TWO 300-year-old military cannons, used as quayside mooring bollards at Minehead Harbour have been removed on the instructions of Somerset Council without notice or consultation, causing a wave of protest in the town.

The cannons, technically, demi-culverins from the War of the Spanish Succession, arrived in Minehead about 300 years ago as part of the harbour defences.

Later they were sunk muzzle-first into the quay, and used to tie up ships.

Three were removed in 1979 and after restoration were positioned alongside the harbour wall as a tourist attraction.

The two remaining guns were removed by contractors last week and their present whereabouts are unknown.

Former Minehead town councillor Michael Burke, who was on the pier when the guns were being dug out, said: “It was just fortuitous that I was there.

“Otherwise, they would probably have disappeared without trace and nobody would have known anything about it.

“The contractor’s workmen told me they didn’t know why the guns were being removed or what would happen to them.”

After initial annoyance about the lack of consultation, Minehead residents were this week putting forward suggestions for possible sites for the cannons, including Wellington Square, Blenheim Gardens, and alongside the other guns on the harbour.

Asked why the cannons were dug up, a Somerset Council spokesman said: “We asked contractors to remove the remains of two cannons near Minehead harbour which were identified as a safety hazard.

“We are working with the conservation team to ensure that they are stored safely as a piece of local history.”

Boat owners with vessels in the harbour said they had been told the guns were removed to allow emergency vehicles onto the quay and also to allow mobile cranes to remove boats.

One said: “So far as I know, the guns have never caused any access problems.”

Minehead Conservation Society chair Sally Bainbridge said: “I think we should have been informed and given some notice of this, which would at least have allowed organisations like the conservation society, Minehead Museum, and Somerset Heritage time to decide whether they would like to acquire them and whether they could be restored.

“I think the way it was done is appalling and not the way to deal with something which is part of Minehead’s heritage.

“What possible danger could they be causing?

“I feel we should have been given the details of the reason for the cannons being dug up.

“Surely, there should have been a planning application for the work bearing in mind the guns were in a conservation area.

“Somerset Council have shown a total disregard for our heritage.”

Protestors have also taken to social media, and posts have included ‘removing a piece of history for no reason is sacrilege’, and ‘the guns were possibly dug up so that Somerset Council can more easily shoot itself in the foot!’.