Spitbank Fort or Spitsand Fort or Spit Sand Fort or simply Spit Fort is a sea fort built as a result of the 1859 Royal Commission. The fort is one of four located in the Solent, near Portsmouth, England.
Work on constructing the fort started in 1861 but was soon halted for
a review into the best way to defend the Solent and approaches to Portsmouth Harbour. Work restarted in 1867 and was completed in 1878.
Spitbank is smaller than the two main Solent forts, Horse Sand Fort and No Man's Land Fort.
Its main purpose was as a further line of defence for ships that made
it past the two main forts. It is 49.4 metres (162 ft) in diameter
across at its base, with one floor and a basement and armour plating
only on the seaward side. It was originally planned to have been armed
with nine 10" eighteen ton rifled muzzle loader (RML)
guns on the seaward side, and six 7" seven ton RML guns on the landward
side. However, by the time of completion the plan had changed so that
the seaward side received nine 12.5-inch muzzle-loading (RML) guns. From 1884 more modern 12-inch breechloading guns were installed and these were in service until after World War I.
Spitbank Fort, part of our collection of Solent Forts, is one of the
most exclusive, unusual and incredible venues anywhere on this planet.
This quirky and unique gun emplacement has been transformed into a
luxurious cocoon of indolence and indulgence, privacy and exclusivity.
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