What is now known as Farrington Battery lies above and to the south of Princess Royal Battery. It is believed to be named after Major General Sir Anthony Farrington, 1st Baronet (1742–1823), who commanded the Royal Artillery in Gibraltar in 1790 — though the spelling of the battery’s name appears to have been recorded incorrectly over time.

Sir Anthony Farrington was a distinguished British Army officer who served in the Royal Artillery during the American Revolutionary War and at Gibraltar. Over a long and notable career, he rose to the rank of General, was created a baronet, commanded the artillery during the Helder Expedition (1799), and later played an important role in the Board of Ordnance. He served in Gibraltar twice: first between 1759 and 1763, and again between 1790 and 1791. It was during his first posting that a fortification there was likely named Farrington’s Battery.

The battery is first documented in the 1781 Armament List, when it was equipped with a single 13-inch mortar. Curiously, this predates Farrington’s command of the garrison artillery by almost a decade, suggesting the name was applied earlier — most likely during his first period of service in the 1760s.

Barbie du Bocage map (detail), 1799.

By 1834, the battery’s armament had increased to three 13-inch mortars and four 24-pounder guns. By 1863, this had been updated to two 7-inch RBL guns, two 32-pounders, and the original three 13-inch mortars. A War Department map (WO 78 4448) dated 1861-63 shows emplacements and platforms for four guns and three mortars as well as magazines.

In 1868, Colonel W.F.D. Jervois proposed a significant strengthening of Gibraltar’s defences, including the installation of heavy RML gun batteries along the northern front. As part of this programme, it was decided to mount heavy guns at Farrington Battery. Construction of new emplacements for two 9-inch RML guns began on 2 January 1878 and was completed by 23 January 1879, when the guns were installed.

The Willis's gun batteries, including Farrington's Battery.

In 1898, with 10-inch RML guns becoming available from obsolete batteries, two were mounted at Farrington to replace the 9-inch guns. These were removed from the approved armament list in January 1906 under Statement of Changes in Approved Armament No. XXXIII. A 10-inch RML gun long abandoned in the sunken approach to Princess Lines is widely believed to have originated from Farrington Battery, as it was the only battery in the northern part of the Rock to have been equipped with such weapons. In the mid-1990s, this gun was recovered by 127 (Sussex Yeomanry) Field Squadron (V) and 78 (Fortress) Engineer Regiment and relocated to Parson’s Lodge, where it remains on display with a new mounting. The operation was carried out over a two-year period. In 1995, the gun was removed from Prince’s Lines and transported to Parson’s Lodge. The following year, it was mounted on site on a specially constructed gun carriage.

Link to: 10-Inch RML Mk II, Parson's Lodge

Link to: Parson’s Lodge Battery and AA machine gun

Royal Engineer and Port Dept personnel with 10-inch gun mid 1990s.

10-inch gun being removed from Northern Defences, 1995.

Transporting the gun to Parson's Lodge, 1995.

Several proposals to rearm Farrington Battery were considered in the early 20th century. In 1901, a plan to install two 6-inch Mark VI guns in casemates was abandoned. Another proposal, authorised on 24 December 1903, called for a 6-inch Mark VII gun to be mounted en barbette, but this too was cancelled before work began. As a result, no 6-inch guns were ever installed at the site.

Farrington AASL Site

In the 1928 Anti-Aircraft Defence Scheme, Farrington was designated as an alternative AASL (Anti-Aircraft Searchlight) Site No. 6A, but it was never brought into service.

Second World War Adaptations

During the Second World War, the battery’s right-hand emplacement was repurposed to house a searchlight designed to project a fixed beam onto the approaches to the Rock face. A distinctive angled slit was cut into the iron shield to direct the light precisely along its intended path. This installation became known as F2 Frontier Light and is referenced in numerous wartime defence schemes and operational instructions.

Farrington DEL Site

Work on a Defence Electric Light (DEL) site began just east of Farrington Battery on 8 January 1941. The project was completed by 18 January 1941, and the light was installed shortly thereafter. The remains of the emplacement are still visible today.

Farrington Battery Emplacement plan.

Farrington Battery photograph.