Gunwharf Quays, Portsmouth (must see)

The British Board of Ordnance operated HM Gun Wharf, a storage and repair depot for cannons, ammunition, and other armaments. One of many such established around the Empire, in Gun Wharf's later days, was HMS Vernon. The military depot closed in 1995 and re-opened in 2001 as Gunwharf Quays. This time it was, yes, a shopping center.

The site was sold to Berkeley Group Holdings in 1996. Six years of extensive redevelopment of the area and buildings by HGP Architects company followed. The facility re-opened as a retail outlet. Some historic buildings were damaged in the WW II Blitzkrieg, while others survived and were restored within the Gunwharf Quays development.

The Old Customs House pub and restaurant, built in the 18th century, is the oldest operating building on the Old Gun Wharf side of the site. The Grand Storehouse, also called the Vulcan Building, was the central part of the New Gun Wharf built in 1814. Its north wing and clock tower, destroyed in the Blitz, were part of the reconstruction.

The Old Customs House and the Vulcan Building were not the only restoration survivors. Parts of the boundary wall, North and South Gates, the Lock Keeper's Cottage, the Old Infirmary, and the old figurehead of the Fourth HMS Vernon have all come through.