| Fort Templebreedy | |
| Native Name: | Dún Theampall Bríde |
| Nearest Town: | Crosshaven in County Cork |
| Country: | Ireland |
| Type: | Coastal defence battery |
| Map Type: | Ireland |
| Map Alt: | Location in Ireland |
| Ownership: | Department of Defence |
| Site Other Label: | Emplacements |
| Site Other: | Two BL 9.2 inch Mark X guns (Other Quick-firing practice guns) |
| Site Area: | [1] [2] |
| Built: | - |
| Used: | Until ~1940s (as coast defence) Until ~1980s (as training camp) |
| Condition: | Largely deconstructed |
| Occupants: | British Armed Forces, Irish Defence Forces |
Fort Templebreedy (Irish: Dún Theampall Bríde),[3] also known as Templebreedy Battery, was a coastal defence fortification close to Crosshaven, in County Cork, Ireland. Supplementing a number of earlier structures at Fort Camden and Fort Davis, the site was developed between 1904 and 1909 to defend the mouth of Cork Harbour.[4] [5] Used as a coastal artillery position until the 1940s,[4] and as a military training camp until the late 20th century, many of the structures of the 37-acre site were dismantled over time, and part of the complex used as a pitch and putt course.[6] In 2009, Cork County Council added the site to a proposed list of protected structures[7] - though as of 2022 it remained in the ownership of the Department of Defence.[2] [8]
As with other earlier coastal defence fortifications at Fort Camden (Crosshaven) and Fort Carlisle (Whitegate), the batteries at Templebreedy were designed to defend the strategically important entrance to Cork Harbour.[9] By the early 20th century, a number of improvements were proposed to the harbour defences – including the installation of newer Breech-loading 9.2 Inch guns.[10] Rather than installing these guns at Fort Camden, it was decided to build separate batteries slightly south of the existing fort, at Templebreedy,[11] to cover threats outside the harbour approaches in the Celtic Sea.[12]
Built between 1904 and 1909, the fortification included concrete gun emplacements for two BL 9.2 inch Mark X guns,[13] underground magazines, searchlights, and a number of machine-gun positions.[10] [14] A practice range was added later for smaller QF 12-pounder guns.[15] A further battery was constructed for BL 6-inch Mark VII guns; however, these were never installed.[10] By the end of construction in 1909, there was accommodation in place for four officers and 81 non-commissioned officers and men.[16]
Throughout the First World War (1914 - 1918), the harbour was used as a naval base to cover the "Western Approaches", and the battery complemented the defences of Fort Camden and Fort Carlisle. During the Irish War of Independence (1919 - 1921), Templebreedy was somewhat isolated, and ambushes by IRA Brigades were not uncommon on supplies to the fort.[17] Following the Anglo-Irish Treaty the harbour defences remained in the control of British Armed Forces, until July 1938 when the Treaty Port installations, including Templebreedy, were relinquished to Irish authorities.[13]
The Irish Defence Forces continued to maintain and operate the batteries throughout the Emergency (WWII), until the defences were largely decommissioned in 1946.[10] Though the large 9.2 inch guns remained in place until the 1960s,[14] [18] the buildings and grounds continued to be used into the 1970s and later (including for training camps by Army Reserve (FCÁ) and Naval Reserve (Slua Muirí)).[18]
As of the early 21st century, though a number of buildings, concrete emplacements, underground magazine stores and other structures still stand, no guns or defensive elements remain, and the site is no longer used for military purposes.[7]
From the original construction of the fortifications at Templebreedy, there was some contention about access rights. This manifest in political debates about rights of way (as early as 1909),[19] suspected unauthorised access resulting in accidental shooting (in 1940),[20] [21] building of houses off Defence Forces' access roads (1949),[22] and "overholding" of assigned quarters by Defence Forces' personnel (as late as 2012).[23] [24]
Some years after the complex ceased to be used for active defence purposes, some of the site was laid-out as a pitch and putt course. However this was closed – amid some controversy – in 2005.[25] Though Cork County Council added Fort Templebreedy to a list of protected structures in 2009,[7] [26] ostensibly to protect the site and potentially prepare it for development as a heritage and recreation site, as of 2020 it remained in the ownership of the Department of Defence.[2] Public access to the site therefore remains limited.