Key:
| M | Magazine |
| C.G. | Chatham Gate and Upper Barrier Guard House - This was one of two Gateways/Guard Houses at the Chatham end of the Lines.from here they controlled the flow of traffic from Chatham to the Dockyard or Brompton.they kept the gates locked after a set curfew time.It had 2 Barrack rooms on the east side upper level and on the lower level it had a kitchen and a series of Musket loops to protect the aproach to the gate.On the other side is a larger Barrack room and a Cell where unruly or drunk Soldiers would be held for a more formal discipline the next day. |
| Upper Barrier Battery | There are 2 Cannons here. Behind them are 3 doorways.The Left one contained a Side arms store which held Sidearms needed to fire the Cannon.The centre door leeds to the top of the Ammunition Shaft that goes down into the tunnels below.The Right hand door leeds to an expanse magazine which held pre made Cartridges in Flannel bags which were stored in Barrels to keep them dry.There is also another door here which lead down to the Upper Gun floor in the Tunnels. |
| 1. | Haxo Casemates - The Brick vaulted Casemates were built in 1815 designed by General Adolphe Haxo a French Military Engineer.The Cannons inside them protected the approach to the Gates and the Drawbidges over the ditch while remaining protected themselves in the Casemates. |
| 2. | Lower Cornwallis Battery - There are 4 Gun positions here.2 cover the approach from Chatham and the other cover the slopes below Belvedere Battery. |
| 3. | Upper Cornwallis Battery - The guns here covered the approach to Fort Amherst from Fort Pitt along a Military Road. |
| 4. | Fausse Braye - This is accessed through a small curved tunnel near the Lower Cornwallis Battery.This area on the Ramparts was used by Infantry to give protection to a Sally Port on the opposite side of the Ditch. |
| 5. | Upper Sally Port - This door allows acces to the Counterscarp side of the ditch via the main tunnels.Through it troops could give small scale attacks (Sallys) against a besieging army. |
| 6. | Main Magazine - Underground Magazine could hold 1,000 barrels or 45 Tonnes of gunpowder.It has a Wooden suspended floor with air vents to prevent damp.There is a Lobby at the front where Soldiers would of had to change into Special Woolen Magazine Clothing before handling the Gun Powder. |
| 7. | Belvedere Battery Expanse Magazine - This building stored Ammunition for the Soldiers. |
| 8. | Amherst Guardhouse - This building was built into the ditch that surrounded Amherst Redoubt.from here they guarded acess to the Redoubt .the Building had a small Barracks,store rooms,small arms magazine and an armoury.On the lower floor are small courtyards at either end that had walls with musket loops looking out into the ditches.One courtyard had a well in and a doorway that gave acces to the Ditch around Amherst Redoubt. |
| 9. | The Caponier - This Caponier had Musket loops in the Ditch walls and gave protection to 2 of the Ditches around Amherst Redoubt.(should the enemy get that far) Also it was a covered passageway way between the Prince of Wales Bastion and Amherst Redoubt.It had a long sloping tunnel from the Caponier up to the centre of Amherst Redoubt and stairways up to the Prince of Wales Bastion. |
| 10. | Prince Williams Barracks - These thick walled Casmated Barracks were probably only used by a Handfull of Troops who Guarded Fort Amherst.They were on 2 Levels but the 1st floor level has been removed in the 20th Century.Also they have sufferd a direct hit from a WWII Bomb in the Front section which has left some damage. |
| 11. | The Sunken Courtyard - This area was built into a ditch and the underground structure off the courtyard had Flanking galleries for Muskets and Cannons to protect part of the Spur Battery and Prince Williams Bastion ditches.they had Air vents inside to clear smoke. |
| 12. | Cavalier - This was a raised mound of earth with a firestep that gave extra defence to the field of fire. |
| 13. | Sally Port - Through this structure you could gain acces to the ditches and the Hornwork.It has Musket loops guarding the entrance into the ditch and also part of the kings Bastion ditch.There is a Guard room in here and Barrack rooms.On one side there is a small room with Musket loops and a fair sized vent in the ceiling,this possibly was used to hoist ammunition up to the Firestep above it on the rampart,or it was an air/smoke Vent. |
| 14. | Kings Bastion Tunnels - At the front facing the ditch are 2 Casemated gun ports which gave cover to one arm of the Hornwork ditch.These could be accesed from above ground by an entrance on the Terreplein and then through a small curved tunnel.Just outside one of the gun ports where it meets the curved tunnel are 2 unlined Tunnels that run parralel to each other halfway along the Bastion face to blocked up openings in the ditch.
I'm not entirely sure what the "unlined" tunnels were for,but i think they may have been dug in WWI to house troops or stores as there was similar tunnels on the counterscarp side of Prince Edwards Bastion. (now buried) |
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