Fort Charlotte (2)
Fort Charlotte (2) (1798-1965) - A British colonial coastal fort established in 1795 by Prince Edward on George's Island in Halifax Harbor in present day Halifax County, Nova Scotia, Canada. Officially named Fort Charlotte on 20 Oct 1798 for Queen Charlotte, Price Edward's mother. Abandoned in 1965.
Fort Charlotte (2) History
Part of the Harbor Defense of Halifax.
The original Fort Charlotte was a star shaped fort built on George's Island in 1795. The fort had a central 45' square blockhouse and two semi-circular batteries (North and South). In 1811 the star fort was demolished and replaced with casemated batteries and the Fort Charlotte Martello Tower.
In 1864-1866 the South Battery was replaced with a modern 7" Rifled Muzzle Loading (RML) battery of eight guns and became known as the Upper Battery. In the period 1866-1869 a new four gun casemated 10" RML battery was built in the south counterscarp and connected to the Upper Battery through the south caponier. This new battery came to be known as the Lower Battery. The old North Battery was unchanged but was disarmed in 1878. By 1877 the Martello tower had been removed.
With the advent of longer range rifled weapons the defense of the harbor moved further out and Fort Charlotte's role changed to inner harbor defense. The new role included underwater mines and submarine nets as well as quick firing smaller caliber guns to protect the harbor against small high speed torpedo boats. These defenses were in place for World War I. During World War II an anti-aircraft battery was stationed at the fort.
| Facility | Dates | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Battery | 1795 | Eight North Battery gun emplacements | |
| North Caponiers | 1829 | Defensive Caponiers | |
| Upper Battery | 1864 | Eight Upper Battery gun emplacements | display guns |
| Main Magazine and Tunnel Complex | 1865 | Underground complex with interconnecting tunnels and rooms | |
| South Caponiers | 1866 | Defensive south, southeast and southwest Caponiers | |
| Guardroom and Prisoners' Quarters | 1866 | Guardroom and prisoners' quarters built into a deep cut in the rampart | |
| Main Magazine | 1866 | Main bombproof magazine | |
| Lower Battery | 1868 | Heavy muzzleloading rifled (RML) guns in a casemated battery | |
| Artillery Stores Building | 1873 | Single story brick artillery stores building | |
| Stores Building | 1885 | Single story brick carpenter shop and smithy near submarine cable tank | |
| Laboratory building | 1885 | Single story brick laboratory for making cartridges and filling shells for the RML guns | |
| Loaded Mine Stores | 1896 | Storage of loaded mines until they were required for practice or distribution in the event of attack | |
| Married Officers Quarters | 1901 | Single story brick married officers quarters |
Current Status
Part of Georges Island National Historic Site, Halifax County, Nova Scotia, Canada. The park is currently closed to visitors and access to the island is restricted.
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Location: George's Island in Halifax Harbor, Halifax County, Nova Scotia, Canada. Maps & Images Lat: 44.64078 Long: -63.55908 |
Sources:
- Piers, Harry, The Evolution of the Halifax Fortress 1749-1928, The Public Archives of Nova Scotia, 1947, 155 pages, page 105
Links:
- North American Forts - Fort Fort Charlotte
- Parks Canada - Georges Island National Historic Site
- Canada's Historic Places - Georges Island National Historic Site
Visited: No
Fort Charlotte (2) Picture Gallery
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