Fort St. Charles (1)

Fort St. Charles (1) (1754-1821) - First established about 1754 as a French Colonial fortification known as Charles' Bastion in the defenses of the city of New Orleans in present day Orleans Parish, Louisiana. Taken over by the Spanish in 1792, improved and renamed Fort San Carlos. Taken over by the U.S. in 1803, improved and renamed Fort St. Charles. Abandoned by U.S. forces in 1821. French Era (1754-1762) The French did not provide significant defenses for New Orleans until the French & Indian War put the city at risk of capture by British forces coming down the Mississippi River. Significant defenses were built in 1754 and improved 1760. An earthworks with a moat enclosed the area known today as the French Quarter. Nine bastions protected the earthworks Conde's Bastion, Kerlerec's Bastion, St. Louis Bation, Choiseul's Bastion, Orleans Bastion, Redan of the Bayou, Berry's Bastion, D'Abbadie's Bastion, and Charles' Bastion. The city square known as the Place d'Armes fronted and was open to the river as it is today. This portion of the defenses mounted twenty-one guns and it was said the city was protected by some 100 mounted guns. Spanish Era (1762-1803) At the close of the French & Indian War France ceded parts of Louisiana to Spain in the secret 1862 Treaty of Fontainebleau. The remainder of French claimed territory was ceded to Great Britain in the Treaty of Paris (1763). Spain neglected the New Orleans defenses until 1792 when a plan was approved to place five forts linked by embankments around the city. Again, the Place d'Armes was open to the river. The five forts were: Fort St. Jean, Fort St. Ferdinand, Fort Bourgogne, Fort San Luis and the largest, Fort San Carlos. In 1803 Spain ceded the Louisiana Territory to France who very quickly sold it to the United States in the Louisiana purchase United States Era (1803-1821) The Louisiana Purchase ceded vast western territory to the United States, including the present day State of Louisiana and the City of New Orleans. General James Wilkinson took possession of the territory for the United States on 20 Dec 1803 and on that date his troops occupied the five old Spanish forts in the City of New Orleans. Wilkerson's troops found the forts in bad condition and in the end, not worth saving. Fort St. Louis, Fort Bourgogne, Fort St. John (2), and Fort St. Ferdinand were ordered to be disposed of by 1812. Fort St. Charles remained active until it was abandoned in 1821. Current Status No above ground remains now at the site of the old US Mint at the foot of Esplanade Avenue in New Orleans. Markers at the site. {"selectable":false,"width":"500"} Location: The Old U.S. Mint, 400 Esplanade Ave, New Orleans, Orleans Parish, Louisiana. Maps & Images Lat: 29.96156 Long: -90.057645 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: 7' See Also: French & Indian War Treaty of Paris (1763) Sources: Roberts, Robert B., Encyclopedia of Historic Forts: The Military, Pioneer, and Trading Posts of the United States, Macmillan, New York, 1988, 10th printing, ISBN 0-02-926880-X, page 344-345. USGS Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Database Entry: 549829 Links: North American Forts - Fort St. Charles (1) Visited: 9 Dec 2009