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Extensive work to restore the Second World War coastal battery at St Anthony’s Head in Cornwall has been completed in time for Heritage Open Days this weekend, the national celebration of historic sites. The restoration, which is part of the South West Coast Path team's 'Unlocking our Coastal Heritage' project, was made possible by funding worth £63,953 from the Rural Development Programme for England and £7,647 from the National Trust’s Neptune Fund.

Says National Trust ranger Phil White: “Members of the public will be able to see what remains of the site for the first time since it was decommissioned in 1954 and buried under rubble, including the main gun battery itself, comprising of two gun emplacements and an underground magazine where ammunition was stored during the First and Second and World Wars.

“Of special value to this site are the well-preserved remains of four hand-cranked ammunition hoists, one cartridge hoist and one shell hoist for each gun emplacement, which delivered the highly explosive material from their protective environment in the magazine directly to where they were combined for firing. There will be demonstrations of one of the restored mechanised shell hoists on the day as well as guided tours around the site.

“St Anthony’s Head has always been low-key compared to the nearby iconic castles at Pedennnis and St Mawes, which altogether form the network of defences for Falmouth, and this project has helped underline its place in the country’s maritime heritage of coastal defence.”    

Over the past three years, the Unlocking Our Coastal Heritage project has invested £676,127 in 28 historic sites along the South West Coast Path, which forms a third of the total grant worth £2.1m and comprises the first of four key strands that make up the project. The impact of this funding is now being realised as many projects reach completion before the project ends in December this year.

 The theme of coastal defence is one shared by some of the other projects within Strand 1 that have benefited from the funding, including an archaeological survey and excavation of the Starfish command bunker at Nare Head in Cornwall, which acted as a decoy site during the war to divert bombing on Falmouth. Elsewhere, conservation work has restored Second World War pillboxes at Torcross and Slapton Sands in South Devon, both sites of American D-Day practice landings.

Bella Crawford from the South West Coast Path team, says: “As anyone who has ever walked along it will know, the Coast Path is dotted with sites of archaeological and historical importance, whether it’s a medieval burial site or a Second World War concrete pillbox. The aim of the project is to conserve them before they become lost or irreparably damaged and open them up to wider audiences. It is all about shining a light on the past and creating a legacy for generations to come.”

The National Trust, which owns a third of the Coast Path, has been one of the main beneficiaries of the project with 18 out of the 28 sites located on their property.

James Parry, the regional Archaeologist for the Trust who has overseen the delivery of these projects said;

"Not only has this project revealed some thrilling new information on sites under threat which has subsequently allowed them to be accessed, better understood and appreciated but it has also enabled us to directly involve people with their heritage, working with a range of groups from local volunteers to school and university students."

Unlocking Our Coastal Heritage will leave a lasting legacy in our appreciation and understanding of these sites and also provide a springboard for future conservation and interpretation projects.

For more information about the Unlocking our Coastal Heritage project and the four strands that are designed to conserve, enhance and interpret the Coast Path, visit www.southwestcoastpath.com/RDPE