South England flood of February 1287

A storm hits the southern coast of England in February 1287 with such ferocity that whole areas of coastline are redrawn.

Silting up and cliff collapses lead to towns that had stood by the sea finding themselves landlocked, while others that had been inland found themselves with access to the sea.

The city of Winchelsea on Romney Marsh is destroyed (later rebuilt on the cliff top behind).

Nearby Broomhill is also destroyed.

The course of the nearby river Rother is diverted away from New Romney, which is almost destroyed and left a mile from the coast, ending its role as a port.

The Rother runs instead to sea at …

…Rye, prompting its rise as a port.

The storm contributes to the collapse of a cliff at Hastings, taking part of Hastings Castle with it, blocking the harbor and ending its role as a trade center, though it continues as a center for fishing.

Whitstable in Kent is also reported to have been hit by the surge.

In all, the storm can be seen to have had a powerful effect on the Cinque Ports, two of which are hit (Hastings and New Romney), along with the supporting "Antient Town" of Winchelsea.

The other Ancient Town, Rye, is meanwhile advantaged.

The South England flood of February 1287 is one of two huge ones in England in this year.

The other is the one known in the Netherlands as St. Lucia's flood in December, the following winter.

Together with a surge in January 1286, they seem to have prompted the decline of one of England's then leading ports, Dunwich in Suffolk.

Parts of Norfolk are flooded; the port of Dunwich in Suffolk is further devastated; and …

…in The Fens through the vehemence of the wind and the violence of the sea, the monastery of Spalding and many churches are overthrown and destroyed.