No Man's Land Fort, also referred to as No Man's Fort, is a

sea fort 300px, Castillo San Felipe de Barajas in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, an example of an Early Modern coastal defense Coastal defence (or defense) and coastal fortification are measures taken to provide protection against military attack at or ...

in the

Solent The Solent ( ) is a strait between the Isle of Wight and Great Britain. It is about long and varies in width between , although the Hurst Spit which projects into the Solent narrows the sea crossing between Hurst Castle and Colwell Bay to ...

, near

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It is one of the

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 ...

built between 1867 and 1880 after the recommendations of the 1859 Royal Commission. It is 200 feet in diameter, and lies off the coast of the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

History

The fort was designed by Captain E. H. Stewart, overseen by Assistant Inspector General of Fortifications, Colonel W. F. D. Jervois. Construction work began in 1865, and the fort was completed in 1880, long after the threat of a seaborne invasion from France had passed, at a cost of £462,500. A 2020 report stated that during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, "the forts were used to defend the Portsmouth dockyards. Life on site was grim; those serving were deliberately chosen for their inability to swim, to avoid any attempt to escape".Live in your choice of Victorian sea forts, from a boutique delight with helipad to a crumbling wreck that’s a blank canvas
/ref> No Man's Land Fort is almost identical to Horse Sand Fort. It has been used as a luxury home/hospitality centre for high-paying guests – due to the privacy it offers – with an indoor swimming pool and two helipads. In July 2004,

Legionella ''Legionella'' is a genus of pathogenic gram-negative bacteria that includes the species '' L. pneumophila'', causing legionellosis (all illnesses caused by ''Legionella'') including a pneumonia-type illness called Legionnaires' disease and a mi ...

bacteria found in the hotel's water system forced its closure. The Fort was put up for sale in 2005 and again in 2007, but the company collapsed. In March 2008, Harmesh Pooni, claiming to still be the owner, barricaded himself inside the fort in protest against the administrators

KPMG KPMG International Limited (or simply KPMG) is a multinational professional services network, and one of the Big Four accounting organizations. Headquartered in Amstelveen, Netherlands, although incorporated in London, England, KPMG is a net ...

. The property was eventually sold by KPMG for £910,000 in March 2009. In March 2012, it was purchased by Clarenco LLP who also purchased Spitbank Fort and Horse Sand Fort, with the intention of refurbishing it as a hotel. The fort opened as a hotel in April 2015. Other sea forts include Spitbank Fort,

St Helens Fort St Helens Fort is a sea fort in the Solent close to the Isle of Wight, one of the Palmerston Forts near Portsmouth. It was built as a result of the Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom of 1859, in order to protect the St Helen ...

and Horse Sand Fort. An October 2018 report stated that "the 22-suite No Man’s asopen for business, whether overnight stays, corporate events or weddings".Solent Forts an amazing visit off the Hampshire coast
/ref> In 2020, No Man's Land Fort, Spitbank Fort and Horse Sand Fort were listed for sale. No Man's Fort was described as a "99,000 sq ft hotel, restaurant and leisure complex on four floors, including a helipad".

In popular culture

The 1972 ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'' serial ''

The Sea Devils ''The Sea Devils'' is the third serial of the ninth season of the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts on BBC1 from 26 February to 1 April 1972. It was written by Ma ...

'' used the fort as a filming location for several scenes.

References

External links

Victorian Forts data sheetSolent Forts
{{Palmerston Forts on the Isle of Wight Sea Forts in the Solent Palmerston Forts Coastal artillery Sea forts