Details

The monument includes two small revetted platforms on the cliff below the
Mousehole and Trap on Lundy's east side. These were probably battery platforms
constructed at the same time as the Brazen Ward battery 150m to the south.
The main platform measures 9m by 3.5m and has been formed by quarrying out a
shelf from the cliff and revetting the base with a 2m high drystone granite
wall and building low protective walls around the three outward facing sides
to the east, north and south. These walls are now represented by a line of
boulders.
The second platform is smaller and stands 6m to the south. This measures 2m by
0.5m and has no protective wall. This is revetted on the south east side by a
drystone granite wall three to four courses high.
These platforms complement the battery at Brazen Ward to the south and they
afford good visibility across the bay and out to sea. They are not substantial
enough to be cannon platforms but were used for musketeers in time of attack.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Lundy is a small, steep sided island in the Bristol Channel, 16m north of
Hartland Point, north Devon. Aligned north-south, it is 6km long by 1km wide
and supports a predominately moorland vegetation. The 100m high cliffs and
tabular form give it a striking appearance, visible in clear weather from
parts of south west England and south Wales.
Lundy's remoteness and (until the 19th century construction of the Beach Road)
its inaccessibility, combined with a lack of shelter and cultivable soils, has
meant that it has escaped more recent occupation or development. It therefore
preserves a remarkable variety of archaeological sites from early prehistory
(c.8000 BC) onwards, representing evidence for habitation, fortification,
farming and industry. There are also archaeological remains in the waters
surrounding the island - over 150 shipwrecks are already recorded. Most of the
island's archaeology is well documented from detailed survey in the 1980s and
1990s.

Around Lundy's coast, and situated both in cliff top and shoreline positions,
is a series of structures designed to defend the island. These varied in form
and scale from the stronghold now known as Marisco Castle, to the smaller and
more ephemeral gun platforms built to support musketeers. That these positions
were principally for the purpose of preventing a landing is supported by their
location above and around the more vulnerable bays and beaches, such as the
Landing Bay and Jenny's Cove. Although the precise dating and function is
unclear, it is likely that some will date to the time of the Civil War, while
others may relate to coastal piracy which was prevalent in the Bristol Channel
between the 15th and 18th centuries.
These two defensive platforms are in good condition although the retaining
walls of the larger platform are subject to erosion. They are associated with
the battery at Brazen Ward 150m to the south, acting as a defence against
landings in the bay to the south of the Mousehole and Trap.

Source: Historic England