A new book about lighthouses has named Bishop Rock off the Isles of Scilly as one of the greatest in the world.
It is one of four in the Westcountry mentioned in Annamaria Lilla Mariotti’s book World’s Greatest Lighthouses, which looks at the historic legends surrounding the world’s most attractive lighthouses.
The first Bishop Rock lighthouse was begun in 1847, with a metal frame supporting the tower, the idea being that the strong Atlantic swells would simply wash through the structure. The theory was proven flawed even before the light had been lit. One morning, engineers turned up after a particularly violent storm to find the metal supports had sheered off, leaving just the remnants of years of work clutching to the jagged rock.
It became clear that building a lighthouse to survive such ferocious winter storms would be one of the most spectacular architectural undertakings of the time. Trinity House, the body behind lighthouses in England and Wales, were undeterred by the setback and set about building a second structure out of Cornish granite.
The lighthouse is one of the tallest in the world and buffeted by the strongest waves in Britain and some of the highest recorded anywhere.
Also featured in the book are Portland Bill in Dorset, Eddystone lighthouse south of Plymouth, and Longships, off the coast of Land’s End.