Georges Heights
Location: Middle HarbourGeorges Head is a prominent headland in an area known as Georges Heights on Sydney's Harbour's Lower North Shore. Being strategically located at the entrance to Port Jackson opposite Watsons Bay, Georges Head become a military base with forticiations soon after the colony of New South Wales was settled on Sydney Cove in 1788, and has remained a resctricted-access military reserve until recent times, when it was returned to the people of Sydney for recreational use as part of Sydney Harbour National Park.
The fortifications remain and are the centrepiece of this section of the National Park. Walking paths link the various historic sites and give access to the forts, headland lookout and former military facilties at Chowder Bay and Middle Head.
Georges Heights was named after George III, the reigning king when the First Fleet left Portsmouth. The name was given by Gov. Macquarie to a tract of land he had set aside here for a family of aborigines when he unsuccessfully attempted to teach the agricultural ways of the white man to the native population. Much of the area has remained virgin bush and has been used extensively for military purposes due to its strategic position opposite Sydney Heads.
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The point of Middle Head is riddled with a network of lookouts, gun placements, and ammunition stores, all interlinked by tunnels and passages. Most were constructed in 1871 and remained untouched until the second world war. Spurred on by the Japanese midget submarine attack on Sydney Harbour, the Middle Head Fortifications were re-opened and upgraded. The nine guns mounted at Middle Head were never fired in anger, but four men were killed in April 1891 in the accidental detonation of a mine.The batteries were dismantled during the 1950s and the site became part of the Sydney Harbour National Park in 1979. The National Parks and Wildlife Service hosts guided tours of the fort.
About 100 metres in length, Obelisk Beach is off the beaten path looking out into Sydney Harbour. Little known among tourists, but known to locals in the Mosman district, this beach gets low traffic and tends to be quiet and tranquil. Officially sanctioned as a clothing optional beach, it is not uncommon to find bathers and beach-goers completely free of swimwear. The beach is said to be attended predominantly by homosexual men, and is considered a 'gay-friendly' beach by some.
A secluded beach which has become a haven for nude bathing in the Middle Harbour area. It is a quiet beach with few facilities but this is more than made up for by the superb views (the scenery, not the nudists!) and relative peace and quiet away from the crowds. Access is limited to a track to the left beyond the oval near the end of Middle Head Road. Another track from the car park near the oval but on the south side of the car park leads to Obelisk Bay, another secluded corner that is frequented by nude bathers. The views to the harbour entrance, North and South Head are worth seeing. Public transport: bus No. 244 from Wynyard. Alight at terminus, walk to end of Middle Head Rd. Location: Off Middle Head Road, Georges Heights.
In 1801, Sydney was visited by the French ships Naturaliste and Geographe, which were part of an expedition of scientific discovery that had just completed a survey of the south coast of mainland Australia. It was the time of the Napoleonic Wars, and though the expedition leader Thomas Nicolas Baudin and his team were treated with every courtesy, their visit left the colonists feeling somewhat vulnerable should France decide to extend its interest in Australia beyond scientific discovery.
Before Baudin's ships had sailed over the horizon on their way to check out the coast of Tasmania, Governor King had started work on a single rock-cut battery at Georges Head facing the entrance to Port Jackson. A decade later, the land behind it was given to an aboriginal family by Gov. Macquarie as an experiment to introduce them to the farming methods of the white man. The settlement was abandoned in 1822 and the area remained unoccupied until the 1870s when it became a key part of new fortifications designed to protect the entrance to Sydney Harbour. Remains of these fortifications, located at the highest point opposite the Harbour entrance, still exist and can be accessed via a walking path from Chowder Bay.
Most of the tunnels, lookouts and gun emplacements seen today above the rocks between Obelisk Bay and Georges Head were constructed in 1871. No road existed into the area at the time and it was considered too difficult a task to bring the guns ashore from ships and drag them up the rugged outcrops of Georges Head and neighbouring Middle Head. A decision was made to offload the cannon at a Neutral Bay jetty and roll them through the bush. It was a marathon effort in which local residents were paid 10 shillings each to help clear a path through the bush using whatever implements they could find to knock down trees, dig up roots and do whatever was necessary to make access possible. The track they cut through the bush was known as the Military Road by which the armed forces stationed there gained access to their forts. It remains the major thoroughfare through Mosman today.
Beehive Casemate gun ports on Obelisk Bay
With the development of armour cladding and steam power, the battery was considered obsolete by the time it was completed. In an effort to update it, an ingenious and advanced designed Beehive Casemate battery became a key part of the fortifications at Middle Head. They were built to the design of Colonel Scratchley between 1882 and 1886 in accordance with the 1877 recommendations of Sir William Jervois. It originally housed three 18 tonne 10-inch rifled-muzzle-loading guns, two of which were transferred here from Georges Heights and one from Middle Head in 1886. These guns were housed in three giant chambers built of mass concrete with walls and roof about 1.8 metres thick. Each chamber was provided with a magazine and shell store and opened at the rear to a covered roadway.
