Mellon Charles

NG89SW 8.00 84102 91032

NG89SW 8.01 centred NG 8416 9113 Military camp

A heavy anti-aircraft battery depicted on the OS 1:10560 map (1969) at Rubh' a' Choin point to the W of the naval base at Mellon Charles.

Information from RCAHMS (DE), 16 April 1996.

This heavy anti-aircraft battery is situated to the W of the former Navy Camp on the point at Rubh a' Choin. All four concrete and brick gun-emplacements are extant. All the gun-emplacements show evidence of having been modified to take another weapon. The battery was armed with 4 x 3.7-inch guns.

J Guy 2000; NMRS MS 810/10, Vol.1, 45, Vol.3, 27

This heavy anti-aircraft battery lies on private land just above a slope leading down to Eilean Rubh a'Choin. The gun-emplacements and command/control building are all substantially intact and the ground to the NE has many concrete hut bases. Though records show that the battery was armed with 3.7-inch calibre guns, the brass inserts to the holdfast are marked 4.5-inch and are dated 1941. All emplacements have been surrounded by earthen banks, now partly removed, to assist in their camouflage and the most SW has been revetted in stone.

The modification consists of a brick built wall within the circle of ready-use ammunition lockers which has been filled with stone and earth rubble. The owner of the site suggested that the modification had been to provide a platform for 'dummy guns' after the heavy calibre guns had been removed elsewhere. In two of the emplacements painted signs have survived and in one crew shelter, the chalked numbers below a row of coat hanger hooks was also noted.

Visited by RCAHMS, 16 May 2002

The dimensions of the platform/ramp within the gun-emplacement is 7.2 by 6.2m and it is 75cm high at the entrance and 80cm in height at the rear. The ramp is on average set about 1.35m in from the ready-use ammunition racks. In the example measured the ramp has been partially removed to reveal the original holdfast boltring. Brora and Shotts bricks have been used in the construction of the platform.

Records held in the Public Record Office show that this battery was unarmed by June 1943 (WO 166/11169) and was not provided with a gun control radar set.

The battery is visible on RAF vertical air photographs (CPE/Scot/UK182, 1348-1350, flown 8 October 1946), and the images also show that the accommodation camp (NG89SW 8.01) was centred around NG 8416 9113.

The 1946 air photographs also show that there is some kind of gun or mounting in the emplacements and camouflage netting is still in place at this date.

Visited by RCAHMS (DE, SW), October 2002.