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Verne High Angle Battery

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The Verne High Angle Battery, also known as the Verne Quarry Battery, is a former gun battery of late 19th century origin south of the Verne Citadel. Constructed in 1890-95, the battery was built to protect Portland Harbour and its naval establishments.

The battery was decommissioned in 1906 and later became a scheduled monument in 1973 (as part of the Verne Citadel's designation). It remains protected to date under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 and also became a Grade II listed monument in May 1993. The best preserved of its type in the UK, the battery is now a tourist attraction and forms part of the Verne Common Local Nature Reserve, which was established in 2007.

History
The concept of high angle batteries originated in the 1880s as a solution to the increasingly stronger armour that battleships were being fitted with. Rather than try to penetrate the thick armour sides, high angle batteries allowed shells to be dropped down on the more vulnerable upper decks of enemy vessels, where far greater damage could be inflicted. With most rifled muzzle-loading (RML) guns being considered obsolete by this time, the 9-inch 12-ton variety of RML was selected as the gun which would be specifically adapted to fire at a "high angle". After a series of trials from 1884, the encouraging results led to the construction of a small number of high angle batteries to defend important strategic locations, including Portland, Plymouth and the Isle of Wight.

The chosen site for the guns was approximately 150 metres south of citadel within a disused section of the Admiralty Quarries. Construction of the new battery commenced in August 1890 and was declared complete in September 1895 for a cost of £4,007. While local builders Messrs Jesty and Baker were the main contractors, some savings were made through the partial use of convict labour. The Royal Engineers were also involved in the battery's planning and construction.

The original battery was designed with six emplacements. Four of the guns were installed at the time of the battery's completion and another two were hauled to the site by traction engine in October 1898. There were two magazines, one at each end, which were roofed with earth and grass for protection against enemy fire. A tramway system was installed to transport the ammunition to and from the magazines and guns. The soldiers who operated the battery were accommodated within the citadel.

Being sited down in a former quarry, the battery was designed to be hidden from the view of passing enemy ships. The guns were installed on mounts at 70 degrees and could move at an all-round 360 degrees. They were able to hit a moving target at a maximum range of approximately 5.6 miles. To direct the guns to their targets, position finding cells were built to house horizontal range finders, known as Watkin Position Finders, which were used to determine the bearing and range of an enemy vessel. Two cells were built within the Verne Citadel, as was the battery's command post, and a further four cells were built at East Cliff and one at West Cliff.

​The battery was remodeled between January 1898 and September 1899 for a cost of £5,504. The work involved the construction of a bombproof troop shelter at the centre of the battery complex, behind the emplacements, and two store buildings on its western side. Two additional emplacements were also added on the flanks, but no guns were ever installed there and they were soon used to house troop and officer latrines instead.

As maritime warfare developed with the rising use of smaller craft like torpedo boats, the battery's guns were far less likely to score a hit and the importance of their defensive role deteriorated. The guns continued to remain operational until 1906. That year, Major Dalton had carried out an inspection of the battery and commented that it would be a pity to remove the guns. However, the recommendations of the Owen Committee were soon followed and the battery was decommissioned. The guns remained in place until they were sold to a contractor, broken up using dynamite and removed in 1910.

Modern use as a tourist attraction
The Verne Citadel's military use came to an end in 1948, with the southern region being transformed into HM Prison The Verne. With the battery now disused, it became a tourist attraction and remains the best preserved battery of its type in the United Kingdom. The grassy embankments at the site have also become home to an array of wildlife.

By the 1980s, the derelict battery had suffered from the effects of time and vandalism, resulting in a restoration and conservation project being carried out in 1984-95 by Weymouth and Portland Borough Council, with the assistance of Manpower Services. Various attempts have been made over the years by the council to seal off the magazines and their tunnels, but continuous efforts to break into them have caused them to remain open for the public to explore. The magazines have gained the name "Ghost Tunnels" to locals, with paranormal activity having been recorded there. The battery itself remains in a good condition today, although it is a target of vandalism, mainly graffiti, and has received little care and attention in recent years.

