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Similar No Man's Land Fort, Spitbank Fort, Horse Sand Fort, Bishopstrow House, Langtry Manor | ||
Countryfile palmerston s follies solent forts bbc1 jan 2011
The Solent Forts, a group of four man-made island forts originally built to protect the Solent and Portsmouth from attack by enemy forces, are now a collection of luxury hotels and a museum.
Contents
- Countryfile palmerston s follies solent forts bbc1 jan 2011
- Historic solent forts get a makeover 13 04 12
- History
- Decommissioning Dormancy and Redevelopment
- References
Historic solent forts get a makeover 13 04 12
History
The Solent Forts were built as part of the British sea defences designed to protect the port of Portsmouth against seaborne attack. Four armour-plated forts were designed by Captain E H Stewart, work on the first three beginning in 1865, overseen by Assistant Inspector General of Fortifications, Colonel W F D Jervois.
Spitbank Fort was the first to be completed thirteen years later in 1878 at a cost of £167,300. St Helen's Fort followed shortly after costing £123,311. No Man's Land Fort and Horse Sand Fort were both finished in 1880 long after the threat of a sea-based invasion from France had passed. Because both the latter forts were situated much further offshore, they were also more expensive - Horse Sand cost £424,694 and No Man's Land a further £462,500.
The forts continued to be used and upgraded up until the First World War, although none of them was ever used for the purpose originally intended.
Decommissioning, Dormancy and Redevelopment
The Forts were de-activated after the Second World War and lay unused until the 1960s when they were put up for sale. They were eventually sold in the 1980s. Spitbank Fort was bought by a private buyer in 1982 who sold them on to 2009 Clarenco properties for redevelopment in 2009.
No Man's Land was bought by a luxury hotel company before a serious case of legionnaire's disease caused the hotel to close. The fort was re-sold by administrators in March 2012 again to Clarenco.
Horse Sand was eventually released by the Ministry of Defence and bought by the Naval Base Heritage Trust. Clarenco have since acquired this fort also with a plan to turn it into a living time capsule and educational museum. Spitbank, No Man's Land and Horse Sand are now all owned and administered by the AmaZing Venues company.
For more information visit https://solentforts.com/