DEL Emplacements (Nothe Fort)
Two Defence Electric Light (DEL) Emplacements were associated with the Nothe Fort and formed part of the defences for Portland Harbour. The first emplacement was built in 1899 below the north-east side of the fort and adjacent to Weymouth's Stone Pier. The second one was built in c. 1908 to the south-west of the fort in Nothe Gardens. Both emplacements housed fighting lights and remained in use until 1956.
The 1899 emplacement is included as part of the Nothe Fort's scheduled monument status and is protected under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The c. 1908 emplacement was destroyed in a landslip in 1988 and was subsequently rebuilt on the fort's north terrace.
History
Establishment of the Nothe Fort's DELs and their operation up to World War II (1898-1939)
The DEL emplacement below the north-east side of the Nothe Fort is one of the earliest to have been built as part of the defences for Portland Harbour. With the introduction of searchlights in a supporting role for coastal defence, the earliest lights arrived in the area in 1898 and were housed in temporary emplacements at Newton's Cove, the Nothe Fort and the Breakwater Fort. A light at the Nothe Fort was in place by May 1898 and its temporary emplacement was soon replaced with a permanent one the following year. Construction was carried out between 25 May and 30 October 1899 under the direct supervision of Royal Engineers for a cost of £100.
The emplacement housed a fighting light, with its concentrated, moveable beam designed to search for and detect enemy vessels in the event of a night attack on Portland Harbour. If a target was identified, the light would continue to track its movement and illuminate it for the fort's guns to engage. The light was positioned to traverse Weymouth Bay, thereby covering the approaches to the harbour from the north-east. It was supported by a directing station built in the north-west corner of the fort's ramparts in c. 1900. The emplacement had a square opening for the light which was protected by a shot proof steel shutter.
The searchlight was powered by an oil engine, with a second in place as a back-up, and these were housed in an engine room in the fort's dry moat. Separate expense and reserve oil stores were built to fuel the engines, with the expense store being built into the banking leading towards the fort's entrance and the reserve store located further west in what is now Nothe Gardens. All of these buildings were constructed in c. 1900 and a small oil store was also added next to the engine room several years later.
In c. 1905, plans were approved for a second fighting light to be established to the south-west of the Nothe Fort. It was in place from c. 1908 and covered from Weymouth Bay to the newly-completed north ship channel of Portland Harbour. The new emplacement followed the latest designs with its semi-circular front which improved the beam's arc of search. By 1910, the lights at the Nothe formed two out of eleven positions in the area, with others being situated along the northern and outer breakwaters, including at the Breakwater Fort, and at East Weare. There were six fighting lights and five fixed lights, with the latter being designed to illuminate set areas of water through which an enemy would have to pass, i.e. the harbour entrances.
In 1913, a section of the fort's basement casemates backing onto the moat were transformed into a bombproof DEL station to hold the required engines, dynamos and oil tanks, and a spare parts store. With the casemates affording better protection than the original engine room, two engines and dynamos were housed in there from that year and a third set followed in 1915, leaving the original engine room and its adjacent oil store to be used as DEL stores. Both the searchlights and their engines remained after the fort's three 6-inch BL guns were removed in 1916 (two guns of the same type were installed again in 1929). In 1928, the Hornsby-Ackroyd engines were replaced by Crossley ones and from 1939, DELs were renamed coast artillery searchlights (CASLs).
World War II and post-war use and decommissioning (1939-1956)
With the outbreak of World War II in 1939, the directing station was demolished to make way for the construction of a platform for a Bofors 40 mm gun; presumably the station was moved into the fort's battery observation post (BOP) on the opposite side. On the night of 10/11 September 1939, a fire broke out in the engine room, resulting in damage to the engines and putting the CASLs out of action. The fire was brought under control in 45 minutes with the assistance of the local fire brigade. There was no injury to personnel and the fire did not spread beyond the engine room. In 1940, the Crossley engines were replaced by 22kW Lister ones.
The fort's two 120cm fighting lights were replaced in 1947 with 90cm ones; they had 90cm Mk 5 projectors, 90.42 Mk 1 3° reflectors and HCD Mk 3 lamps. The normal range was 3,000 to 4,000 yards, but this could be increased to 5,000 to 6,000 yards "under exceptionally good conditions". The lights remained in place until 1956 when, with the abolition of the UK's coastal defences, the Nothe Fort was decommissioned. The fort's major equipment, including the guns, CASLs and radar sets, were sold to the government surplus dealer H. Kitson Vickers Ltd in October 1956 and the generators were sold to D. W. Arnold of Littlehampton. All of this equipment was removed from the fort in March 1957.
Post military use (1956-)
The 1899 emplacement has remained unused for most of its post-military life, except for periods when it has been used for storage, including by Weymouth's Youth Activity Centre in the 1970s and 1980s for storing sailing equipment. The emplacement was included when the Nothe Fort was designated a scheduled monument in 1978. The overall structure has deteriorated over the years from weathering and vandalism, and both the entrance and opening for the light have been sealed up with concrete blocks. One section of its rusted shutter remains intact; another section came away in c. 2018.
