As part of our new series on Isle of Wight fortifications, Island Echo examines the 4 forts between the Isle of Wight and Portsmouth.
The forts built to protect Portsmouth Dockyard and naval base have been labelled ‘Palmerston’s Follies’ as they were constructed at massive expense to defend England against an enemy that never came.
In the 80 or so years that they were occupied by the military, they scarcely fired a gun in anger – despite 2 World Wars having been fought during this period.
The Solent Forts were ordered to be constructed by Lord Palmerston in response to a Royal Commission Report in 1859 that had looked into the threat of a French invasion under their then Emperor Napoleon III.
The work on the forts began in 1865 and took 15 years to complete. The total cost of building the 4 forts was £1,177, 805 – around £115million in today’s values.
The forts have 15ft thick granite walls plus armour plating. Their construction is a testament to the skills of Victorian engineers. Large stone blocks were used as foundations, transported from the quarry by train, and then by barge before being set in place by divers.
Given the strength of the Royal Navy – the largest in the world at the time – the Germans made no attempt to attack Portsmouth by sea during World War I, and the Solent Forts saw out the war as expensive, heavily armoured spectators. However, No Man’s Land and Horse Sand Forts were used as Navy Signalling Stations.
The Solent Forts were manned again during World War II, but it was an unattractive posting. Life on site was said to have been grim, and those serving their country there were deliberately chosen based on their inability to swim, to avoid any attempts at escape.
The main threat at this time was from submarines. Between No Man’s Fort and Horse Sand Fort, a boom defence was rigged. The forts were damaged from air strikes, a line of attack for which they had not been prepared as they were built to defend Portsmouth against sea attack.
In 1956, coastal artillery was abolished, leaving the 4 forts empty and unused. They were then put up for sale in 1963. However, no one invested in these historic landmarks until the 1980s.
Spitbank Fort
Spitbank is the fort closest to Portsmouth. Its construction began in 1867 and was completed in 1878. It is smaller than the other Solent forts, being 162ft in diameter.
This fort was declared surplus to requirements in 1962 and declared a scheduled monument in 1967. It was sold by the Ministry of Defence to a private buyer in 1982, following which it was opened to the public as a museum.
From 2002, the site was used as a location for Banged up with Beadle when television personality Jeremy Beadle was incarcerated there for 6 weeks. It was also used as a venue for psytrance and hard dance parties.
Spitbank Fort was sold – reportedly for over £1million – in 2002. It was subsequently renovated at a cost of around £2.6million and used as a luxury hotel.
It is currently for sale with an asking price in excess of £3,000,000.
Horse Sand Fort
Horse Sand Fort lies in the middle of the Solent, between Spitbank and No Man’s Forts. It was built between 1865 and 1880, and it is larger than Spitbank Fort with a diameter of 200ft.
In the late 19th century, Horse Sand Fort was painted in black and white chequers as a form of dazzle camouflage. The pattern is still visible in some spots.
It was bought in 2012 by Clarenco LLP (who also now own No Man’s and Spitbank Forts). The intention was to turn it into a museum. However, renovation work was apparently held up in 2018 by the presence of a resident family of peregrine falcons.
In 2015, the Fort appeared in an episode of BBC TV’s Antiques Road Trip.
Horse Sand Fort was sold in 2021 to an unnamed buyer for a reported sum of £715,000.
No Man’s Fort
No Man’s Fort, which lies just 1.4 miles off the coast of the Isle of Wight, was built between 1865 and 1880.
It was originally almost identical to Horse Sand Fort. However, after being decommissioned, it was used as a luxury home/hospitality centre for upmarket clients. It has an indoor swimming pool and 2 helipads.
In July 2004, Legionella bacteria were found in the fort’s water supply, forcing its closure. In 2006, its owners – Lexi Holdings – went into receivership. In 2008, Harmesh Pooni – claiming to be the owner – barricaded himself inside the fort in protest against the administrators KPMG.
In 2009, it was sold to Clarenco LLP for £910,000. It was opened as a hotel in 2015. It is currently on the market with an asking price of £3.6million.
In 1972, No Man’s Fort was used as the location for the Doctor Who serial, The Sea Devils, starring Jon Pertwee as the Doctor.
St Helens Fort
St Helens Fort was completed in 1878 at a cost of £123,311 (around £12million in today’s values). Unlike the other Solent Forts, building material was carried along a causeway to the fort from a St Helens Quarry.
In World War II, the fort was used as a searchlight and anti-aircraft gun platform. The heavy armaments were not popular with local householders as the concussion broke windows during firing practice. After the war, it had a role as a navigational lighthouse.
The fort is, of course, famous for the unofficial mass ‘fort walk’, which happens at the lowest tides in August. At this time, the causeway is generally above sea level. However, emergency services have frequently advised residents and visitors not to attempt the walk due to the dangers of being cut off by the tide.
The fort is in private hands and not open to the public. Any potential resident would have no access to public services, although there is a water supply through an artesian well.
Would you like to live in a Solent Fort? Please let us know in the comments.
In the next edition of Isle of Wight Forts, we shall look at the history of West Wight’s Needles Battery…
If i could afford one ,i would buy it & live on it.
I would like to know how each of the forts were actually constructed.
The article states that large stone blocks were put in place by divers but it would be interesting to know how they were constructed when they are in the sea.
Very interesting article many thanks and no I would not like to live one of these forts. Happy to just sail past them.
If anyone wanted to find out more info I recall that Anthony Cantwell wrote a book on the history of the forts in the 1980s. A Google search would no doubt find a copy.
The fact that Hitler never tried to attack Portsmouth in WW2 might have been down to the very existence of the Palmerston forts, without which the city would have been quite vulnerable.
I would enjoy giving living on one a good go…