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The Influence of Rock Structures on Coastline and Cliff Development around Tintagel, North Cornwall

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Part of the book series: Geographical Readings

Abstract

The paper deals with the morphology of the stretch of coast between Boscastle and the Treligga Cliffs in north Cornwall. The prevalent cliff type is slope-over-wall, either hog’s-back or bevelled as defined by Miss Arber (1949). Flat-topped cliffs are less common. It is considered that geological structures — bedding, jointing, faulting and, to a lesser extent, rock types — have not only had considerable influence on the shape of the cliffs, but have also guided the marine attack on the coast. The evolution of most of the coast features, when seen in plan or profile, has been controlled by the local geological structure. The southern stretch of the coast is sub-parallel to seaward-dipping normal faults which have been stripped of their hanging walls. Such a cliff-line is dominantly a fault-line scarp which has suffered slight retrogression.

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Authors

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J. A. Steers

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© 1971 Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited

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Wilson, G. (1971). The Influence of Rock Structures on Coastline and Cliff Development around Tintagel, North Cornwall. In: Steers, J.A. (eds) Introduction to Coastline Development. Geographical Readings. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-15422-7_8

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