Guard House At Entrance To North Section, St George'S Barracks

The guard house at the entrance to the north section of St George's Barracks in Gosport was built between 1856 and 1859. It is a disused structure made of yellow stock brick, which is painted on the front, with stone dressings and a flat roof. The building has a single-depth plan that includes rear cells.

The exterior features a single storey with a range of five arches. The symmetrical front has an impost band above an arcade of five open round arches, cornice, and parapet. Inside the arcade, there are three flat-headed 6/6-pane sash windows and a doorway on the right. The returns of the building have small front lights with arched heads. A notable feature is the ashlar clock tower, which has rusticated quoins, a cornice with louvered vents, and originally had clock faces on four sides within round arches and clasping pilasters. The tower is topped with a pyramidal leaded roof and an iron weather vane.

Inside, the guard house contains a fire-proof frame of jack arches, along with small cells and rooms designated for the guard. Historically, this guard house overlooked the main entrances to the two sections of the barracks. Clock towers were a common feature in mid-19th century barracks. The barracks served as a transit station for infantry after the Crimean War and were designed to be bomb-proof due to their location just inside the Gosport Lines. This guard house is the only example of this type of barracks in the country and is part of a complete group with the Lines earthworks, highlighting Gosport's significance in the defenses surrounding the Portsmouth dockyard.