The fortunes of the small coastal town of Lyme Regis have always been closely bound up with the sea. For seven centuries trade has flourished and faded through its port, protected by the great wall of the Cobb. Fishing, smuggling, storms and shipwrecks have left their relics. For the past two hundred years the town has earned its living as a tourist resort,and is now part of the Jurassic Coast Word Heritage Site.

"The Cobb", Lyme’s iconic man-made harbour wall, features in Jane Austen’s Perusasion published in of 1818 and John Fowles’ The French Lieutentant’s Woman of 1969. It was of great economic importance to the town and surrounding area, allowing it to develop as both a major port and a shipbuilding centre from the 13th century onwards.

The first written mention of the Cobb is in a 1328 document describing it as having been damaged by storms. The structure was made of oak piles driven into the seabed with boulders stacked between them. The boulders were floated into place tied between empty barrels.

The Cobb has been destroyed or severely damaged by storms several times. It was swept away in 1377 which led to the destruction of 50 boats and 80 houses. The southern arm was added in the 1690s, and rebuilt in 1793 following its destruction in a storm the previous year.  The Cobb was reconstructed in 1826 using Portland Admiralty Roach, a type of Portland stone.