Fort Grange is one of the

Palmerston Forts The Palmerston Forts are a group of forts and associated structures around the coasts of the United Kingdom and Ireland. The forts were built during the Victorian period on the recommendations of the 1860 Royal Commission on the Defence of the ...

, in

Gosport Gosport ( ) is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hampshire, England. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census, the town had a population of 70,131 and the district had a pop ...

, England. After Gomer and Elson forts had been approved in 1852, further consideration led to a decision to fill the gap between them by three more forts, and Grange is the most southerly of the three. Work began in 1858 and it was completed in 1863. Built as part of the outer defence line for Gosport along with

Fort Brockhurst Fort Brockhurst is one of the Palmerston Forts, in Gosport, England, and a scheduled monument. It is now an English Heritage property. History Construction, 1858–1862 Fort Brockhurst was designed by William Crossman in the 19th century to ...

Fort Elson Fort Elson was one of the early Palmerston Forts, Portsmouth, Palmerston Forts, in Gosport, England, the northernmost polygonal land fort in the defence line to the west of Gosport. It was located on land immediately to the south of Elson Creek ...

and

Fort Rowner Fort Rowner is one of the Palmerston Forts, in Gosport, England. Built circa 1858 as part of the outer defence line for Gosport along with Fort Brockhurst and Fort Elson to the North East and Fort Grange and Fort Gomer to the South West. The fo ...

to the North East and

Fort Gomer Fort Gomer was one of the Palmerston Forts, in Gosport, England, the southernmost and first-built Polygonal fort in the defence line to the west of Gosport. It was located on land immediately to the west of the present Gomer Lane. Fort Gomer was ...

to the South West. In 1914 23 (Siege) Company

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Artillery, Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse ...

was based at the Fort. It was used to create number 3 and 4 Siege Batteries Royal Garrison Artillery. The fort is a Grade II

Listed Building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

and is virtually identical with Forts Brockhurst and Rowner. In 1917, the Fort Grange Aerodrome became the home to

Robert Smith-Barry Robert Raymond Smith Barry (4 April 1886 – 23 April 1949) was an officer in the Royal Flying Corps and its successor, the Royal Air Force. His most notable contribution was in developing flying instruction methods. In December 1916 he maste ...

School of Special Flying A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the Educational architecture, building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most co ...

. There are many surviving details and the main structure is intact, however the earthworks have been much reduced and much of the moat is infilled. In 1916 it was armed with a 1-pounder heavy anti aircraft gun on a travelling carriage. The fort was used as a military headquarters from 1910 and was derelict by 1983. In 1984 Fort Grange became the home of Royal Naval

Volunteer Cadet Corps The Volunteer Cadet Corps (VCC) is a national youth organisation managed by the United Kingdom's Royal Navy and sponsored by the UK's Ministry of Defence. The VCC comprises: * Headquarters VCC. Based at in Portsmouth. * VCC Training Centre. ...

, and continues to fulfil this role today.

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

Victorian Forts data sheetVCC Website
Forts in Hampshire Palmerston Forts Grade II listed buildings in Hampshire 1858 establishments in England {{Hampshire-struct-stub