The Fortress Study Group is a charity registered in the UK with an international membership. Its purpose is advancing the study of post-medieval

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieg ...

fortification A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

s throughout the World.

History

The Fortress Study Group was formed in June 1975 at

Pembroke College, Oxford Pembroke College, a constituent college of the University of Oxford, is located at Pembroke Square, Oxford. The college was founded in 1624 by King James I of England, using in part the endowment of merchant Thomas Tesdale, and was named aft ...

amongst the founders were Jock Hamilton-Baillie, who became chairman in 1976, the late Quentin Hughes was the founding editor of the annual journal, and his Royal Highness the

Duke of Gloucester Duke of Gloucester () is a British royal title (after Gloucester), often conferred on one of the sons of the reigning monarch. The first four creations were in the Peerage of England and the last in the Peerage of the United Kingdom; the curre ...

remains as patron. Other notable members, past and present include Christopher Duffy, Simon Pepper, Anthony Kemp, Victor Smith, David Barnes, Major Davies & Mrs Davies, Sheila Sutcliffe, Arthur Corney, Henry Wills and the late

Andrew Saunders Andrew Downing Saunders (22 September 1931 – 13 March 2009) was an internationally recognised expert in artillery fortifications and Chief Inspector of Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings in England between 1973 and 1989. Early life Andre ...

, Ian V. Hogg and General Whitworth. There are currently around 600 members worldwide.

Activities

The Group publishes an annual peer reviewed journal entitled ''FORT'' which contains articles on fortifications throughout the world. Three times as year a newsletter, CASEMATES, is published which also covers visits to fortifications, new and reviews. Annual Conferences and lecture days are held in the UK in order to disseminate new research on the subject. Tours of fortifications outside the UK are also organised, often with access to sites not open to the public, in co-operation with other similar groups and local councils. There is a specialist library on the subject of fortification which is held at

Fort Nelson Fort Nelson may refer to: Canada *Fort Nelson, British Columbia, a town *Fort Nelson River, British Columbia * Fort Nelson (Manitoba) (1670–1713), an early fur trading post at the mouth of the Nelson River and the first headquarters of the Hudson ...

as part of the Armouries Collection. The group also offers small grants for the publication of works on fortification, such as Ramparts of Empire and to Castle, Town defences and Artillery Fortifications in Britain and Ireland: a Bibliography 1945-2006 The preservation of fortifications through providing specialist advice to planners, developers, local authorities and owners. Small grants have also been made, called FSG Preservation Grants. For example, to:

High Knoll Fort High Knoll Fort is a redoubt-style fort of the English East India Company on Saint Helena, an island and British overseas territory in the South Atlantic Ocean. High Knoll is above sea level and is approximately one mile (1.6km) south of his ...

St Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...

;

The Needles Battery The Needles Batteries are two military batteries built above the Needles stacks to guard the West end of the Solent. The field of fire was from approximately West South West clockwise to Northeast and they were designed to defend against enemy ...

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a Counties of England, county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the List of islands of England#Largest islands, largest and List of islands of England#Mo ...

for gun carriage restoration; the Royal Engineers Library and Museum, Chatham for a new display model of Fort Cliffe; and Fort Tourgis, Alderney for new signage for a battery. Starting in 2014 FSG makes an award to distinguish outstanding renovation of fortifications; the FSG Award is a plaque and was first awarded to Landguard Fort in Felixstowe. The Fortress Study Group was involved in the Defence of Britain Project (April 1995 - March 2002) which aimed to record all surviving 20th century defences in Britain. The group surveyed 270 sites on the Holderness coast in the UK in 1992 on behalf of the Royal Commission on the Historic Monuments of England. This formed the basis of the Defence of Britain Project under the

Council for British Archaeology The Council for British Archaeology (CBA) is an educational charity established in 1944 in the UK. It works to involve people in archaeology and to promote the appreciation and care of the historic environment for the benefit of present and futu ...

. In December 2015 a new joint project was started: The Defence of Gibraltar Project. It is a collaborative effort between the Friends of Gibraltar and the Fortress Study Group. The Government of Gibraltar is fully supporting this endeavour. The purpose of this Project is to create a definitive database of the military landscape in Gibraltar (circa 1704 to 1960). The information will be collected from field visits and examination of historic documents. At this stage it is proposed to run the project for two years, subject to an annual review on progress. The information collected on the database will be made available to the Government of Gibraltar, and in particular the Gibraltar Heritage Trust, with a view to the future preservation of sites of interest. The newly formed, Fortress of Gibraltar Group are also coordinating their research with this Project, concentrating their efforts on the World War 2 landscape. See Individual members have also been involved with restoration projects such as Fort Amherst, Harwich Redoubt, The Needles Batteries, Newhaven Fort and Chapel Bay Fort.

References

External links

* * *{{Facebook Fortifications Military historiography