It was built and modified from 1791 to 1925 by Lieutenant William Dawes, Robert Ross, Francis Greenway, and George Barney.
During the Napoleonic Wars, French and Spanish ships captured in the Pacific Ocean and brought into Sydney harbour received salutes from the battery.
[citation needed] The fort was expanded substantially in 1819 when Governor Lachlan Macquarie ordered convict Francis Greenway, who was an architect, to design and construct improvements.
Dawes Point received additional subterranean powder magazines and the Royal Artillery provided a garrison.
Sydney's Harbour defences had been relocated to the entrance of Port Jackson by the end of the 19th century, thus rendering Dawes Point obsolete.
In 1932 the remaining buildings that served as a headquarters for Dorman and Long, the British company responsible for the construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge were demolished and the whole area landscaped and set aside for public use.
[1][5] In 1995 archaeological investigations were carried out at the Battery site, and the findings were incorporated into a new interpretive park which was opened to the public in 2001.
[1] The archaeological remains revealed to date are unparalleled in Australia because they represent a broad range of significant historical periods.
Archaeological sites from the 18th century are exceedingly rare with only the remains of First Government House and parts of the Dockyard on the western side of the Cove bearing witness to the first 10 years of white settlement in the Sydney CBD.
The archaeology of the Battery floor and underground magazines also reveals elements constructed under the direction of George Barney, one of Australia's most important Colonial Engineers in the mid 19th century, such as the 1850s gun emplacements.
[1] Developments on the site have occurred as follows:[1] The Dawes Point Battery remains have been excavated, conserved and interpreted and these works have won several prestigious awards since 2001.
These awards are:[1] "Tara" Interpretation has won:[1] As at 30 March 2011, the Dawes Point Battery remains and site are of State heritage significance for their historical and scientific cultural values.
[1] The post 1788 archaeological remains at Dawes Point revealed to date are extremely important for their research potential.
The archaeology of the Battery floor and underground magazines also reveals elements constructed under the direction of George Barney, one of Australia's most important Colonial Engineers in the mid 19th century, such as the 1850s gun emplacements.
Together with the presence of the cannon from this time, on their original timber block supports the Battery is an important archive of military history.
All of these land uses have been closely linked with the site's unique position, occupying as it does a prominent headland with vistas up and down the harbour.
[1] The excavation, conservation and interpretation of the Dawes Point Battery remains has won several prestigious awards since 2001, indicating the historical, social, technical and research significance the place holds, not only for the public, but also for professional bodies.
[1] Dawes Point Battery remains was listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 10 May 2002 having satisfied the following criteria.
The Battery was the first permanent fortification for the settlement and highlighted the tension between the British and other colonising European nations for dominion over the Pacific.
[1] The place is important in demonstrating aesthetic characteristics and/or a high degree of creative or technical achievement in New South Wales.
Location on a prominent point of the harbour and set at the most northern part of the picturesque and historic The Rocks district.
[1] The excavation, conservation and interpretation of the Dawes Point Battery remains has won several prestigious awards since 2001, indicating the historical, social, technical and research significance the place holds, not only for the public, but also for professional bodies.
The post 1788 archaeological remains at Dawes Point revealed to date are extremely important for their research potential.
The archaeology of the Battery floor and underground magazines also reveals elements constructed under the direction of George Barney, one of Australia's most important Colonial Engineers in the mid 19th century, such as the 1850s gun emplacements.