Eighteenth‑century artillery battery on Willis's Plateau in Gibraltar.
Princess Amelia's Battery is an eighteenth‑century artillery battery in Gibraltar, on Willis's Plateau at the northern end of the Upper Rock Nature Reserve. Formerly called 2nd Willis's Battery, it was renamed for Princess Amelia, second daughter of George II, and is part of Gibraltar’s historic fortifications.
Princess Amelia's Battery is an eighteenth‑century artillery battery in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar, at the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula. It stands on Willis's Plateau at the northern end of the Upper Rock Nature Reserve, above Princess Caroline's Battery and adjacent to Gun No. 4 of Princess Anne's Battery, on higher ground than Guns No. 1–3 of that neighbouring battery. It forms part of the Fortifications of Gibraltar and is listed with the Gibraltar Heritage Trust. The site was initially known as the 2nd Willis's Battery. The Willis's Batteries were constructed on the former Reduto de San Joachim, at an elevation of 440 feet above the isthmus. During the capture of Gibraltar in 1704, an artillery officer named Willis distinguished himself in manning the guns, and the Batteries of San Joachim and the Bastion of San Jose were renamed in his honour. The site was later renamed for Princess Amelia, the second daughter of King George II. Princess Amelia's Battery was first armed in 1732 and saw action during the Great Siege of Gibraltar, sustaining substantial damage. Little of the original battery survives, apart from two derelict buildings, and its condition is described as poor.
