Ives Point Battery, also known as Fort Ives, was originally established as a smooth bore battery in 1762.
In 1862 plans were drawn up for a new battery with two faces, and these were authorised on 4th June 1864. Work began on the battery on 20th May 1865 and was completed by 31st March 1869. The total cost of construction was £20,483. There is a note that the main cartridge sore had to be strengthened at a cost of £2,518. The battery had a total of three 10-inch 18 ton MLRs and six 9-inch 12 ton MLRs.
The Southwest face mounted three 10-RML and the West Face mounted five 9-inch RMLs. The additional 9-inch RML was mounted in the salient where these two faces met. The guns were all in open positions protected by traverses and Gibraltar Shields. Only three of the shielded gun emplacements have survived, two with10-inch guns in place.
Ives Point Battery was built with three main cartridge stores and two main shell stores. There were a total of seven Expense Lockers, three for cartridge and four for shell. Buildings including a lamp room, artillery store for small items, side arms and tackle store, field forge store, field gun shed, coal store, ablutions, cook house, guard room, cells, meat and bread stores. The three casemated barracks were built to accommodate thirty three men although they appear to have been used as a canteen, shell examining room and mantled store.
The battery was subsequently upgraded to mount a pair of 6-inch BL guns on CP Mark II mounts. The new 6-inch Battery saw the removal of some of the Shielded Emplacements. (TNA WO 78/3957).