Blockhouse is a Grade II listed building in the Plymouth local planning authority area, England. First listed on 9 November 1998. Fortification.

Blockhouse

WRENN ID
patient-bonework-tarn
Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
Plymouth
Constituency
Plymouth Sutton and Devonport MP: Luke Pollard (Lab)
Country
England
Date first listed
9 November 1998
Type
Fortification
Address
Blockhouse, Admiralty Road, City of Plymouth
OS grid reference
SX 459 533
Coordinates
50.35979, -4.1672
Source
Historic England listing

Also on this page: flood risk · radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

The Blockhouse is a structure located on Admiralty Road in Plymouth, built probably between 1509 and 1539. It is constructed of rubble with granite dressings and features an irregular octagonal plan. The landward side has a doorway, while the seaward side has gunports on the longer sides. The granite doorway is chamfered and is topped by a shallow two-centred arch. There are also a pair of square gunports that include rebates for shutters. The interior has not been inspected. This building is part of a series of coastal defenses in Plymouth, likely constructed during the reign of Henry VIII.

Local climate

Blockhouse sits in a wetter-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 990 mm of rain a year. This makes it wetter than 80% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 89% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 9 freeze-thaw cycles a year, fewer than 91% of listed buildings. Of these, 3 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

More on this building

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  • Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
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  • Radon risk assessment
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