Portsmouth (Dockyard)

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Portsmouth with its’ excellent harbour has been defended since Roman times. From 1495 with the building of the Round Tower, significant artillery fortification were built, including city walls and coastal defence batteries. Portsmouth Dockyard was built in 1496 and was the first Royal Navy Dockyard built.

In 1890 Portsmouth was designed as a A Class Harbour with Naval Dockyard and facilities. It had defences intended to resist attack from battleships. However, dating back to the times of Henry VIII, Portsmouth had been a key Royal Dockyard.

The plan on the right shows the principal forts and coastal defence batteries defending Portsmouth Harbour. This work is by the late David Alan Moore.

Fortifications of Portsmouth

Initial artillery fortifications to protect Portsmouth were the blockhouses built by Henry VIII. The defences tended to be concentrated on the entrance to Portsmouth Sound and the seaward approaches. By the 1850s there were two distinct concentrations of naval activity on each side of Portsmouth Sound. On the West side was essential support facilities such as Priddy’s Hard with ammunition storage, Haslar Hospital, a Victualling Yard and St Georges (New) Barracks. The East side included the main dockyard and Gun Wharf. Many of these locations were protected by defences.

The defences of Portsmouth were split into distinct geographic areas, see David Moore’s plan above:

Western Forts on the Isle of Wight and mainland:

Hurst Castle with original fortifications dating back to Henry VIII. The granite fort was built between 1861 and 1870 and mounted six 12.5-inch Rifled Muzzle Loading guns and eleven 10-inch Rifled Muzzle Loading Guns behind armoured shields. Between 1900 and 1902 three 12-pdr Q.F. guns were added, two in the west wing casemates and one on top of the Tudor Keep.
Cliff End Battery which was built between 1862 and 1868 and then redeveloped between 1899 and 1902 to mount four 6-inch Mark VII guns and four 4.7-inch Q.F. guns.
Warden Point Battery was built between 1862 and 1863 and then redeveloped between 1898 to 1902 to mount three 9.2-inch Mark X guns and four 6-inch Mark VII guns.
New Needles Battery was built between 1893 and 1895, initially with two 9.2-inch Mark IX guns in 1900, with a third being added in 1904.
Freshwater Redoubt was built between 1855 and 1856. In 1902 two Hotchkiss 6-pdr Q.F. guns were mounted.

Eastern Forts on the Isle of Wight:

Sandwich Barrack Battery which was originally built between 1861 and 1863 for being redeveloped between 1901 and 1902 to mount two 6-inch Mark VII guns.
Yaverland Battery was built between 1861 and 1864 with external defences. It was upgraded between 1898 and 1900 to mount two 6-inch Mark VII guns, with one additional in reserve.
Puckpool Battery was built 1863 and 1865 to provide a cross fire with the Spit Head Forts. In the 1880’s it was redeveloped to mount one 9.2-inch Mark X gun with another similar gun held in reserve.

The Spithead Forts:

Nomansland Fort built between 1865 and 1880 with two tiers of armoured casemated Rifled Muzzle Loading guns . The RML’s were eight 12-inch breech loading guns and two 12.5-inch RML guns. Between 1907 and 1909 three 6-inch Mark VII guns were mounted on the roof of this sea fort.
Spitbank Fort built between 1865 and 1878 with a single level of casemated guns. It was upgraded in 1900 with two 4.7-inch Q.F. gun followed by two 6-inch Mark VII in 1910, all placed on the roof of the sea fort.
Horstead Fort was built between 1865 and 1880 two levels of armoured casemates. The RML’s were ten 12-inch breech loading guns and two 12.5-inch RML guns. Between 1908 and 1909 three 6-inch Mark VII guns were mounted on the roof of this sea fort.
Southsea Castle had two Wing Batteries built adjacent to it, between 1863 and 1868, with a total of thirty two guns. Between 1899 and 1901 the two Wing Batteries were upgraded. East Battery, with two 9.2-inch Mark X and two 6-inch Mark VII guns and West Battery, one 4.7-inch Q.F. and three 12-pdr Q.F. guns.

The Harbour Mouth:

Fort Blockhouse was built as a casemated granite battery. Between 1897 and 1899 six 12-pdr Q.F. guns were mounted on the top of the old casemates.
Portsmouth Lines was originally built in the 1600s and included Point Battery and the Saluting Battery. Point Battery was a casemated battery and between 1895 and 1898 five 12-pdr Q.F. guns were mounted on the old casemates. Two 12-pdr guns were also mounted on the Saluting Battery at the same time.
Long Curtain Battery again dated back to the 1600s and between 1903 and 1904 four 6-pdr Q.F. guns were mounted, to be replaced by 12-pdr Q.F. guns by 1908.
Point Battery covering the actual entrance.

Land Forts

A series of defences lines were built to defend the land approaches to the Dockyard and adjacent Gosport facilities. This included:

Hilsea Lines
Portsdown Ridge Forts
Gosport Lines
Gosport Advance Lines
Stoke Bay Lines

SOUTHAMPTON WATER

The sea approaches to Southampton Harbour were largely protected by the coastal batteries protecting Portsmouth, such as Hurst Castle and the Needles Battery. However, the mouth of Southampton Water was specifically covered by a boom defence based on Calshot Castle. There was also a Quick Fire Battery adjacent to Calshot Castle with four 12-pdr Q.F. guns and two 4.7-inch Q.F. guns.

Southampton Docks

The Gosport Defences with

The Gosport Advanced Lines with:

Fort Elson

Fort Brockhurst

Fort Rowner

Fort Grange

Fort Gomer

Stoke Bay Defence Line with

Browndown Battery.

Fort Gilkicker.

Fort Monkton

The Hilsea Lines

The Portsdown Ridge Line to the North of Plymouth

Fort Fareham

Fort Walllington

Fort Nelson

Fort Southwick

Fort Widley

Fort Purbrook

Crookhorn Redoubt

Farlington Redoubt