Military Heritage Center

The Great Siege from 1779-1783 was an attempt by France and Spain to capture Gibraltar while Britain was otherwise engaged with the American Revolution. A fascinating page describing it is here:
http://military.wikia.com/wiki/Thirteenth_Siege…

The British had between 5,500 and 7,000 men and only 96 guns; the Spanish and French forces 40,000 men and 246 guns. Nevertheless, the siege was ultimately unsuccessful, although tiresome for the inhabitants.
One legacy attracting tourists today is the network of tunnels inside the Rock started by Sergeant-Major Henry Ince, whose troops, known as Soldier Artificers, eventually became the Corps of Royal Engineers.

The night before the besiegers big attack to end the siege, half the garrison had crept out and virtually destroyed the forces entrenched on the isthmus, which delayed things a bit. On 26Nov 1981 a dinner was given in this chamber by the Deputy Fortress Commander, Brigadier GLD Duckworth to mark the 200th anniversary of the sortie. Amongst the distinguished guests were HE The Governor, General Sir William Jackson(alphabet) and the Chief Minister Sir Joshua Hassan (alphabet) who no doubt heeded the lesson.

A couple of inventions made in the heat of battle were particularly influential in winning the war. Lieutenant Koehler solved the problem of how to fire the cannons from a steep angle of depression, from high up on the Rock down onto the besieging forces at the same time as making firing safer by allowing the barrel to move absorbing some of the recoil before the carriage itself surged backward. And Lieutenant Shrapnel developed the ammunition that still bears his name.

I thought they must have made themselves comfortable in their gun emplacements when I saw the curtain rail. Then I read that the embrasures were fitted with mantlets or curtains of woven ropes to protect the guns and gunners from enemy fire and prevent sparks and smoke blowing back inside. A wet cloth was hung above each cannon to prevent the sparks from igniting the remaining gunpowder. So, quite safe then!
Admiral Lord Nelson embalmed in a cask of wine visited Gibraltar on his way home after the battle Battle of Trafalgar. Several of his fellow sailors are laid to rest in the Trafalgar Cemetery but the largest cause of death is from Yellow Fever - one epidemic alone cost 1,000 lives.

The Spanish may have given up, but those pesky French started another blockade almost as soon as this siege ended. Boney, one of the first EU Commissioners, invented the "Continental System". Decrees of Berlin (1806) and Milan (1807) proclaimed a blockade: neutrals and French allies were not to trade with the British. In response our Arthur was dispatched to evict Boney from the Iberian Peninsular, which he did in 1814 because he was the ferocious ferric fighter, the Iron Dook himself, who could not be tarnished by failure. (He is also famous for inventing Wellies.)Read more