Fort Gilkicker - Past and Present (27th February 2026)

Published 09:02 on 2 Mar 2026

Haslar Yacht Club was invited to join Hornet Services Sailing Club for this talk.

What a treat for military history buffs. Lewis Sharp, secretary of the Palmerston Forts Society, came to talk to us about the history of, and current plans for Gilkicker Fort. The society was formed in 1984 by a few volunteers who, together with Portsmouth City Council and Hampshire County Council, rescued Fort Nelson which was crumbling away. Now a registered Charity, the Society is based in Fort Nelson and has grown to become the UKs most trusted and knowledgable organisation dedicated to British Victorian forts, notably the Palmerston Forts of which Gilkicker is one.

Historically, as ever, the fear was of invasion from France onto our coastline. It had been believed that hostile troops would land at or near Dover and make their way across land to attack Portsmouth therefore all of the defences were built to face North.

Following the recommendations of the 1859 Royal Commission improvements were made to the inland defences but the question was asked could we defend ourselves if the French arrived by sea? The answer was no. We had a very small army and 3 castles but more modern facilities were needed. The 3 Palmerston forts were built plus Gilkicker.

From the start Gilkicker was never going to be a success. Money was tight, the development was too slow and could not keep up with progress being made in firepower. The original plans were for 22 casemates with 2 ft thick shields made from steel and concrete for protection. Victorian engineers built the fort, finishing in 1863, but without the guns which arrived later, being in place by 1870, and which were very quickly out of date. In 1886 it was realised that were the enemy to fire at Gilkicker then having 22 guns so close together left all of them vulnerable to a chain of explosion so 5 of the casements were filled with concrete to create fire breaks. By 1902 the guns were totally inadequate so all of the casements were covered by sand, gravel and rubble to protect the gun stores and 5 more powerful guns were installed on the roof.

In 1956 the fort ceased to be used for defence but continued to be used for military training and storage of spares. The steel shields were removed and any other metal taken away for scrap. The steel, having been undercover since before the atomic bomb was dropped ,was unaffected by radiation and therefore suitable for making scientific and medical instruments. In 1986 Hampshire County Council purchased the fort to be used as a store which continued until 1999. After this the buildings were abandoned, left to decay. They suffered from vandalism and nature took over the site.

In the ensuing years there were many planning application which failed but in 2010 planning permission was granted for residential conversion. The site passed through several hands before the current owners paid £1.38 million in 2022 aiming to convert it into 26 homes, one in each of the 22 placements and four town houses in the old barracks. They took a gamble as no one knew what they were going to find beneath all the concrete, sand and gravel.

To comply with planning law the developers had to employ specialists to monitor the nature and archaeology of the site during the work. Palmerston Fort Society offered to help and were invited to take part, being given access once a week for 9 months. It transpired that the concrete which had been used to fill 5 of the casements was made from marine gravel and sand which meant it crumbled and was removed very easily. Once that and the materials which had been used to cover the casements were removed, the original fort was in very good condition.

Plans have stalled at the moment because the developers want to make changes to the original plans but the aim is to achieve £1.5 million for each of the homes in the casements and £800k for the town houses.

The Palmerston Fort Society is keen to attract new members with an interest in Victorian Forts. They have a large social media following (around 11000 currently) and a very informative website. Membership is very good value at £20.

https://www.palmerstonfortssociety.org.uk/

Cathy Hems

Related

• Talk: "Gilkicker Fort" by Lewis Sharp (27 February, 18:00 - 23:00)

Last updated 09:06 on 2 March 2026