Western Heights: The North Entrance
Pretty much adjacent to St Martin's battery is The North Entrance. We'd driven past it a few times and just assumed it was an empty building, but it wasn't until the Heritage Open Days that we found a tour within and learnt of just how much more is within those black doors.
This site has connections further back than those of St Martin's Battery. The North Entrance utilises aspects from the site as far back as the Napoleonic period and was once again updated and drafted into use within Victorian and WWII times. As a weak point of the fortress, this one was the easiest entrance to target for enemies as well as the easiest to get to for supplies and reinforcements. It had to be cleverly defended and so it was. With a tunnel and two bridges, one of which was the original idea from the Napoleonic period which consisted of a single bridge over a ditch.
The 1860s brought improvements, a replacement bridge over this ditch and further defences constituting the entrance to the fort. The two bridges constructed crossed twin ditches which were separated by an earth bank, but neither bridge was fixed. One dropped down thanks to a hinge on the bank end, and the other had a section that could be raised up. The bank was also curved to ensure that approaching enemy fire could not hit the tunnel which acted as the inner entrance and therefore was fairly safe for those defending from here.
Once through into the inner entrance you hit the large doors on rails which avoided the weakness of hinges, the obvious weakness being that you can simply lift a door off its hinge, it'll be slightly more difficult to do this to a heavy door situated on rails. Once through these doors you hit the curved tunnel complete with oak blocks to coat the floor. This was to muffle the sound within as well as to avoid sparks as a lot of gunpowder was kept in the area and one spark from within would blow the lot! Sadly, it was revealed during our visit that in all the time it took for the entrance to be made presentable and safe to the public since being abandoned a man from nearby Farthingloe was breaking in from the hole above that led to the generator room and was cutting out these blocks to burn on his log burner. The extent of the damage within was horrific and cannot be replaced due to the value of said blocks now being so high.
Within the tunnel, nearly halfway across, is some stairs leading to the three gun rooms, magazines, and artillery store. These gun rooms are equipped with fireplaces and make shift chimneys as they doubled for accommodation during the time these men were stationed here. Later when WWII came around the rooms were again brought to use this time as operational command posts.
Toward the end of the tunnel a passage leads to the vaulted rooms of the water tanks. These tanks supplied the Grand Shaft Barracks further within the Western Heights complex. They were filled from a well at the Citadel, pipes were in place to assist with this of course, and a narrow tunnel acted as a conduit to supply the below barracks.
The inner gateway is the part pictured and accessible from the road. Strangely this is the part we entered from as obviously the bridges at the other end are no longer safe, intact or usable. This is a brick structure complete with guardroom which has been stripped. However, still intact is an example of a Sir Douglas Grate which is effectively an early central heating system, but we won't go into the ins and outs of that in case we get it wrong. Lots of ducts and airflow is involved.
Before the current road separating the entrance from the rest of the heights which was built in the 1960s, the road leading from the entrance itself was one of only two road entrances to the Western Heights. As the tunnel was single traffic only a traffic light system was introduced at either end, the rubber sensors still exist to this day despite the lights being removed. It was this new road placement that started the end of the Western Heights as it was once known. The 1960s being the industrial movement age it was, had determined that the site could be converted into a landfill site and development. They cut through to create the road to allow access for wider vehicles and demolished entirely the southern entrance which destroyed the integrity of the fort as a whole. Luckily, the idea was abandoned and the site was granted Scheduled Ancient Monument status which has enforced preservation. It is too late for the other entrance and what stood below this road, but at least there is something left to preserve.
We were thrilled to be told that the entrance was entirely dog friendly. He was allowed in the tunnels, the gun rooms, everywhere. Every volunteer fell in love with Yogi, as people tend to do, and we were even invited to become volunteers ourselves, including Yogi, which we reckon we'll take up in the new year as we love Western Heights and want to help preserve it.
When we were let in to explore it was a haunting experience. It's dark, cold, and damp within that tunnel. It echoes and you feel as though someone is watching you. The site within is of course completely bare, long having lost anything of value within, but a little bit of imagination transforms these rooms and you can see how they would have been used and also not so nice for the men placed here. There's plenty of wear and tear here from use over the years as well as typical vandals who have broken in. But it all adds to the charm and we can't wait to be allowed back or to help clean up going forward.
Haunted? Without a doubt. We can't quite put our finger on it but there was a presence here and it wasn't so welcoming, but we feel like this comes with the territory. It seems unlikely this came from the more modern war, but perhaps something before this time, something which came from the gunpowder and musket fire. We won't ever know for sure, but we can use our imagination.
If you ever get the chance to go on one of the tours the preservation society hold then please do. The volunteers are so lovely and knowledgeable and it is worth it to get a rare glimpse within the round base bricks. With any luck you might see us around too!
DISCLAIMER: Now for the official bit. This blog does not receive any paid promotions from the places mentioned above. We have not been approached to promote or act as spokespersons for any attraction mentioned within this post and this is simply a post intended to act as a day in the life of a couple on a cute date. All photos included are taken by ourselves and as such the rights for these images our ours, no links, brands, or companies mentioned otherwise belong or are associated with Phantom Adventures UK. We are responsible only for this blog. Opinions are our own and not influenced by any third party source..
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