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Study of some 16th century British and Dutch maritime maps of the Solent area revealed the inclusion of
coastal spires and towers, clearly marked to assist with navigation at sea. Maps of the Solent as early as 1600 show lines extending through pairs of land features offering ship's commanders guidance
around underwater obstructions. Kicker Gill and Gill Kicker appear to be the earliest pair of local purpose-built lowers. The map shows how the towers’ constructor ensured wooden ships a safe
passage into and out of Portsmouth Harbour. English Naval ships would lay off St. Helens, in the Iee of the Isle of Wight, waiting a visual signal to proceed to Portsmouth harbour. This signal would be
influenced by such matters as favourable winds, tides and other shipping movements.
When under way and in order to gain access to the ‘deeps’ of Spithead, avoiding the shallows and
shoals, it was necessary for them to proceed in an easterly direction. Guidance for this manoeuvre was provided for by lining up with the Ashey Down Windmill and St. Helen’s Church tower and later,
the seamarks Semi and Semi-Not. With these seamarks lined up astern a ship’s commander or pilot maintained course until his ship was turned to line up with Gilkicker and Kickergill, towers.
An alternative harbour approach mapped by Greenville Collins in 1693.
A change of course north-westwards was pursued with Gilkicker and Kickergill in line ahead. The contrasting bars of dark brick and light stone on the 60 foot high lower faces made them very
conspicuous from the sea. The ship would continue its course in line with the towers until it reached 'Edgar Buoy’, it was then to set course for Southsea Castle to round 'Buoy Spit'.
Henry Slight's Chronicled History of Portsmouth makes reference to towers on Southsea Common, in all probability additional seamarks. At the time he wrote in 1835 these seamarks had likely been
replaced with sighting poles.
On rounding ‘Buoy Spit’ the Round Tower offered a forward sighting to bring the ship to the
Portsmouth harbour entrance The Greenville Collins map of 1692 lays down a less tortuous course for ships headed for Portsmouth harbour by coupling foreground features with background chalkpits on
Portsdown Hill.
What of modern times? Pilots still use seamarks. Kicker Gill's usefulness extended to the day it was
felled in 1965. Extract of guidance to Pilots in the Admiralty Manual of Navigation includes a typical navigational manouvre for a ship leaving Portsmouth in 1960 'Set course with
Kickergill Tower through Fort Monckion astern 314°.’
Robert Rich, Earl of Warwick, the Lord High Admiral, had good reason to concentrate on providing extra
navigational aids for his navy. In 1643, during the English Civil War, the very year the Gill Kicker and Kicker Gill seamarks were constructed, three of his Parliamentarian ships ran aground on a falling
tide and were lost as they attempted to wrest the City of Exeter from Royalist control.
While loss of a ship through grounding would have caused an Admiral acute
embarrassment. 'At the time of the Mary Rose' published by the Mary Rose Society, reminds us 'that a pilot hazarding his ship should lose his right hand and his left eye." Another dire
message spells out; ‘If a ship is lost by default of the pilot the mariners may, if they please, bring the pilot to the Windlass, or any other place and cut off his head without the mariners being
bound to answer before any judge because the pilot has committed high treason against his undertaking of the pilotage And this is the judgement.’ Bearing in mind recent human navigational errors at
sea have resulted in both the loss of ships AND disastrous damage to the world's ecosystems, perhaps this would be a fitting notice to display on the bridges of today's fully laden oil tankers!
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