Nigg Battery

What remains of this demolished observation post, introduced as part of the infrastructure of the Nigg battery by the Army in World War II, is situated beneath a deciduous tree within the earthworks of Dunskeath Castle (NJ86NW 1) about 3m N of the cliff edge. The tangle of reinforced cast concrete fragments makes it difficult to identify its characteristics, but the bracken- and grass-grown remains of the building appear to have been rectangular on plan, measuring about 9m from N to S by 6m transversely. A solid round concrete cylinder (provided for the range finder) measuring 1.1m in diameter and 0.5m high lies under the debris, while a fragment of the outer edge of the canopy can also be identified.

The building is approached from the NW by a sunken path 2.7m broad and 1.3m deep, which cuts through the curving bracken- and grass-grown rampart marking the landward limits of the castle’s defences.

Neither the observation post, nor the path, are shown on an aerial photograph taken by the Luftwaffe in 1940 (SC799769) and so the building must have been constructed at a later date. The castle was visited in 1943 by RCAHMS during the Emergency Survey and it is possible that this was stimulated by the prospect of construction work. Both the post and the path are depicted before demolition on aerial photographs (SC2087406, SC919469) taken in 1972, which form part of the John Dewar collection curated by HES. These show that it was similar in design to the battery observation post at the Cove Battery, Rubha nan Sasan (NG89SW 4.02).

The Cromarty Petroleum Company purchased the land in 1978 and, like some of the other buildings forming part of the battery, it was demolished by bulldozers between March and May in that year [Aberdeen Press and Journal, Saturday 13 May 1978, p.1), following the eviction of John McCabe and his dog Muttley (Aberdeen Press and Journal, 29 December 1977, p.1; Friday 6 January 1978, p.5; Friday 10 March 1978, p.7). A portrait of Mr. McCabe in front of the post shows that he had modified the fenestration, with the result that four of the sides in its five-sided frontage were fitted with a single rectangular window, while two were provided in the broader side that faced out onto the firth.

Visited by HES, Survey and Recording (ATW, AKK, KLG), 30 March 2019.