The most famous lighthouse in the British Isles is probably the Eddystone, built on a small and very dangerous rock 13 miles south-west of Plymouth. There have been four separate lighthouses built here. The original tower, completed in 1698, was the first lighthouse to be built on a small rock in the open sea. It was designed by Henry Winstanley and was built of wood. It lasted for only five years and Winstanley was one of the six occupants lost with it when it was swept away in the Great Storm of 7-8 December 1703 (26-27 November, old style). Print