South Foreland

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South Foreland is a chalk headland on the Kent coast of southeast England. It presents a bold cliff to the sea, and commands views over the Strait of Dover. It is centred 3 miles (4.8 km) northeast of Dover and 15 miles south of North Foreland. It includes the closest point on the Island of Britain to the European mainland at a distance of 20.6 miles (33.2 km).

This proximity gives it military significance and during the Second World War its coastal battery was built, along with a radar station. Lying between the busy Port of Dover and the remote and hazardous Goodwin Sands sandbank, its two lighthouses were important for navigation before their disuse. Much of the area is now owned by the National Trust and is open to the public; it is traversed by the Saxon Shore Way, the Kent coastal walk.

LB&SCR H2 class 4-4-2 no. 421 (later no. B421, 2421, and 32421) was named South Foreland after this landmark.