Maldon

Maldon lost to the Vikings in 991, paid them to leave, and has spent the thousand years since selling the rest of the country very expensive salt, which as recovery plans go is hard to fault. The railway gave up in 1966, so getting anywhere now means a car and a shrug, and the people who moved here for the estuary tend to stop pretending they miss the train. The water is the whole point of the place and also the bit to check before you sign, because the Blackwater has opinions about the houses nearest to it.