The Gunboat Sheds owe their existence and name to the so-called gunboats which were built after the Danish naval fleet had been captured at the Holmen Naval Base by the Royal British Navy on 21 October 1807. The gunboats were used in the last stage of the English Wars, now known as the Gunboat War. The small gunboats were employed against the conventional Royal British Navy. Built to provide on-land protection for the gunboats when they were not in use, the sheds were mainly built in around 1830. Each shed could accommodate two gunboats.