Fort Rodd Hill

Fort Rodd Hill (1894-1956) - A Canadian Coastal Fort first established in 1894 as a part of the "Victoria-Esquimalt Fortress". Located in present day Victoria, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. Named after Admiral John Rashleigh Rodd. Deactivated in 1956.

Fort Rodd Hill 6" Gun Battery Command Post	Fort Rodd Hill Entrance Sign
Battery Belmont on Fort Rodd Hill

Fort Rodd Hill History

Part of the Harbor Defense of Victoria and Esquimalt Harbors.

The Canadian Harbors at Victoria and Esquimalt were protected by five separate gun batteries with emplaced naval guns starting in 1878. In 1893 an agreement with Great Britain established for a common defense of both harbors. The result of this agreement was the construction of two forts, Fort Rodd Hill on west side of the entrance to Esquimalt Harbor and Fort Macaulay on the east side of Esquimalt Harbor at the entrance to Victoria Harbor, the work being undertaken by a detachment of twenty Sappers from the 18th (Fortress) Company of Royal Engineers sent from Halifax, whose job was to demolish the old earth and wood batteries, then lay out and direct the building of the new concrete and earth forts.

Fort Macaulay was the site of one of the five existing batteries and was armed with three, 7" rifled muzzle loaded (RML) guns. Fort Rodd Hill was a new fort built on a rock bluff at the harbor entrance. Both forts were to mount three, 6" disappearing breech loaded (BL) coastal defense guns in modern reinforced concrete gun emplacements, the work being performed by the Marine Artillery.

This plan coincided with the construction of similar but more extensive American fortifications during the Endicott Period across the Straits of San Juan De Fuca at Fort Worden, Fort Casey (1) and Fort Flagler for the Harbor Defense of Puget Sound.

Endicott Period

Three reinforced concrete gun batteries were constructed on Fort Rod Hill between 1895 and 1900. The Fort Rodd Hill Upper Battery had a single 6" disappearing gun while the Fort Rodd Hill Lower Battery mounted two 6" disappearing guns, these batteries were designed to engage larger enemy ships at a distance. Battery Belmont mounted two rapid fire barbette 12-pounder guns that were designed to counter small, fast motor torpedo boats that might attempt to enter the harbor.

Fort Rodd Hill Endicott Period Battery (edit list)

Battery Click on Battery links below	No.	Caliber	Type Mount	Service Years	Battery Cost	Notes
Fort Rodd Hill Upper Battery	1	6"	Disappearing	1895-1941	£ ?
Fort Rodd Hill Lower Battery	2	6"	Disappearing	1895-1942	£4419
Battery Belmont	2 1	12-pounder Twin 6-pounder	Pedestal Pedestal	1900-1944 1944-1956	£ ?
Source: CDSG

Searchlight Systems

Searchlights were first installed at Fort Rodd Hill about 1902 and were meant to light up targets at night. There were two lights installed, No. 1 was on the west side of the point and No. 2 was located on the east side near the lighthouse. The No. 1 light was a narrow beam with a range of about 5000 yards while the No. 2 light was a wide beam with a range of about 2000 yards. The searchlight system was updated during World War II with modern 60" searchlights. By the end of the war 17 searchlight positions ringed the harbor. Two of the Fort Rodd Hill searchlight shelters still exist, one disguised as a fisherman's hut.

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  Battery Belmont Gun & BC Post from Below
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  Upper Searchlight Shelter
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  1940 Lower Searchlight Shelter # 7 Disguised as a Fisherman's Hut
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  Searchlight Powerhouse
• 
  Searchlight Generator

Anti-Aircraft Systems

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  90mm AA Gun
• 
  Anti-Aircraft Gun

Current Status

Must See! Now a part of Fort Rodd Hill, Parks Canada park. Period guns and carriages in place. Restored and interpreted gun batteries.

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Location: Fort Rodd Hill Parks Canada Park, Victoria, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. Maps & Images Lat: 48.4323 Long: -123.4504 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: ....'

Sources:

• Morgan, David, Forts of the Canadian West Coast - Victoria/Esquimalt Defenses, CDSG Journal, Volume 9, Issue 2, May 1995, page 16-24.

Links:

• North American Forts - Fort Rodd Hill
• Wikipedia - Fort Rodd Hill
• Parks Canada - Fort Rodd Hill

Visited: 22 Jun 2009

Fort Rodd Hill Picture Gallery

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