The Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom, which Lord Palmerston had established in 1859 in response to a perceived threat of invasion by Emperor Napoleon III of France. The Commissioners envisioned a chain of coastal artillery forts extending along the coast from Tenby to Freshwater West covering all the potential landing sites; ultimately, only this fort at Tenby was constructed.[1]
The design of the fort is credited to Colonel William Jervois.[2] It is a simple rectangular work, consisting of three artillery casemates on two opposite sides, for RML 7-inch guns firing through iron shields. A further three gun platforms for RML 9 inch 12 ton guns are located on the roof. The guns facing north were intended to cover Tenby Harbour and the beach towards Saundersfoot, while those facing south covered the beach towards Penally. There was accommodation for a garrison of 150 men.[1]
The Government purchased St Catherine's Island from The Corporation of Tenby for £800 in 1866. In 1867 work began clearing the site and constructing the slopes and cranes for the mammoth task of lifting solid granite blocks onto the island. Construction was undertaken by a local builder, George Thomas of Pembroke. Colonel W. Llewelyn Morgan, Captain Fredrick Clements, and Sergeant Gibbs, all of the Royal Engineers, were the overseers. The work was completed by 1870 at a cost of £40,000 (but not armed);[2] the gun shields were finally installed in 1886. In that year, a report to the Defence Committee described the 9-inch guns as "useless".[1]
In 1895, control of the fort passed to the Royal Naval Reserve, who emplaced a single BLC 5-inch gun on a "Youngman’s compression platform", apparently for training purposes. In 1907 the fort was decommissioned and sold to the Windsor Richards family who converted it into a private house. During the war an anti-aircraft battery was built in front of the fort; units serving there included the Royal Marines, 4th Defence Battery and a Light Anti-Aircraft Battery of the Royal Artillery, a detachment of the Belgian Army, the Home Guard, and an Air Sea Rescue detachment of the RAF.
After the war the fort was again decommissioned and sold to a local solicitor who let it to various tenants including the author Norman Lewis. It became a Grade II* Listed building in 1951 because it was considered "an important later 19th century naval fort, superbly built and prominently sited".[3]
The fort was sold again in 1962 and in 1968 the fort was opened as a zoo; in 1979 the zoo relocated to new premises leaving the fort empty.[2]
In May 2015, Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority approved an application to reopen the site to the public due to the economic benefit that it would bring to the area. The site would contain a nature walk, boat landings, and commercial and catering outlets, in addition to restoration of the fort.[4] During the planned restoration, the fort was open to visitors at weekends in the holiday season, subject to the state of the tides.[5]
In 2016, "The Final Problem", the third and last episode of the fourth series of the BBC TV series Sherlock, was filmed on the island.[6] In August 2016, the fort faced an "uncertain future" and was closed to the public.[7]
MUSIC:
Ambient Guitar Swells with BOSS RV-500 Reverb Pedal - THE MONK BY THE SEA
Last_Train_to_Mars By Dan Lebowitz
Fairy_Meeting by Enily Sprague
My Instagram: / mattswilli
Facebook: / 1228424283971624
email me at me@thematthewwilliams.com
Also present on this explore were
Exploring with Fighters - / exploringwithfighters
Dark Arts TV - / @darkartstv
Proving Demons - / @provingdemons
Exploring Within - / richtea8
Exploring With Ashe - / @exploringwithashe
Exploring with Jen Evie - / @exploringwithjenevie
Vacant Haven - / @vacanthaven
Delelict Plymouth Unearthed - / @derelictplymouthunear...
Hidden History with Ray - / beale7125
Glen - / @glen7463
Kayleigh Coulston Explores - / kayleighcoulstonexplores
Beface Computing - / befacecomputinglifts
Equipment used:
DJI Mavic Zoom DRONE
Sony A7s ii with Samyang 14mm full frame lens
Dji Pocket 2 camera
Insta 360x R
Adobe Premiere Pro 2020
Ryzen 5950X
65GB Ram
Windows 10 (No Apple shiz here)
Nvidia RTX 3950 GFX
#Abandonedplaces #Abandonedplacesuk #urbexuk #undergroundbunker #urbexexploration #urbex_europe_ #urbextreme #urbexphotography #DerelictBuildings
1 окт 2024
