During the mid-1930s, the Australian Government upgraded its coastal defence batteries protecting the major ports of the country from enemy attack.

At Leighton, Swanbourne, North Mole, Fremantle Harbour, South Beach and Point Peron, the batteries were upgraded.

[4] The defence of Fremantle Port was deemed essential to national Australian security during a potential future war.

The Fort Forrest guns were moved to Swanbourne in 1935, with Buckland Hill not selected at this point because of its proximity to vital other installations.

At Leighton, work commenced in May 1945 but financial constraints prevented the completion until late 1947 and proof firing was not carried out until November that year.

The installation of these guns at South Fremantle was never completed, also work had been started, while the Point Peron battery conversion never commenced at all.

Ultimately, while it was envisioned to have all major ports in Australia protected by dual-use 5.25-inch guns, the Leighton Battery became the only one ever operational.

The area previously occupied by the Leighton Battery was awarded to the Royal Australian Artillery Historical Society of Western Australia for the purpose of operating a museum at the site.

[1][3] During the 1980s and 1990s, the site was restored and officially opened on 29 November 1997 by Major General Michael Jeffery, Governor of Western Australia.

[1][3] In 2014, a gun shield removed from HMAS Adelaide during a refit in 1943 and dumped on a rubbish tip on the Mornington Peninsula, Victoria, was transported to Perth for refurbishment.