Bréhon Tower

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Brehon Tower

The Bréhon Tower (Fort Brehon) is accessible only by boat and sits on Bréhon rock, an island in the Little Russell channel about 1.5 km northeast of St Peter Port, Guernsey, between the port and the islands of Herm and Jethou. Thomas Charles de Putron (1806-1869) built the oval tower of granite from Herm, completing the work in 1857.[1]

Although not strictly a Martello tower, Bréhon represents the final evolution of the basic design of the Martello tower. In 1914 the War Office transferred ownership of Bréhon Tower to the States of Guernsey. During the German occupation of the Channel Islands, the German military placed anti-aircraft guns on the tower. Today, although the site is open to visitors, the tower is closed. The tower holds a light operated by the Guernsey Harbour Authority.[2] The island is home to a breeding colony of common terns.

History

An obelisk was erected on Bréhon in 1744 to serve as a sea mark. However the lack of visibility of the obelisk led to its replacement in 1824 by a tower 40 ft high and 34 ft in circumference, topped by a globe.[3]

During the tenure (1803-1813) of Lieutenant Governor General Sir John Doyle, there were plans to erect a guardhouse on Bréhon, but nothing came of these.[1] Doyle was responsible, however, for substantial fortification efforts elsewhere in Guernsey, including the construction of the Martello towers of Fort Grey, Fort Saumarez, and Fort Hommet.

Bréhon Tower with Jethou in background

In the 1840s there was a renewed concern about British relations with France, with particular concern for the protection of Alderney and the other Channel Islands because of their strategic importance in the Channel. Lieutenant Governor Major-General Sir William Francis Patrick Napier proposed a number of works, including the establishment of a fort on Bréhon.[4] In 1850 the British became concerned that the French had created fortifications at Cherbourg. This led to the construction of several towers and forts in the Channel area. The Alderney cutter Experiment was wrecked off Bréhon in March 1850; eight people drowned but Guernsey pilot boat Mary of Guernsey saved 20.[3]

Tower

A review of Guerney's defences in 1852 recommended the construction of three artillery barracks, Fort Richmond, Fort Hommet, and Fort Le Marchant, the upgrading of Fort Doyle, and the construction of Bréhon Tower. Work on Bréhon Tower commenced in 1854 and was completed in 1856.[Note 1]

Construction began in 1856 and was completed the next year.[6] The builder was Thomas Charles de Putron, who carried on business at the Pierre Percée.[6] The total cost was £8,098 18s 10d.[7]

Bréhon Tower's role was to guard the shipping channel between Guernsey and Herm, and help protect the harbour of St Peter Port. The fort's footprint measures 65 feet by 85 feet (at the widest point), and the tower stands 34 feet high. The tower has three levels. The magazine, shell room, shifting room, stores, and fresh-water cistern were all on the ground floor. It also had latrines on the same floor, a Victorian innovation. The first floor contained the garrison's living quarters.

The original plan was to put three heavy guns on the gun platform at the top, with five guns on the (second) floor below, sharing the 14 cannon ports. However, during construction the armament was cut back to three 68-pounder and two 10-inch shell guns, all on the gun platform.[5][8] In 1859, when loading the guns, each of which weighed 5 tons, a barge capsized and sank, the gun was lost. The guns had a range of 3,000m.[9]:24 When the garrison fired the cannons for the first time the concussion created a fracture that extended from top to bottom.[6] There is also a jetty on the St Peter Port side of the island.

The tower's garrison was drawn from the Royal Artillery. The garrison was originally to have consisted of two officers and 60 NCOs and other ranks, but with the reduction in armament, two officers and 30 men was deemed sufficient.[8] Boats from Guernsey brought provisions and fresh drinking water; the cistern provided the water for general use.[6]

20th century

By World War I the tower was obsolete and the War Office turned it over to the States of Guernsey.[1]

During World War II, the Germans installed a 10.5 cm (4.1 in) coast defence gun in a new embrasure cut in the north wall. They also placed two 2 cm (0.79 in) anti-aircraft guns on the roof of the tower.[9]:25 These were credited with shooting down several allied planes, and one German plane,[1] which crashed on Crevichon. However, the German plane that crashed on Crevichon on 19 November 1940, killing all its crew, was a Heinkel He 111 that either a British night fighter shot down while the He 111 was flying from France to bomb the south coast of England, or that developed engine trouble on the way.[10]

Notes, citations, and references

Notes

  1. ↑ Two other towers were built in England at the same time - the Pembroke Dock Gun Towers, and the Spit of Grain Tower, Sheerness.[5] In addition the British built Nothe Fort, on the Isle of Portland. On Alderney, they built Forts Clonque and Houmet Herbe.

Citations

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 BBC - Guernsey history - Brehon Tower, bbc.co.uk; accessed 24 August 2015.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ (1868), Vol. 2, p.127
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lowry (2008), pp.53-54.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Priaulx Library: The Star, 31 August 1915.[1] -accessed 27 October 2014.
  7. ↑ Grimsley (1988), p.53.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Clements (1998), p. 135.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Forty (2005), p.244.

References

  • Bruce, H.A., ed. (1864) Life of General Sir William Napier, K. C. B., author of 'History of the Peninsular War', etc: Edited by H. A. Bruce. With portraits. (J. Murray)
  • Clements, William H. (1998) Towers of Strength: Martello Towers Worldwide. (London: Pen & Sword). ISBN 978-0-85052-679-0.
  • Forty, George (2005) Channel Islands at War: A German Perspective. (Ian Allan). ISBN 978-0711030718
  • Grimsley, E.J. (1988) The historical development of the Martello Tower in the Channel Islands. (Sarnian Publications). ISBN 978-0951386804
  • Lowry, Bernard (2008) Fortifications From the Tudors to the Cold War"'. (Osprey Publishing). ISBN 9780747806516

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