Beehive Casemate gun chamber
The original guns were replaced in 1892 by two types of guns, two 6-inch breech loading guns and one 6-inch Quick-firing gun, which were mounted onto the existing carriages after modification. A submarine minefield observation/firing post was erected when the guns were replaced, along with torpedo lines across Port Jackson. The guns that had been installed in 1892 were themselves removed eleven years later, after which time the casemate was used for storage until after World War II. During World War II (1942) a range of other structures were built including a quick-firing anti-submarine gun emplacement with adjacent observation tower and numerous associated structures such as machine-gun emplacements, staff quarters, water tanks and a piezo-beam station near the waterline along with tracks and steps linking them. They are located on the east side of Chowder Bay Road around Obelisk Point close to the cliff escarpment.
When the fort was handed over to the newly established Commonwealth Government in the 1900s, the guns were updated. During World War II a submarine net across the harbour to Watsons Bay and new quick firing guns were installed, however Japanese submarines penetrated them in May 1942 before they were complete. The batteries were dismantled during the 1950s. Military involvement in the area all but ceased and in 1979 the unused portions were incorporated into the Sydney Harbour National Park and are now reserved for recreational purposes. The underground chambers have been sealed from general access as a result of cracks appearing in the concrete walls but the site is still accessible.
Chowder Bay Road, Georges Heights.
The neighbouring suburb of Clifton Gardens is a residential suburb to the south east of the suburb of Mosman. Clifton Gardens was named after Captain E.H. Cliffe's home, Cliffeton, which gave rise to the naming of a hotel in the area in 1871 as the Clifton Arms Hotel. Cliffe, a whaling captain, bought land here in 1832, anchoring his ships in nearby Chowder Bay. The Clifton Arms was bought by David Thompson in 1891. He built a wharf, dancing pavilion and picnic facilities nearby and called it Clifton Gardens.
When it comes to a place for a day out with the family or friends, the very picturesque Chowder Bay is one of those harbour bays with everything. There is a wharf, enclosed baths, change rooms, childrens playground, lots of grass, picnic tables and several places to buy food. When the picnic lunch is over, there's bushland to wander through, or you can go fishing or snorkeling in the clear water. And if that is not enough, there's the extensive George Head fortifications to explore next door. The bay's name recalls the seafood stew eaten by American whalers who set up a whaling station in the vicinity of Clifton Gardens in early colonial times. Aboriginal name for the bay: Koree; Aboriginal name for Chowder Head - Gurugal.
Facilities: grassed playing areas, picnic facilities, toilets.
Public transport: ferry from Circular Quay (summer weekends only), or Taronga ferry and walk from Athol Bay, or train to Milsons Point station, bus No. 228 to terminus.
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Taylors Bay, between Clifton Gardens and Bradleys Head, remains virtually as it was when Sydney was first established - ringed by a very pretty strip of rainforest. Aceess on foot is via a track down through Taylors Gully to the beach from the Bradleys Head to Chowder Bay walking track. Aboriginal carvings of kangaroos are sometimes visible on the rocks by the water at low tide.
Georges Head lookout
Georges Heights has some of the most stunning vantage points anywhere on Sydney Harbour with uninterrupted views across to Manly, Vaucluse and to the city of Sydney. Today, visitors can discover the rich military history of the area year round.
With arguably some of the best views in Sydney, Georges Heights was once used by the military as a lookout spot to see approaching enemy ships. It s home to a WWI-era military hospital the only remaining building complex of its kind in NSW as well as concealed gun pits, underground tunnels, barracks and other fascinating military structures. Visitors can explore the area's defence heritage and take in the spectacular views.
A self-guided tour of Headland Park takes you through nearly a dozen attractions and can be found in our visitor guide (pick one up from the Harbour Trust office at 28 Best Avenue, Mosman). On the tour, you ll visit the Georges Heights Lookout, which offers panoramic views of Sydney Harbour and features an elegant sandstone platform designed by award-winning architect Richard Leplastrier. You ll also stop at the WWI-era military hospital and be sure to visit Building 21, where you can read the stories of hospital workers and the soldiers they treated. Leave time to check out the former military fortifications around the park, including gun pits and brick workshops.
The name Georges Head honours King George III, who was the reigning monarch when the First Fleet set sail in 1787. It is believed to have been named during an exploration of Port Jackson in 1788 at the same time as Bradleys Head. It was named after the expedition leader, Lieut. William Bradley.
The neighbouring suburb of Balmoral is a harbourside residential area 8 km north east of the Sydney central business district. The locality is mostly known for its beach, officially divided into Balmoral and Edwards Beaches. Expensive residential real estate on the surrounding "Balmoral Slopes" benefits from the views and beach proximity. The naval depot HMAS Penguin is situated at the eastern end of Balmoral Beach. It houses a naval hospital and is accessed from Middle Head Road.
