Piers were built at British seaside resorts for as a place where visitors could promenade, enjoying the sea without getting wet or being seasick.

They were popular with the Victorian middle classes as places to socialise and show off their finery and wealth. "To see and be seen", to take in the healthy sea air and admire the views of the land from a perspective you would only usually get from a boat.

The West Pier today, after the latest collapse

As a popular developing seaside town, Brighton was no exception. The town has long had two Piers; in the East - Brighton Pier (formerly the Palace Pier) and the West Pier.

The West Pier was designed and
engineered by Eugenius Birch, employed by the Brighton West Pier Company. The design was built in a way that would to attract visitors by it's architecture, but also be strong enough to survive the battering of the sea.

The first piles were put down in March 1864. It was built using dozens of cast iron threaded columns screwed into the seabed and strengthened by a lattice of ties and girders that provide the necessary strength to support the promenade deck whilst allowing seas to pass through underneath without damaging the structure.

The West Pier finally opened to the public on the 5th October 1866, having cost £30,000 and was 1115ft (337.8m) long.

It originally had an open deck with six small Oriental style ornamental houses, two toll houses and glass screens at the Pier head to shield visitors from the sea spray and the sun.

More images of the West Pier after the latest collapse

A central bandstand was added as an additional attraction in 1875, and in the 1880's a large pavilion was constructed at the Pier head, along with steamer landing stages and full length weather screens.

The famous concert hall, the latest part of the Pier to start collapsing, was not completed until 1916.

The finished Pier was regarded as a fine example of seaside architecture, designed to attract and entertain holiday makers with traditional English seaside fun and frolics.

By the First World War it become a popular pleasure pier with a wide variety of traditional "all weather" seaside entertainment.

Throughout the 1920's it's popularity soared with a cornucopia of attractions ranging from paddle steamer excursions, high diving acts, plays, ballet, pantomimes and a large programme of concerts in the bandstand and concert hall. The Pier even had it's own resident concert orchestra.

The Pier was closed during the Second World War and cut in two to prevent the enemy using it as a landing stage.

When it re-opened afterwards it had an additional fun fair, which had dodgems, a helter skelter, ghost train and miniature track racing.

The theatre was converted into the Ocean Restaurant with a games pavilion called "Laughter Land" on the ground floor.

More images of the West Pier after the latest collapse

The West Pier remained largely unaltered since it's completion, and until recently it was an unraveled example of Victorian and Edwardian seaside architecture, with it's concert hall
and theatre.

In the early 1970's, holidays abroad
became more accessible and affordable to holidaymakers, English seaside resorts became a less popular option for the annual family holiday.

The then owners of the Pier were seeking to demolish part of the structure. The Pier was listed to protect it, but the head of the Pier was sealed off as dangerous.

The Pier's popularity started to wane and after being neglected for years it was finally closed to the public in 1975.

There were several ideas and plans to restore the structure, and in 1982, it became the only Grade I listed pier in the country.

The final decline started when one of the Oriental houses fell into the sea in 1984, followed by the damage cause by the Great Storm in October 1987, when the Pier was virtually split in two. Only a temporary walkway remained to connect the Pierhead to the shore end.

A trust was set up called The Brighton West Pier Trust which was created with the intention to save and return it to use.

The Heritage Lottery Fund awarded £14 million towards restoring the Pier in 1998 but this award was not without it's problems.

The owners of Brighton's other pier launched a legal challenge but their objections were rejected in 2002.

A series of emergency repairs have prevented the Pier finally disappearing into the sea and basic restoration work has been completed over the years but none of the various schemes have prevented the Pier collapsing further.

More images of the West Pier after the latest collapse

The fundraising guided tours of the Pier, for the public, that had run for 4 years were no longer allowed by November 2001, due to safety grounds.

Funding is still hard to come by and supporters of the Pier say not enough is being one to save it.

Time appears to be running out as Mother Nature steps into the ring. The sea is a powerful force to be reckoned with.

A partial collapse in December 2002 saw the concert hall partially fall into the sea.

This event caused concern that the Pier would not survive long enough to be restored.

This was followed by a major collapse mid January 2003,

Can the remaining parts of the Pier survive another battering by the sea, and be saved for future generations to enjoy? Or is this, as some people believe, the beginning of the end?

Only time will tell.