Eastbourne, Hastings, and Brighton
Eastbourne - A Fortress, Martello Towers, and 3 Metal Things.
Entrance to Redoubt Fortress - The entrance being just up the hill and through those gates. Image Date: 06/07/2014
Entrance to Redoubt Fortress - At the entrance is a bridge to take you into the fortress. Image Date: 06/07/2014
Entrance to Redoubt Fortress - Unfortunately because of my vertigo I did not venture across the bridge, looking at the drop below unnerved me. However, there is another entrance to the fort around the other side of the building that doesn't have a bridge to cross. Image Date: 06/07/2014
The Redoubt Parade Ground - The notice board by the left hand stairs reads:
Look back across the Parade Ground to the Lamppost in the centre, much of this area was originally covered with shingle with a central grassed area sometimes used for pitching tents. The design of the Parade Ground, being surrounded by buildings, meant that the orders for drill or whilst under attack were amplified and could be heard all around the Fortress.
The 24 rooms surrounding the Parade Ground are called 'Casemates'; each casemate provided soldiers' living quarters and could accommodate 10 men. Built in 1805, the Eastbourne Redoubt was originally designed to house 350 men, but records show that no more than 200 were stationed here at any one time.
In 1887, 13 Casemates were used as accommodation, the other 11 were used for two staff sergeants quarters, a guard room (cell), wash house, utensil store, barrack score, artillery store, cook house and magazine.
The double staircase next to you was built around 1807 and provided the only external access to the Gun Platform or Terreplein, although there are 3 internal staircases that could be used if the building was under attack. Image Date: 06/07/2014
Saker Barrel - The notice above this cannon reads: Saker Barrel, French Navy - 17th Century Inner Calibre about 3.5 inches flaring out at the muzzle, it probably fired a 5 or 6 pound shot and had a range of about 300 paces.
The trunnions* and cascable** [sic] have been removed to immobilise the piece. From similar examples at the Chateau Dieppe and the Cordene Royale, Rochefort, in France, we can reconstruct their appearance.
Guns of this type would have been used on the Top Deck of French Men O'War at the Battle of Beachy Head - 1690
*Trunnions - the projections on a cannon, one on each side, for supporting the cannon on its carriage.
**Cascabel - a knoblike protrusion on the rear part of the breech of a muzzle-loading cannon. Image Date: 06/07/2014
The Redoubt Parade Ground. Image Date: 06/07/2014
Looking West Towards Beachy Head. Image Date: 06/07/2014
Martello Tower Number 66. Image Date: 06/07/2014
Martello Tower Number 66 - A bit closer than the previous image. Image Date: 06/07/2014
3 Metal Things - Close to Martello Tower Number 66, I don't know what they are, but they are metal. Image Date: 06/07/2014