Block House Point

Has been described as a Possible Artillery Fort

There are masonry ruins/remnants remains

NameBlock House Point
Alternative NamesHelvere and Allines house; Helvear Hill
Historic CountryIsles of Scilly
Modern AuthorityIsles of Scilly
1974 AuthorityIsles of Scilly
Civil ParishSt Marys

Remains of a blockhouse, consisting of three sides of a rectangular building, the fourth side apparently destroyed, with overall dimensions of 13m by 11m. The walls are of dry-stone now covered by earth, 1.0m thick. 0.8m high on the interior, 0.9m on the exterior. The interior was obviously. Although incorporated in the Civil War breastworks by a funneled approach and probably utilized in that period, the blockhouse is possibly older. It uses large blocks of roughly dressed stone similar to C16 blockhouse on Tresco. (PastScape)

The blockhouse referred to in the 1554 declaration of Ordnance, 'helvere and Allines house', is probably the ruined and unexcavated site near Innisidgen, made to cover Crow Sound (Saunders and Miles). There are the remains of a blockhouse on a promontory, now overgrown with bracken and grass. The breastwork here is 2ft to 3ft high with the central bank of the blockhouse being 6ft high and 15ft long (Rees). "Under Helvear Hill on a promontory are some ruins called the Block House, a fast defended on landward side by a long sod breastwork (SV 91 SW 65) (Troutbeck). On a small promontory between Helvear Hill and Block House Point are the remains of a blockhouse, consisting of three sides of a rectangular building, the fourth side apparently destroyed, with overall dimensions of 13.0m x 11.0m. The walls are of dry-stone now covered by earth, 1.0m thick. 0.8m high on the interior, 0.9m on the exterior. The interior was obviously originally levelled (Field Investigators Comments–F1 JGB 5-APR-1978). (PastScape)

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law

Not Listed

Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s)
County Historic Environment Record
OS Map Grid ReferenceSV923124
Latitude49.9324989318848
Longitude-6.28884983062744
Eastings92390
Northings12490
HyperLink HyperLink HyperLink

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Books

  • Bowden, Mark and Brodie, Allan, 2011, Defending Scilly (London: English Heritage)
  • Troutbeck, J.A., 1796, A survey of the ancient and present state of the Isles of Scilly p. 98

Journals

  • < >Brodie, A., 2010, 'The Tudor Defences of Scilly' English Heritage Historical Review Vol. 5 p. 24-43 < >
  • Saunders, A.D. and Miles, T.J., 1970, 'King Charles's Castle, Tresco, Scilly' Post-Medieval Archaeology Vol. 4 p. 1-30

Primary Sources

Other

  • < >Bowden, Mark, 2011, Isles of Scilly: Military Defences, 1540-1951: Earthworks and Minor Sites (English Heritage Research Department Report series 56-2011) < > online copy
  • Rees, S., Sept 1975, Ancient Monuments Record Form