Fort Borstal
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Fort Borstal was built as an afterthought from the 1859 Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom, by convict labour.[1] Construction started in 1875 but was suspended in 1885. The fort was completed around 1895. it was one of a series of four forts that ringed Chatham.[2][3]
| Fort Borstal | |
|---|---|
| Borstal, Kent, England | |
| |
| Site information | |
| Type | Palmerston fort |
| Owner | Private |
| Location | |
  Fort Borstal | |
| Coordinates | 51°22′14″N 00°29′21″E |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1885 |
| Built by | Captain Siborne, R.E. |
| Materials | Brick and earthworks |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Events | |
| Official name | Fort Borstal |
| Reference no. | 1003402 |
Fort Borstal was designed to hold the high ground southwest of Rochester, South East England. It is of polygonal design and was not originally armed. An anti-aircraft battery was based there in the Second World War.[4][5]
A 18 in (457 mm) gauge railway was built connecting the four Chatham ring forts of Borstal, Bridgewoods, Horsted and Luton. A rope-worked incline led west from Fort Borstal down to a gravel pit and wharf on the River Medway. About 600 yards (550 m) of track remains intact at Fort Borstal.[2]
After many years' use as a pig farm and store for the nearby Young Offenders Institution it was sold in 1991 to a company hoping to make it a museum, but that proved unsuccessful and the fort has been converted into living accommodation. There is no public access to the site.