At East Cliff, three of the four position finding cells survive, although they have lost their roofs and other parts of their structure. The fourth cell, at the northernmost end, was hit by a bomb during World War II and is now marked by a depressed area and a small amount of surviving rubble. The cells are on public land and provide a viewpoint across Portland Harbour, as well as A and B Batteries of East Weare Batteries below.

References
The following is an A-Z list of references for this page.

1) Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society - Proceedings - Volume 106 - 1984 - report
2) Exploring Portland - New Ground, Tillycombe and Kingsbarrow - Geoff Kirby - website page
3) Historic England - The National Heritage List for England - The Citadel, Disused Battery Approximately 150 Metres South East South of South Entrance - website page
4) Historic England - The National Heritage List for England - The Verne Citadel - website page
5) Pastscape - Verne Quarry High Angle Battery - website page
6) Portland Harbour and its Defences Report - anonymous author - undated - page 37
7) The British Newspaper Archive - various contemporary newspaper articles - website page
8) The Coastal Defences of Portland and Weymouth - E. A. Andrews and M. L. Pinsent - 1981 - supplement to the journal Fort (Fortress Study Group) - report
9) Victorian Forts - High angle fire mountings and batteries - website page
10) Web Archive: The Heritage Coast (cyberport.co.uk) - Dorset's Coastal Defences - High Angle: First and Second Stage - archived from the original in 2006 - website page



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.
An overview of the Verne High Angle Battery, the main six emplacements seen along the left.
The bombproof troop shelter is located in the middle of the battery, covered with earth and grass.
The Royal Artillery stores are seen on the right.
A view of the battery from the other side.
The small building on the left was a telephone room.
Starting from the northern end of the battery, one separate, flank emplacement is located near the entrance of one of two magazines.
The same viewpoint towards the emplacement seen in 2016.
A same emplacement, now more overgrown in 2016.
The entrance to the battery's first magazine which, like the second magazine, became locked in August 2014.
Inside the magazine tunnels of this north-most section of the battery.
A number of storage rooms veer off the main tunnel.
At the end of this magazine, the tunnel is closed off at this end, facing the shelter/lab. Note the tramway tracks still intact on the ground.
Looking into the same magazine section from the outside.
The two RA stores.
A view inside one of the storerooms show much littering.
The telephone room.
The three buildings seen from further south into the battery.
At the southern-most end, is another separate flanking emplacement, with an entrance to the second magazine seen on the left.
The second magazine's entrance at this flanking emplacement.
Looking back from the flanking emplacement towards the bombproof shelter.
The main emplacement section, with positions for six guns in total.
Looking across one of the emplacements. One of the first magazine's entrances can be seen behind the laboratory.
Looking across to the other side of this section, towards one of the entrances to the second magazine.
The higher level of this section still has the tramway track intact.
The 1984-85, Manpower Services plaque, after the site was restored.
The emplacement bolts for these positions can still be seen in place.
This side's entrance to the second magazine.
Naturally this magazine is similar to the other, with some graffiti, generally tidy otherwise, and the tramway tracks still in place.
Again various storage rooms veer off the main tunnel corridor.
The entrance to the bombproof shelter on this side of the battery.
In August 2014 the entrance was locked up, but has gate has since been knocked down.
The inside of the shelter.
One corridor links off the main room, leading to a barred window.
The other, locked entrance of the shelter as seen from the other side of the battery.
A view of the three remaining position finding cells at East Cliff, which once directed the guns of the Verne High Angle Battery.
A closer look at how the structures remain today.

1904 plan of Verne High Angle Battery

A plan of the Verne High Angle Battery, based on War Office drawings, dated 1904 (National Archives - Ref: WO 78/4159). It can be enlarged by clicking on it.
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