Palmersston Fort - Scraesdon Fort

Scraesdon Fort, near the village of Antony, is one of several of the forts in South East Cornwall which formed part of the ring of forts surrounding Plymouth to protect Plymouth Sound and, in particular, Plymouth docks from enemy naval attack. They were built as a result of a decision in Lord Palmerston's premiership to deter the French from attacking naval bases in the south of England.

Scraesdon Fort - front entrance

Scraesdon Fort was designed in 1859 at a cost of £137,000. It is constructed in the Land Front, polygonal, near octagonal format. It has a dry ditch, and was designed to have twenty seven 7-inch breech loading guns on the ramparts, although only eight were ever mounted.