy granite tower rising from the reef. The base is cut into the rock with dovetail joints, and the walls curve like an oak trunk to resist wind and wave. Inside, a lantern room holds modern equipment, while outside the sea crashes against the granite. The view stretches over the English Channel to the French coast on clear days. The lighthouse remains a working warning to shipping and a reminder of three centuries of courage and invention.