The Western King's Redoubt is an 18th and 19th-century

artillery battery In military organizations, an artillery battery is a unit or multiple systems of artillery, mortar systems, rocket artillery, multiple rocket launchers, surface-to-surface missiles, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, etc., so grouped to fac ...

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 ...

Devonshire, England Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is a ...

, upgraded as a result of 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 ...

of 1859. Part of an extensive scheme known as

Palmerston Forts The Palmerston Forts are a group of forts and associated structures around the coasts of the United Kingdom and Ireland. The forts were built during the Victorian period on the recommendations of the 1860 Royal Commission on the Defence of the ...

, after the prime minister who championed the scheme, it was built to defend the seaward approaches to the

Hamoaze The Hamoaze (; ) is an estuarine stretch of the tidal River Tamar, between its confluence with the River Lynher and Plymouth Sound, England. The name first appears as ''ryver of Hamose'' in 1588 and it originally most likely applied just to a ...

, as an element of the plan for the defence of the Royal Naval Dockyard at Devonport. In 1779, a pair of small forts or

redoubt A redoubt (historically redout) is a fort or fort system usually consisting of an enclosed defensive emplacement outside a larger fort, usually relying on earthworks, although some are constructed of stone or brick. It is meant to protect soldi ...

s were constructed overlooking Firestone Bay in

Plymouth Sound Plymouth Sound, or locally just The Sound, is a deep inlet or sound in the English Channel near Plymouth in England. Description Its southwest and southeast corners are Penlee Point in Cornwall and Wembury Point in Devon, a distance of abo ...

, known as Western and Eastern King's Redoubts. The western redoubt mounted twelve 18-pounder cannons. In 1861, a battery was built to mount nine guns, with a further seven guns in the older redoubt to the rear of the battery. By 1893 it mounted nine 64 Pounder Rifled Muzzle Loading Guns. By 1897 the battery was remodelled and a battery for seven 12 Pounder Quick Firing (QF) guns was built over the west flank and redoubt. By 1918 only four of these guns remained.Victorian Forts datasheet
Retrieved 2019-07-22 Coastal War time Defences - geograph

In 1941 two positions were created for twin 6 pounder Quick Firing guns to provide rapid firing capability against enemy Motor Torpedo Boats (MTBs). These positions remained armed until the dissolution of coast artillery in 1956 when they were removed. Today the site is open and can be explored. The 12 Pounder Quick Firing gun positions survive intact and the positions for the twin 6 Pounder guns have been partly filled in but retain their overhead cover, designed as protection against air attack.

References

Bibliography

* *{{cite book, first=Freddy, last=Woodward, title=The Historic Defences of Plymouth, publisher=Cornwall County Council, year=1996, isbn=978-1898166467 Forts of Plymouth, Devon Palmerston Forts Military history of Devon