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War relics to reveal secrets when new exhibits open at the Princess Royal Fortress Military Museum

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Kellie BalaamAlbany Advertiser
New war exhibits will open at the Princess Royal Fortress Military Museum located in the National Anzac Centre on Mt Adelaide.
Camera IconNew war exhibits will open at the Princess Royal Fortress Military Museum located in the National Anzac Centre on Mt Adelaide. Credit: Lee Griffith/Lee Griffith

New exhibits will open at the Princess Royal Fortress Military Museum in time for the long weekend, showcasing relics from our past, including a restored World War II coastal defence gun.

The Hidden Stories of the Fortress exhibition will be officially opened on Saturday after a refurbishment that began in March.

A grant from the Department of Veterans’ Affairs has allowed the main barracks gallery to undergo a major upgrade since it first opened as a museum in 1979.

It will feature artefacts and stories of those who lived and worked atop Mt Adelaide in the late 19th to 20th centuries.

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The upgrades include temperature-controlled rooms with new display cases, which allow treasures from the collection to be displayed for the public to enjoy.

A coastal emplacement gun and underground magazine at the top of Mt Adelaide have also received attention, with a newly recreated WWII structure encasing the gun, lighting in the magazine and many stories being unveiled.

City of Albany Mayor Dennis Wellington said delaying refurbishments because of COVID-19 was unfortunate but the new exhibitions were worth the wait.

“The Princess Royal Fortress has played an integral role in Albany’s history and indeed the history of Australia, with its presence being a major reason for the convoys of World War I converging off Albany’s coast,” he said.

“It is exciting to be able to provide the Main Barracks Gallery with its first major upgrade in 41 years that will make it a more inviting, comfortable and engaging space for residents and visitors to sit back and enjoy.”

The free exhibition will be open from 9am-4pm, Tuesday to Sunday after tomorrow’s reveal.

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