Our Defences- Sir William Jervois inspecting the Inner South Head Batteries

Depicts five men, dressed in day suits, standing before the batteries at Inner South Head in Sydney,New South Wales.
In 1877 the British military engineer and Colonial governor William F. D. Jervois (1821-1897) was asked to survey the defences of the Australian colonies.
This engraving depicts Sir William Jervois, Colonel Scratchley, accompanied by Sir Hercules Robinson and the Commandant of the Forces making a complete inspection of the whole of the forts and batteries in the neighbourhood of Sydney. With one or two minor modifications and a recommendation for the construction of a couple of additional batteries, the state of our defences has been pronounced to be good.
The batteries of the Inner south head are in a position of considerable importance in the event of a man of an invasion attempt to enter the heads and proceed to enter the Heads to the Harbour. The image and an article appeared in the Illustrated Sydney News on Saturday 26 May 1877.

From the time of the Crimean War in the 1850s and at regular intervals afterwards, Australian citizens were fearful of invasion by the Russians and coastal landings. Sir William Jervois completed a survey for New South Wales before being transferred in 1877 to South Australia where he was promoted to Governor of the colony.