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Crockness Martello Tower

Heritage attraction
Crockness Martello Tower
Photo: Calum McRoberts, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Original Geograph photograph · Report the wrong picture

What is recorded here

Crockness Martello Tower was built in 1813–14 to guard merchant ships sheltering in Longhope Sound from French and American raiders, but its guns never fired in war.

Read the whole record

Crockness Martello Tower was built in 1813–14 to guard merchant ships sheltering in Longhope Sound from French and American raiders, but its guns never fired in war.

Why it was built

Warships and privateers threatened merchant convoys sailing around northern Scotland during the Napoleonic Wars. Crockness and its sister tower at Hackness guarded the safe anchorage in Longhope Sound.

People and work

A small army crew lived within the thick round walls, storing powder and water below and serving a heavy gun on the roof. The tower depended on watch, drill and a clear field of fire.

How it changed

Built in 1813–14, it was strengthened and given a larger gun in 1866 during a new invasion scare. Neither threat brought enemy action, and military use dwindled as coastal guns changed.

What survives

The solid round tower remains on the north side of the sound, facing the Hackness defences. Its walls, raised entrance and roof gun position still show how the little fort worked.

Why it mattered

Crockness is one of only three Martello towers built in Scotland. It records how a remote Orkney anchorage became part of a wide system protecting wartime trade routes.

Sources for this account

Sources checked 16 August 2026.

From OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors) w118107629

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Photo credits
  • Des Colhoun, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Andrew Riley, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • John Lucas, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Bill Boaden, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • yvso, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Douglas Nelson, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Sandy Gerrard, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Calum McRoberts, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • David Medcalf, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
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