Redoubt Fortress - Military Museum - Eastbourne, Sussex, United Kingdom.
N 50° 46.419 E 000° 18.042
31U E 309685 N 5628128
Eastbourne Redoubt is a circular coastal fort built in 1805 as part of the British anti-invasion preparations during the Napoleonic Wars. Curently used as a Military Museum. Located in Eastbourne, East Sussex, United Kingdom.
Waymark Code: WMVB71
Location: Southern England, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 03/27/2017
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Eastbourne’s hidden treasure, Redoubt Fortress, only the parapet of this impressive circular Napoleonic fort is visible from Royal Parade.
At the time of my visit in early March 2017, the Fortress was not open for visitors. You get a great view of the fort on Google Earth.
Today this magnificent Napoleonic fortress is home to the largest military museum in the South East of Britain. The Museum Campus includes The Pavilion, featuring Living on the Edge, local coastal history over the last 8000 years.
Heritage Eastbourne cares for a number of incredible collections. In the Fort & Pavilion.
The Eastbourne collections preserve and record the stories of Eastbourne dating back millions of years.
From the Heritage Eastbourne official website:
"The redoubt is a circular structure, measuring 224 feet (68 metres) in diameter and is built almost entirely of brick with some granite facing. The lower tier is composed of a ring of 24 casemates or vaulted chambers, which open into a central parade ground. Casemate 11 was the main magazine for the redoubt, casemate 8 was modified in the 1870s as a cook house and casemates 23 and 24 were altered in the 1880s to provide a detention room and two cells.
The upper tier above the casemates forms the terreplein or gun platform, which has a tall parapet pierced by granite-faced embrasures for eleven guns. Beside each gun position is an "L" shaped expense magazine which held a supply of ammunition for the guns to use in combat and could also be used as a shelter for the gun crews during an enemy bombardment. The low roof of these magazines forms a banquette or fire step so that the garrison could fire their muskets over the parapet in the event of an infantry attack. The parapet is also pierced by the main gate, which was originally the only access to the redoubt.
The redoubt is surrounded by a ditch or dry moat which is 30 feet (9 metres) from the top of the parapet and 25 feet (7 metres) wide. On the far side of the moat, a glacis or earth ramp slopes away to ground level. Both the moat and the glacis have been removed on the seaward side during construction of a sea wall and promenade in 1890. The floor of the ditch is traversed by five caponiers or covered galleries with loopholes that allowed the defenders to fire at any attackers who had reached that point. These are unique in any of the circular redoubts and are thought to have been added in the mid-19th century. Access to the main gate of the redoubt is across a wooden drop bridge, which is a modern reconstruction of the original, built in 2003 with help from the Royal Engineers. A second entrance from the ditch was created in 1957 by inserting a large doorway through the scarp wall into one of the casemates." Text Source: (
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Admission Prices:
Redoubt Fortress
Adult £4.50
Senior/Student £3.25
Child £2.50
Family (up to 5 people) £12*
*must include 1 child under 16
Includes free daily tour
Admission to the parade ground, gun platform, cafe and shop are completely FREE!
Street Address:
Royal Parade
Eastbourne
East Sussex
BN22 7AQ
Hours of Operation:
20 March - 12 November 2017
Open daily 10am to 5pm