The c. 1908 emplacement was destroyed when Nothe Gardens suffered a major landslip in February 1988, following a period of torrential rain and strong winds. A large section of the gardens on the south side slipped into the sea, with the clay and earth carrying away plants, trees and footpaths. Aside from the emplacement, the sea wall contemporary with the fort and a pillbox from World War II were also destroyed. A £500,000 scheme was quickly approved for the stabilisation, regrading and restoration of the gardens, and this included building a new sea wall and placing large boulders of Portland stone along the shore. With assistance from 26 Company Royal Engineers, the Weymouth Civic Society, who took on the Nothe Fort in 1980 for transformation into a tourist attraction, had the emplacement rebuilt on the fort's north terrace. It was completed in 1990 with the installation of a working searchlight which the fort acquired in 1987 and has since been used during special events.
References
The following is an A-Z list of references for this page.
1) British Port Defence - Defence Electric Lights (DEL) - website page
2) Historic England - The National Heritage List for England - Nothe Fort, Tramway and Searchlight Battery at The Nothe - website page
3) Nothe Fort, Weymouth - Official Website - Museum and History: The Development of Nothe Fort Museum & Coastal Defence - archived version via Wayback Machine - website page
4) The British Newspaper Archive - various contemporary newspaper articles including in the Southern Times and Western Gazette - website page
5) The British Newspaper Archive - Western Daily Press - various articles on the landslip in Nothe Gardens - 1988 - website page
6) The Coastal Defences of Portland and Weymouth - E. A. Andrews and M. L. Pinsent - 1981 - supplement to the journal Fort (Fortress Study Group) - report
7) The National Archives - Weymouth: Nothe Fort - WO 192/312 - fort record book - 1929-57 - website page
8) The National Archives - Weymouth and Portland Area: Nothe Fort - WO 78/5079 - 1915 - website page
9) The National Archives - Weymouth and Portland Area: Portland Defences - WO 78/5084 - searchlights - c. 1907 and 1936 - website page
10) Weymouth and Portland - Plan of searchlights - undated, c. 1898 - plan
11) Weymouth Sub-District: Nothe Fort - Record plan of E.L. Engine Room, Oil Stores & Directing Station - 1906 - plan
The 1899 emplacement is included as part of the Nothe Fort's scheduled monument status and is protected under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The c. 1908 emplacement was destroyed in a landslip in 1988 and was subsequently rebuilt on the fort's north terrace.
History
Establishment of the Nothe Fort's DELs and their operation up to World War II (1898-1939)
The DEL emplacement below the north-east side of the Nothe Fort is one of the earliest to have been built as part of the defences for Portland Harbour. With the introduction of searchlights in a supporting role for coastal defence, the earliest lights arrived in the area in 1898 and were housed in temporary emplacements at Newton's Cove, the Nothe Fort and the Breakwater Fort. A light at the Nothe Fort was in place by May 1898 and its temporary emplacement was soon replaced with a permanent one the following year. Construction was carried out between 25 May and 30 October 1899 under the direct supervision of Royal Engineers for a cost of £100.
The emplacement housed a fighting light, with its concentrated, moveable beam designed to search for and detect enemy vessels in the event of a night attack on Portland Harbour. If a target was identified, the light would continue to track its movement and illuminate it for the fort's guns to engage. The light was positioned to traverse Weymouth Bay, thereby covering the approaches to the harbour from the north-east. It was supported by a directing station built in the north-west corner of the fort's ramparts in c. 1900. The emplacement had a square opening for the light which was protected by a shot proof steel shutter.
The searchlight was powered by an oil engine, with a second in place as a back-up, and these were housed in an engine room in the fort's dry moat. Separate expense and reserve oil stores were built to fuel the engines, with the expense store being built into the banking leading towards the fort's entrance and the reserve store located further west in what is now Nothe Gardens. All of these buildings were constructed in c. 1900 and a small oil store was also added next to the engine room several years later.
In c. 1905, plans were approved for a second fighting light to be established to the south-west of the Nothe Fort. It was in place from c. 1908 and covered from Weymouth Bay to the newly-completed north ship channel of Portland Harbour. The new emplacement followed the latest designs with its semi-circular front which improved the beam's arc of search. By 1910, the lights at the Nothe formed two out of eleven positions in the area, with others being situated along the northern and outer breakwaters, including at the Breakwater Fort, and at East Weare. There were six fighting lights and five fixed lights, with the latter being designed to illuminate set areas of water through which an enemy would have to pass, i.e. the harbour entrances.
In 1913, a section of the fort's basement casemates backing onto the moat were transformed into a bombproof DEL station to hold the required engines, dynamos and oil tanks, and a spare parts store. With the casemates affording better protection than the original engine room, two engines and dynamos were housed in there from that year and a third set followed in 1915, leaving the original engine room and its adjacent oil store to be used as DEL stores. Both the searchlights and their engines remained after the fort's three 6-inch BL guns were removed in 1916 (two guns of the same type were installed again in 1929). In 1928, the Hornsby-Ackroyd engines were replaced by Crossley ones and from 1939, DELs were renamed coast artillery searchlights (CASLs).
