The present invention relates generally to a wale for use in bracing a retaining wall. The wale is comprise of a back wall, a front wall having a channel formed therein, and a plurality of connecting walls connecting the back and front walls to form at least one chamber between the back and front walls. In one embodiment, the wale is of unitary construction and the plurality of connecting walls includes top and bottom walls which form a single chamber between the back and front walls. In an alternative embodiment, the wale is of a unitary construction and the plurality of connecting walls includes a top, upper reinforcing, lower reinforcing, and bottom walls, which form a plurality of chambers between the back and front walls. The wale may by made of a pultruded composite material such as a fiberglass reinforced plastic (FRP) resin impregnated composite. A seawall system using such a waler is also described.