Chapters
| 1794-1808: Design Inspiration & Construction | 1808-1872: Early uses of the Tower | 1873-1945: Ownership changes & WW2 | 1950-2012: Protests, Puppets, & Café | 2013-Present: Wish Tower Friends Take Over |
The Wish Tower Changes Hands
In 1873, the War Department decommissioned the Tower and removed the cannon from the roof. The tower and the glacis (what we now call Wish Tower Slopes) were described by the press as “…an objectionable outhouse in a potato field…”
In 1874, Eastbourne Local Board leased the tower and the adjacent land.
In 1884 (or 1886, reports vary) the Tower was leased by the Corporation to Harry Hollobon and he and his family moved in. Prior to this, the Hollobon family had a shop in South Street. Harry ran a small geology museum which occupied four of the eight rooms in the tower. Besides the geological exhibits, the collection also included stuffed animals, weapons, pictures and curios. He cut and polished his stones from the beach and on the 1891 census his profession is listed as Lapidary.
Harry died in the Tower on 14th March 1898 and Harry’s son, WIlliam, took over as custodian of the museum.
In 1897, the Duke of Devonshire bought the Wish Tower from the war department for the sum of £675.
World War II
The advent of World War Two saw many of the surviving Martello towers employed, once again, for their original purpose: the defence of the English coast.
The Wish Tower was no exception – it was home to 342 Coast Defence Battery which was responsible for the defence of the coast from Langney Point in the east to Beachy Head in the west. Two six inch naval guns were located on the seaward side of the moat. Although these were thirty years old, they were still considerably more powerful than any other weaponry previously housed at the Tower.
The Tower itself housed a two-storey observation post, built on its roof. A First Aid post was housed in what is now the public toilets next to the Tower, and troops were billeted at the nearby Lansdowne Hotel.
At this time another entrance to the tower was made by cutting through the outer wall on the landward side at moat level directly into the basement. This entrance was later blocked but where it was made now forms a storage cupboard in the basement.
From 1942, the Home Guard took on responsibility for manning the battery, and it was used for training exercises.
Chapters
| 1794-1808: Design Inspiration & Construction | 1808-1872: Early uses of the Tower | 1873-1945: Ownership changes & WW2 | 1950-2012: Protests, Puppets, & Café | 2013-Present: Wish Tower Friends Take Over |