Cultural Significance

Kau Point Battery was not assessed for social, spiritual, traditional and/or cultural significance or value.

Historic Significance

Historical Significance or Value Kau Point Battery is a highly significant historical site. It was designed and constructed in the late nineteenth-century when the New Zealand Government finally came to terms with the fact that, as an independent colony, it could not rely solely on Britain for protection. As such it is tangible evidence of New Zealand's first step towards independence from the British Crown. It was one of a number of defences constructed during of period of intense 'Russophobia'. This affliction had infected the British colonies of Australia and New Zealand from the 1860s onwards, causing their governments to fear an impending attack by Russia. It became particularly virulent in 1876 and 1885 when the threat of a war between Britain and Russia appeared imminent. The time and money poured into the construction forts such as Kau Point bears testimony to the strength of the fear generated by this perceived threat. Kau Point Battery is also historically significant as one of the three original Fire Command Posts used in New Zealand to coordinate communication between coastal defences via the newly invented telephone. The use of ten telephones rather than one provides insight into the state of the technology at the time. It was Wellington's first Fire Command Post and functioned in this capacity until 1899. As such the Kau Point Observation Post Telephone Room stands as a marker in New Zealand's history of communication.

Physical Significance

As a well-preserved example of one of New Zealand's fortifications from the period of the 'Russian scares' the Kau Point Battery has great physical significance. Described as the 'most important single defensive structure' on the Miramar Peninsula, the 1891 layout of the fort is largely unaltered and a good impression of the original, nineteenth century fort remains. The care taken with the sign-writing in the telephone room is an unusual decorative feature. The site is of considerable archaeological interest and its value and has been acknowledged by the New Zealand Archaeological Association (NZAA). The gun pit and entrance to the underground installation (magazine), which were and remain partially covered over, were assessed by archaeologist Tony Walton on 4 December 1989. As the battery was constructed prior to 1900, the whole of the area covered by this registration qualifies as an archaeological site under the Historic Places Act 1993. Of particular archaeological interest is the embankment at the front of the gun pit where the original 8-inch gun was buried.

Detail Of Assessed Criteria

a) The extent to which the place reflects important or representative aspects of New Zealand history The Kau Point Battery is one of just 14 sites in New Zealand selected by experts for registration following a national thematic study of New Zealand's coastal defence networks. The 14 sites selected were considered to be the most significant or the best representative examples of the country's heritage of coastal defence sites. Kau Point was considered to be important both as a representative site and as a rare example of a Fire Command Post. It is a representative example of the gun emplacements constructed to house Jervois' 8-inch guns during preparations for a Russian naval invasion in the late nineteenth-century. Still relatively intact, the site is suitable for study, and continues to convey a clear picture of the way the fort functioned during its operational period. The history of the site, and its use as a storage facility for ammunition, is representative of the fate of many of the earlier coastal defence sites. The Kau Point Battery also has intrinsic significance as one of the first three Fire Command Centres in New Zealand in which communication with other bases was made via the telephone. (b) The association of the place with events, persons, or ideas of importance in New Zealand history The Kau Point Battery is associated with the 'Russophobia' that spread among British colonies in the late nineteenth-century, and reflects the strength and impact of this phenomenon in New Zealand. The Battery also reflects the impact of Lieutenant-General William Jervois (1821-1897) on the development of New Zealand's coastal defence. Jervois was responsible for the country's adoption of both the 6 and 8-inch disappearing guns, which were not standard issue and were generally not used outside areas of Jervois' influence. The Kau Point Battery was one of three sites specifically designed to hold the three 8-inch disappearing guns ordered on his recommendation after the second Russian Scare in 1885. (c) The potential of the place to provide knowledge of New Zealand history The Kau Point Battery retains the potential to provide knowledge of New Zealand history. The original gun was buried on the site in 1922. The gun emplacement was partially buried in the 1950s, and the whole site has remained largely undisturbed in recent years. Archaeologically the site remains, for future generations, an irreplaceable source of information on New Zealand coastal defence in both the late nineteenth, and the first half of the twentieth-century. (f) The potential of the place for public education The Kau Point Battery has considerable educational potential. The preservation of the majority of the defences, the magazines the military road, and the observation post provides a clear picture of the role of the various structures and how they worked together to form an operational fortification. The careful planning and detail evident at Kau Point is a powerful and tangible lesson in the history of New Zealand coastal defence. In addition, the telephone room provides a rare illustration of the New Zealand response to the rapid and continuing developments in military technology that characterised the first half of the twentieth century. (g) The technical accomplishment or value, or design of the place Although based on plans similar to that used on batteries defending Auckland's North Head, the Kau Point Battery is of value for its design. It is relatively intact and the construction of the brick magazine within the hills on the site, and the early use of reinforced concrete as a building material at the Kau Point Battery provide insight into the strength of the firepower the battery was designed to withstand. (j) The importance of identifying rare types of historic places The Kau Point Battery was one of the first three Fire Command Posts to use telephone communications in New Zealand after the telephone was introduced in the early 1890s. The Observation Post, which contains the telephone room and is the only post to have survived on the Miramar peninsula, is in tact. On its walls the trompe l'oeil signs bearing the names of the other forts in Wellington provide physical evidence and insight into the use of the room and the operation of the post. (k) The extent to which the place forms part of a wider historical and cultural complex or historical and cultural landscape The Battery at Kau point is part of the nationwide landscape of coastal defence sites. It was one of a number of forts erected in the late nineteenth-century to defend New Zealand's main ports from naval attack by Russian invaders. The fort is also an integral part of the landscape of coastal defences constructed around Wellington harbour during this period. In use for over 60 years, it was one of two forts erected to assist Fort Ballance in defending Wellington's inner harbour from a naval attack and was connected to both sites via a military road. From 1893 to 1899, the site was the Fire Command Officer's central communications centre, and was connected to each of Wellington's coastal defence sites via what appears be a purpose built room designed to house that new piece of technology - the telephone. Separate telephones on the wall of the structure allowed direct contact with each fort. The Kau Point Battery remained an integral part of the coastal defence network during World War II, when its magazine was used to store extra ammunition for the newly constructed Anti-Aircraft Battery at Mount Crawford.