Holding back the tide

Shrugging off choppy waters on England’s south-west coast is the historic harbour and breakwater known as the Cobb. There has been one man-made structure or another in the waters off Lyme Regis since medieval times, without which much of this Dorset town may have been washed away. While its harbour seems small to modern eyes, Lyme Regis grew as a major port and shipbuilding centre from the 13th century onwards, thanks to the Cobb and the protection it offered from fierce south-westerly gales.
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