Portsbridge Creek

[4] Defences consisted of a wooden barricade mounted on the bridge backed by a small fort equipped with 4 guns.

[4] The guns were withdrawn on 10 August 1642 and with the barricade held by as few as 8 men the parliamentarian forces were able to cross the creek two days later.

[3] It has been suggested that the presence of a customs officer in Cosham was to deal with attempts at landing contraband from Portsbridge Creek.

[6] An army report on the status of the Hilsea Lines made in 1853 mentioned that the creek was filled with weeds to the point where for 3 to 4 hours every day it could be walked across.

[9] Later in the decade as part of upgrade works on the Hilsea Lines, the creek was widened and deepened to allow it to be used by gunboats.

[15] Another crossing (Peronne Road) built during World War II was a causeway with the creek being limited to a small pipe.

[2] This was replaced by the current high level Peronne Road Footbridge (built in 1969[19]) during the construction of the A27, which passes over both the creek and the A27.

Part of Portsbridge Creek with the tide half in
A plan of the fort defending the creek's crossing in 1660.
Plan and profiles of Portsea Bridge Fort, 1747 (by J. P. Desmaretz ). Note that the creek is named as Portsea Lake .
The remains of one of the dams built in the 1850s