World War II and post-war use and decommissioning (1939-1956)
With the outbreak of World War II in 1939, the directing station was demolished to make way for the construction of a platform for a Bofors 40 mm gun; presumably the station was moved into the fort's battery observation post (BOP) on the opposite side. On the night of 10/11 September 1939, a fire broke out in the engine room, resulting in damage to the engines and putting the CASLs out of action. The fire was brought under control in 45 minutes with the assistance of the local fire brigade. There was no injury to personnel and the fire did not spread beyond the engine room. In 1940, the Crossley engines were replaced by 22kW Lister ones.
The fort's two 120cm fighting lights were replaced in 1947 with 90cm ones; they had 90cm Mk 5 projectors, 90.42 Mk 1 3° reflectors and HCD Mk 3 lamps. The normal range was 3,000 to 4,000 yards, but this could be increased to 5,000 to 6,000 yards "under exceptionally good conditions". The lights remained in place until 1956 when, with the abolition of the UK's coastal defences, the Nothe Fort was decommissioned. The fort's major equipment, including the guns, CASLs and radar sets, were sold to the government surplus dealer H. Kitson Vickers Ltd in October 1956 and the generators were sold to D. W. Arnold of Littlehampton. All of this equipment was removed from the fort in March 1957.
Post military use (1956-)
The 1899 emplacement has remained unused for most of its post-military life, except for periods when it has been used for storage, including by Weymouth's Youth Activity Centre in the 1970s and 1980s for storing sailing equipment. The emplacement was included when the Nothe Fort was designated a scheduled monument in 1978. The overall structure has deteriorated over the years from weathering and vandalism, and both the entrance and opening for the light have been sealed up with concrete blocks. One section of its rusted shutter remains intact; another section came away in c. 2018.
The c. 1908 emplacement was destroyed when Nothe Gardens suffered a major landslip in February 1988, following a period of torrential rain and strong winds. A large section of the gardens on the south side slipped into the sea, with the clay and earth carrying away plants, trees and footpaths. Aside from the emplacement, the sea wall contemporary with the fort and a pillbox from World War II were also destroyed. A £500,000 scheme was quickly approved for the stabilisation, regrading and restoration of the gardens, and this included building a new sea wall and placing large boulders of Portland stone along the shore. With assistance from 26 Company Royal Engineers, the Weymouth Civic Society, who took on the Nothe Fort in 1980 for transformation into a tourist attraction, had the emplacement rebuilt on the fort's north terrace. It was completed in 1990 with the installation of a working searchlight which the fort acquired in 1987 and has since been used during special events.
References
The following is an A-Z list of references for this page.
1) British Port Defence - Defence Electric Lights (DEL) - website page
2) Historic England - The National Heritage List for England - Nothe Fort, Tramway and Searchlight Battery at The Nothe - website page
3) Nothe Fort, Weymouth - Official Website - Museum and History: The Development of Nothe Fort Museum & Coastal Defence - archived version via Wayback Machine - website page
4) The British Newspaper Archive - various contemporary newspaper articles including in the Southern Times and Western Gazette - website page
5) The British Newspaper Archive - Western Daily Press - various articles on the landslip in Nothe Gardens - 1988 - website page
6) The Coastal Defences of Portland and Weymouth - E. A. Andrews and M. L. Pinsent - 1981 - supplement to the journal Fort (Fortress Study Group) - report
7) The National Archives - Weymouth: Nothe Fort - WO 192/312 - fort record book - 1929-57 - website page
8) The National Archives - Weymouth and Portland Area: Nothe Fort - WO 78/5079 - 1915 - website page
9) The National Archives - Weymouth and Portland Area: Portland Defences - WO 78/5084 - searchlights - c. 1907 and 1936 - website page
10) Weymouth and Portland - Plan of searchlights - undated, c. 1898 - plan
11) Weymouth Sub-District: Nothe Fort - Record plan of E.L. Engine Room, Oil Stores & Directing Station - 1906 - plan
Gallery
These images can be enlarged by clicking on them. Some images have information attached to them, and to view this you can either enlarge the image or hover the mouse over each thumbnail.
1899 DEL emplacement
c. 1908 emplacement
Associated buildings
Plan of 1899 DEL emplacement
A plan of the 1899 DEL emplacement, based on War Office drawings dated 1900 (National Archives ref: WO 78/5085). It can be enlarged by clicking on it.
OS map showing DEL emplacements and associated buildings
An edited version of a 1929 Ordnance Survey map extract of the Nothe. The two DEL emplacements and their associated buildings are labelled as they would have been used in c. 1910. (Reused from mapping available at maps.nls.uk under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
1899 DEL Emplacement
c. 1908 DEL Emplacement