The beach and estate command a strategic position at the mouth of the Firth of Forth, and control of the area has been contested through the ages. The beach and estate were used as a staging post for various raids on nearby Tantallon Castle from the 14th to the 17th century. Troops were also stationed here to prevent landings by the French during the Napoleonic Wars in 1798. Before bloodshed touched the area, the 8th century Christian missionary Saint Baldred was based in nearby Scoughall, and several features of the area have been named after him, such as "Ghegan Rock" (Churchman's Haven).