Turning right at the path T-junction leads to the gun emplacements. An inspection on a piece of cemented stone at the tunnel entrance reads: '362 Battery, 21/9/1940'; this is the original number for the battery. The tunnel leads down to the gunfloor of the No. 2 gun. As well as being used for general access it was a route for ammunition moving to the guns from the magazine (now a low, earth and cement block mound) near the path T-junction.


The guns were delivered to Brixham on the 18th June 1940 and were two ex-naval 4.7 inch Mark V quick-firing types, manufactured by the Japanese Kuri company and dated 1918. The guns, numbered 1372 and 1631, weighed just over 2.5 tons and were 17 feet in overall length. The projectile weight was 50lb, being either CP or HE types. The propellant charge was 8.5lbs of SC103 (cordite) housed in a brass case, making a combined weight of 25.5lb. The gun mountings were PX with +20 degrees to -10 degrees elevation. At 20 degrees elevation the maximum range was 11,960 yards (approximately 7 miles).

At gunfloor level some of the many gun retaining bolts can be seen in the floor. These are now cut off but were originally 12 to 18 inches long, designed to withstand the gun's recoil.

On the wall can be seen a bracket which held the loudspeaker used to convey orders from the Battery Observation Post. Just below it was a switchboard with red and green indicator lights, another device for communication with the B.O.P.

On the harbour-side wall is a second tunnel entrance, now bricked up. This lead to the 'War Shelter' between the two guns, an area housing the two gun crews on duty, standing by in case of 'action stations'. Sleeping quarters were also on hand.

From the 'War Shelter', a tunnel lead to No. 2 gunfloor, the layout of which was almost identical to that of No. 1 gun. Another tunnel (entrance at back of gunfloor) then lead on down a slope to a second ammunition store, about 400 yards further on down the main path (remains not now visible). Both tunnels are now bricked up.

The gun crews consisted of 7 personnel per gun as follows:

No.1 - Sgt. In charge
No.2 - Breech operator
No.3 - Shell loader
No.4 - Line layer
No.5 - Elevation layer
No.6 - Cartridge loader
No.7 - Shell rammer

When on duty all of these personnel would be in or around the War Shelter. In the event of an alert the alarm bells would be sounded and everyone would run to their guns shouting 'alarm!', the guns would be made ready and orders awaited from the B.O.P.

When a gun was ready to fire the No.1 would press the red indicator light on the signal panel; this activated a light on a similar panel on the B.O.P, showing the gun was ready for action. During the making ready of the gun, information concerning the target position, range, deflection, etc, would be relayed via the loudspeaker. When all was ready the order to 'fire' would be given by the B.O.P.

If the order 'gun control' was given, the No.1 on the gun would take charge of his crew and estimate his own ranges and deflections without the help of range finders, thus he would be independent of the B.O.P.

Note: Range is the distance of the target from the gun. Deflection is the distance to aim in front of the target to allow for movement during the flight of the shell.

Maximum range was 11,960 yards (approximately 7 miles). However, targets would normally be engaged at the effective range of between 3,000 and 7,000 yards.

The following procedure would be undertaken:

No.2 opens breech; No.3 places shell in; No.7 rams shell with special rod.
No.6 places cartridge behind shell then moves hand to safety behind back shouting 'in'.
No.2 slams home breech shouting 'ready'.
No.4 and No.5 will by this time have laid line and elevation of gun and shouted 'on' target.
No.1 on hearing 'on' and then 'ready' will shout 'fire' if working under 'gun control' or signal the B.O.P and await the order to fire from there.
No.2 opens breech immediately after gun has fired and ejects spent cartridge with a special tool.

The cycle is then repeated as required, taking on average about 8 yo 12 seconds per cycle. Two very important safety precautions were always taken:

No.2, the breech operator, made sure he was well clear of the breech before shouting 'ready' to avoid softening the recoil of the gun himself!

No.6, the cartridge loader, did not shout 'in' before his hand was well clear of the breech about to be slammed shut by No.2. The formality of slapping the hand behind the back was developed to help No.6's keep all their fingers!

From the above firing sequence it will be gathered that the ammunition was in two parts; the shell and the propelling charge ie. the cartridge. The shell could be swapped between high explosive or shrapnel; the cartridge was normally cordite. A dummy shell would be used for practice shoots.

These took place on average about every two months during the evenings and also at night for the benefit of the searchlight crews. Targets would be towed across the Bay by a motor launch and comprised a pair of frames about 10ft long by about 6ft high. The frames were about 100 yd's apart (and connected to the launch by a LONG tow line!). This device was intended to represent the bow to stern location of an enemy vessel.

An alternative and less costly method of practice was called 'sub-caliber' shooting. All the normal procedures of each section of the battery would be carried out except the actual firing of the gun. Instead, a very accurate light machine gun or 'Bren' was mounted on the barrel of the 4.7 inch gun. This was loaded with ammunition which included a 'tracer' (visible flame) bullet about every fifth round. When the order to fire was given, the 4.7 inch firing mechanism would activate the Bren, and a short burst fired. By this method a miniature shoot could be conducted and the fall of shot registered by the tracers hitting the water. Targets for this type of shoot would obviously have been much closer to shore to be in range for the Bren gun.

Loading practice which conserved ammunition was undertaken using a device known as a 'Dummy Loader'. This was a mock-up gun mounted on a wooden stand, consisting of an old breech and cartridge chamber. The gun loading drill was carried out using dummy shell and cartridge following the same loading procedure as described above. In this case, however, the shell would be rammed through the end of the makeshift gun and onto the ground where it would be recovered by No.3 and returned to the breech, and so on. This proved effective in enhancing the gun crews loading speed.