St Anthony Battery | |
---|---|
St Anthony Head Cornwall England | |
Coordinates | 50°14′18″N5°01′38″W / 50.23833°N 5.02722°W |
Site information | |
Owner | National Trust |
Open to the public | Yes |
Site history | |
Built | 1895-97 |
In use | 1897-1956 |
St Anthony Battery is a former 19th century gun battery at St Anthony Head, Roseland Peninsula, Cornwall, England. It was built in 1895-97 and served during both World Wars. Following its decommissioning in 1956, the battery was acquired by the National Trust.
The battery was built in 1895-97 to defend the estuary of the River Fal and originally installed with two BL 6-inch Mk VI naval guns. They were replaced in 1903-04 with BL 6-inch Mk VII naval guns, which remained in place until 1924. After a period under care and maintenance, the battery was rearmed during World War II with two 6-inch VII guns, with an additional two Ordnance QF 3-pounder Vickers placed nearby. The battery also served as an examination battery alongside Half Moon Battery at Pendennis Castle. [1] [2] [3]
Following the dissolution of coast artillery in the United Kingdom in 1956, the battery's two gun emplacements were infilled with rubble and earth, while the site was acquired by the National Trust in 1959. In 2012, the eastern gun emplacement was excavated and restored as part of the "Unlocking our Coastal Heritage" project, which aimed to "increase the economic value of the South West Coast Path by protecting and enhancing heritage features". [4] [5] The battery is accessible to the public, while tours are carried out during the peak season by the National Trust. [6]
Newhaven Fort is a Palmerston fort built in the 19th century to defend the harbour at Newhaven, on the south coast of England. It was the largest defence work ever built in Sussex and is now open as a museum.
Grain Fort is a former artillery fort located just east of the village of Grain, Kent. It was constructed in the 1860s to defend the confluence of the Rivers Medway and Thames during a period of tension with France. The fort's location enabled its guns to support the nearby Grain Tower and Garrison Point Fort at Sheerness on the other side of the Medway. It was repeatedly altered and its guns upgraded at various points in its history, before being decommissioned in 1956 when the UK abolished its coastal defence programme. It was subsequently demolished. The remnants of the fort are still visible and have been incorporated into a coastal park.
Beacon Hill Battery is a late-19th and 20th century coastal fortification that was built to defend the port of Harwich, Essex. It is a scheduled ancient monument.
East Weare Battery is a former 19th-century gun battery to the east of the Verne Citadel on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. The battery was built in the 1860s as a result of the Royal Commission to guard the new Portland harbour and Royal Navy institutions on the island. Five open batteries were built housing 20 9" and 10" RMLs. After 1877 the batteries were designated by letter 'A' to 'E'.
The Needles Batteries are two military batteries built above the Needles stacks to guard the West end of the Solent. The field of fire was from approximately West South West clockwise to Northeast and they were designed to defend against enemy ships.
Brean Down Fort was a Victorian naval fortification designed to protect the Bristol Channel. It was built 60 feet (18 m) above sea level on the headland at Brean Down, 9 miles (14 km) south of Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, England.
Lavernock Battery was built at Lavernock Point, Wales on the recommendations of the 1860 Royal Commission during the late 1860s to protect the ports of the Severn Estuary. It was replaced by a new anti-aircraft battery during World War II that was equipped with four heavy anti-aircraft guns.
The BL 6-inch gun Mark VII was a British naval gun dating from 1899, which was mounted on a heavy travelling carriage in 1915 for British Army service to become one of the main heavy field guns in the First World War, and also served as one of the main coast defence guns throughout the British Empire until the 1950s.
Fort Scratchley, a former coastal defence installation, is now a museum. It is located in Newcastle East, a suburb of Newcastle, New South Wales in Australia. It was built in 1882 to defend the city against a possible Russian attack. However, its guns were not fired in anger until 8 June 1942, during the shelling of Newcastle. The Australian Army left the site in 1972.
Coastal fortifications were constructed in New Zealand in two main waves: around 1885 as a response to fears of an attack by Russia, and in World War II due to fears of invasion by the Japanese.
Bouldnor Battery is a military battery located in Bouldnor on the Isle of Wight. It saw active service in World War II and was fully decommissioned in 1956. Today, it is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
The BL 9.2-inch Mk I–VII guns were a family of early British heavy breechloading naval and coast defence guns in service from 1881 to the end of World War I. They were originally designed to use the old gunpowder propellants.
The BL 8 inch guns Mark I to Mark VII were the first generations of British rifled breechloaders of medium-heavy calibre. They were initially designed for gunpowder propellants and were of both 25.5 and 30 calibres lengths.
Fort Nepean is a former defensive facility occupying part of Point Nepean, Victoria, Australia. It was part of a network of fortifications, commanded from Fort Queenscliff, protecting the narrow entrance to Port Phillip. It is now part of Point Nepean National Park and a local tourist attraction.
The BL 5-inch guns Mk I – Mk V were early British 5-inch rifled breechloading naval guns after it switched from rifled muzzle-loaders in the late 1870s. They were originally designed to use the old gunpowder propellants. The 5-inch calibre was soon discontinued in favour of QF 4.7-inch.
Culver Battery is a former coastal artillery battery on Culver Down, on the eastern side of the Isle of Wight, England. The fortification is one of several Palmerston Forts built on the island following concerns about the size and strength of the French Navy in the late 19th century. It was operational during the First and Second World Wars. The battery was closed in 1956.
Fort Ballance is a former coastal artillery battery on Point Gordon on Wellington's Miramar Peninsula.
Fort Davis, is a coastal defence fortification close to Whitegate, County Cork, Ireland. Together with similar structures at Fort Mitchel, Fort Camden (Crosshaven), and Templebreedy Battery, the fort was built to defend the mouth of Cork Harbour. Though used as a fortification from the early 17th century, the current structures of the 74-acre site date primarily from the 1860s. Originally named Fort Carlisle and operated by the British Armed Forces, the fort was handed-over to the Irish Defence Forces in 1938, and renamed Fort Davis. The facility is owned by the Department of Defence, and is used as a military training site with no public access.
Fort Templebreedy, also known as Templebreedy Battery, was a coastal defence fortification close to Crosshaven, in County Cork, Ireland. Supplementing a number of earlier structures at Fort Camden and Fort Davis, the site was developed between 1904 and 1909 to defend the mouth of Cork Harbour. Used as a coastal artillery position until the 1940s, and as a military training camp until the late 20th century, many of the structures of the 37-acre site were dismantled over time, and part of the complex used as a pitch and putt course. In 2009, Cork County Council added the site to a proposed list of protected structures – though as of 2020 it remains in the ownership of the Department of Defence.
West Blockhouse Fort is a mid-19th century coastal artillery fort at West Blockhouse Point, a rocky headland near Dale, Pembrokeshire, to the west of Milford Haven in Wales.