{{Use dmy dates, date=April 2022 Several of the forts surrounding

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

were built as a result of a decision in Lord Palmerston's premiership to deter the French from attacking naval bases in the south of the country. The

Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom The Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom was a committee formed in 1859 to enquire into the ability of the United Kingdom to defend itself against an attempted invasion by a foreign power, and to advise the British Government on ...

reported in 1860 and resulted in a huge building programme. Examples of the forts are: * Agaton Fort *

Fort Austin Fort Austin is a former 19th-century Fort, built as a result of the Royal Commission on National Defence of 1859. It was built to defend the landward approaches to the North East of Plymouth. This was part of an overall scheme for the defence ...

* Fort Bovisand *

Bowden Fort Bowden Fort is a former 19th-century fort, built as a result of the Royal Commission on National Defence of 1859. Part of an extensive scheme known as Palmerston Forts, after the prime minister who championed the scheme, it was built to defend th ...

Brownhill Battery Brownhill Battery is a former gun battery at Staddon Heights, Plymouth, Devon. It was one of a number of Plymouth fortifications to be recommended by the Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom in 1859. Construction began in 1861, at ...

Cawsand Fort Cawsand (; lit. ''Cow Cove'') and Kingsand ( Cornish: ''Porthruw'') are twin villages in southeast Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village is situated on the Rame Peninsula and is in the parish of Maker-with-Rame. Cawsand overlooks Pl ...

* Crownhill Fort *

Drake's Island Battery Drake's Island is a island lying in Plymouth Sound, the stretch of water south of the city of Plymouth, Devon. The rocks which make up the island are volcanic tuff and lava, together with marine limestone of the Devonian period. For more th ...

* Egg Buckland Keep * Ernesettle Fort *

Fort Efford Fort Efford is a former 19th-century Fort, built as a result of the Royal Commission on National Defence of 1859. It was built to defend the landward approaches to the North East of Plymouth. This was part of an overall scheme for the defence of ...

Forder Battery Forder Battery is a former 19th-century fort, built as a result of the Royal Commission on National Defence of 1859. Part of an extensive scheme known as Palmerston Forts, after the prime minister who championed the scheme, it was built to defend ...

Hawkins Battery Hawkins Battery is a former coastal artillery battery, built to defend the Royal Naval Dockyard at Devonport. The battery was originally built between 1888 and 1892 to mount four 9-inch Rifled Muzzle Loading (RML) guns on high angle mountings ...

Knowles Battery Knowles Battery is a former 19th-century fort, built as a result of the Royal Commission on National Defence of 1859. Part of an extensive scheme known as Palmerston Forts The Palmerston Forts are a group of forts and associated structures aro ...

Laira Battery Laira Battery is a former 19th-century Fort, built as a result of the Royal Commission on National Defence of 1859. It was built to defend the landward approaches to the North East of Plymouth. This was part of an overall scheme for the defence o ...

* Mount Edgcumbe Garden Battery *

Penlee Battery Penlee Battery is a nature reserve lying on the coastal headland of Penlee Point on the Rame Peninsula, in southeast Cornwall, England. The site was formerly the location of a gun battery, constructed between 1889 and 1892. It was originally ...

Picklecombe Fort Fort Picklecombe stands on the extreme south eastern coast of Cornwall, a couple of miles west of the city of Plymouth. The fort has been a residential complex since the early 1970s but has a history dating back 150 years. Founding Fort Pickleco ...

* Plymouth Breakwater Fort *

Polhawn Battery Whitsand Bay, situated in south east Cornwall, England, runs from Rame Head in the east to Portwrinkle in the west. It is characterised by sheer, high cliffs, dramatic scenery and long stretches of sandy beaches. The South West Coast Path runs t ...

Raleigh Battery Raleigh Battery is a former coastal artillery battery, built to defend the Royal Naval Dockyard at Devonport. The battery was constructed between March 1890 and August 1894 at a cost of £4,963. It was located between Hawkins Battery and due-ea ...

Fort Scraesdon Scraesdon Fort, near the village of Antony, is one of several forts in South East Cornwall which formed part of the ring of forts surrounding Plymouth to protect Plymouth Sound and, in particular, the naval dockyard of Devonport from enemy nav ...

* Staddon Fort *

Stamford Fort Stamford Fort is a 19th-century fort, built as a result of the Royal Commission on National Defence of 1859. Part of an extensive scheme known as Palmerston Forts, after the prime minister who championed the scheme, it was built to defend the lan ...

Fort Tregantle Tregantle Fort in south east Cornwall is one of several forts surrounding Plymouth that were built as a result of a decision in Lord Palmerston's premiership to deter the French from attacking naval bases on the Channel coast. History The fort ...

Watch House Battery Watch House Battery is a former 19th-century gun battery, built as one of a number of batteries to defend the Eastern approaches to Plymouth Sound, for the defence of the Royal Naval Dockyard at Devonport. The battery was originally built as a ...

Whitesand Bay Battery Whitsand Bay, situated in south east Cornwall, England, runs from Rame Head in the east to Portwrinkle in the west. It is characterised by sheer, high cliffs, dramatic scenery and long stretches of sandy beaches. The South West Coast Path runs t ...

Woodlands Fort Woodland (or Woodlands) Fort is a Royal Commission Fort built in the 1860s as part of Lord Palmerston's ring of land defences for Plymouth, England. Currently owned by Plymouth City Council, the site is in use but largely derelict. History of ...

References

* Woodward, F. W. (1998) ''Forts or Follies''. Devon Books, 1998; Barbarossa Books * Plymouth City websit

Forts of Plymouth, Devon, Forts in Cornwall Forts in Devon *Plymouth

Forts A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...