Shoeburyness was acquired by the Board of Ordnance in 1849 as an artillery testing and practice range. Initially the site was only used in Summer, but with the Crimean War in 1854, it was quickly converted to a permanent site with an officer’s mess, library, hospital and barracks set up by 1856.
In 1859 the Royal Artillery School of Gunner was established in Shoeburyness and the site expended to some 200 acres. Specialist Coastal Artillery training was carried out at the site. In 1870 a branch of the RA School was opened in Woolwich to training of the Militia and Volunteer Artillery to ensure standardisation of training across all the services.
In 1889 the Shoeburyness training area expanded the ranges to the north east, including Foulness and Havengore, in order to accommodate the new breach loading artillery then being introduced.
The Experimental Branch, which had been part of the School of Gunnery sine 1859, became an independent organisation in 1905. In 1920 it was renames as the Proof and experimental Establishment.
A short video showing the Shoeburyness Garrison clock tower and crescent can be seen here.
Serving features of interest including:
- The 9.2-inch gun emplacement
- The Black Powder Magazine
- Grog’s Birth and Barge Pier
- The Trial Casemates
- The Quick Fire Training Battery
Another interesting video, this time drone footage of the gun emplacements, can be see here.