Dover

Dover is a town and major ferry port in the county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel. The town is the administrative centre of the Dover District. These breakwaters have been extended and adapted so that the port lies almost entirely on reclaimed land.

Its strategic position has always been evident throughout its history: archaeological finds have revealed that the area has always been a focus for peoples entering and leaving Britain, which continues to this day. Dover figured largely in the Doomsday Book as an important borough.

Services related to the Port of Dover provide a great deal of the town’s employment, although many of the former ferry services have declined, meaning that unemployment tends to be higher than other parts of Kent. Dover is at the extreme south-east corner of Britain, at the nearest point to the continent across the Strait of Dover. 

The site of its original settlement lies in the valley of the River Dour, making it an ideal place for a port, sheltered from the prevailing south-westerly winds. This led to the silting up of the river mouth by the action of long shore drift; the town was then forced into making artificial breakwaters to keep the port in being.