The Landport () is a

gate A gate or gateway is a point of entry to or from a space enclosed by walls. The word is derived from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*gatan'', meaning an opening or passageway. Synonyms include yett (which comes from the same root w ...

into the territory of

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

. It was originally the only entrance to the fortification from the land and so was heavily fortified and guarded.

Description

After the territory was first captured from the Spanish in 1704, the British defended the Landport with twenty guns. The gate was subsequently defended by the ''

Inundation A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant concern in agriculture, civi ...

'' — a flooded and fortified area of ground measuring about in length by about broad and was "nearly man-height" in depth. There were also obstacles in it such as ''chevaux de frise'' and metal hoops. There was also a moat covering the northern approach — the Landport Ditch. The ditch's defences included a

palisade A palisade, sometimes called a stakewall or a paling, is typically a row of closely placed, high vertical standing tree trunks or wooden or iron stakes used as a fence for enclosure or as a defensive wall. Palisades can form a stockade. Etymo ...

and a gunpowder

mine Mine, mines, miners or mining may refer to: Extraction or digging *Miner, a person engaged in mining or digging *Mining, extraction of mineral resources from the ground through a mine Grammar *Mine, a first-person English possessive pronoun M ...

which could be exploded beneath an assault. To cross these defences, there was a

drawbridge A drawbridge or draw-bridge is a type of moveable bridge typically at the entrance to a castle or tower surrounded by a moat. In some forms of English, including American English, the word ''drawbridge'' commonly refers to all types of moveable b ...

which was pulled up at night. Tobacco smugglers would exit the gate at this time and lurk outside, waiting for an opportunity to cross the neutral ground into Spain during the night.

References

City gates in Gibraltar Tunnels in Gibraltar {{Gibraltar-struct-stub

Description

See also

References