Ladyhayles
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- Nov 16, 2011
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This site has been covered previously but whilst visiting family for Christmas I decided to take a trip down for a look around. The history has been heavily documented but I will include a brief amount and some additional information I have discovered online which I don't think has previously been shown.
Fort Bovisand was built on the mainland to defend the entrance of Plymouth Sound, at the narrows opposite the east end of Plymouth Breakwater. In 1816, a stone jetty and slip were built for boats from sailing warships anchored in Plymouth Sound to collect fresh water from the nearby reservoir. The first fort at the site, named Staddon Height Battery, was started in 1845, and still exists in the upper part of the present fort. As part of the recommendations of the Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom, work started on the main part of the fort consisting of 23 granite casemates, originally housing 22 9-inch Rifled Muzzle Loaders (RMLs), one 10-inch RML gun and 180 men. By 1880, the armament included 14 10-inch and nine 9-inch RML guns. In the early 1900s the original guns were removed. In 1942, the remaining four 12-pounders were replaced by two twin 6-pounders, to combat E-boats. A Bofors 40mm anti-aircraft gun was installed in 1943. In 1956 the Ministry of Defence abandoned the fort. It is currently home to a diving school.
One thing that really struck me was just how trashed this site now appears to be since the last reports posted. We didn't access a lot of the site due to it either being secure or having to scrabble over piles of debris in most areas. Having thrown my back out a few days before I didn't fancy making it worse by slipping off/falling over anything.
Map of the area
Arial view of the whole site
Picture of the jetty from 1920's
Pictures from my visit
Fort Bovisand was built on the mainland to defend the entrance of Plymouth Sound, at the narrows opposite the east end of Plymouth Breakwater. In 1816, a stone jetty and slip were built for boats from sailing warships anchored in Plymouth Sound to collect fresh water from the nearby reservoir. The first fort at the site, named Staddon Height Battery, was started in 1845, and still exists in the upper part of the present fort. As part of the recommendations of the Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom, work started on the main part of the fort consisting of 23 granite casemates, originally housing 22 9-inch Rifled Muzzle Loaders (RMLs), one 10-inch RML gun and 180 men. By 1880, the armament included 14 10-inch and nine 9-inch RML guns. In the early 1900s the original guns were removed. In 1942, the remaining four 12-pounders were replaced by two twin 6-pounders, to combat E-boats. A Bofors 40mm anti-aircraft gun was installed in 1943. In 1956 the Ministry of Defence abandoned the fort. It is currently home to a diving school.
One thing that really struck me was just how trashed this site now appears to be since the last reports posted. We didn't access a lot of the site due to it either being secure or having to scrabble over piles of debris in most areas. Having thrown my back out a few days before I didn't fancy making it worse by slipping off/falling over anything.
Map of the area
Arial view of the whole site
Picture of the jetty from 1920's
Pictures from my visit
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