Fort Hoo
Encyclopedia
Fort Hoo, like Fort Darnet
was built on the recommendations of the 1859 Royal Commission
on an island covering the inner navigable channel of the River Medway
, Kent
.
, there were many problems with subsidence, and after extensive cost overruns the forts were completed in 1871 with a single tier of eleven 9-inch rifled muzzle-loading guns
, and no boom.
The forts were disarmed before the First World War. In the Second World War, the fort was used as observation posts, with platforms and pillboxes
built on top. The fort is still in fair condition, however it is a Scheduled Monument owned by the Ministry of Defence
and landing is not officially permitted.
Fort Darnet
Fort Darnet, like Fort Hoo was built on the recommendations of the 1859 Royal Commission on an island covering the inner navigable channel of the River Medway, Kent....
was built on the recommendations of the 1859 Royal Commission
Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom
In 1859 Lord Palmerston instigated the Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom because of serious concerns that France might attempt to invade the UK...
on an island covering the inner navigable channel of the River Medway
River Medway
The River Medway, which is almost entirely in Kent, England, flows for from just inside the West Sussex border to the point where it enters the Thames Estuary....
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
.
History
Originally designed for two tiers of guns mounted in a circle, with a boom strung between Fort Hoo and Fort DarnetFort Darnet
Fort Darnet, like Fort Hoo was built on the recommendations of the 1859 Royal Commission on an island covering the inner navigable channel of the River Medway, Kent....
, there were many problems with subsidence, and after extensive cost overruns the forts were completed in 1871 with a single tier of eleven 9-inch rifled muzzle-loading guns
RML 9 inch 12 ton gun
The RML 9 inch guns Mark I - Mark VI were large rifled muzzle-loading guns used as primary armament on smaller British ironclad battleships and secondary armament on larger battleships, and also ashore for coast defence.-Design:...
, and no boom.
The forts were disarmed before the First World War. In the Second World War, the fort was used as observation posts, with platforms and pillboxes
British anti-invasion preparations of World War II
British anti-invasion preparations of the Second World War entailed a large-scale division of military and civilian mobilisation in response to the threat of invasion by German armed forces in 1940 and 1941. The British army needed to recover from the defeat of the British Expeditionary Force in...
built on top. The fort is still in fair condition, however it is a Scheduled Monument owned by the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
and landing is not officially permitted.
External links
- History, Description, Plan at Palmerston Forts Society website