Fort Monroe National Monument
| Fort Monroe National Monument | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 |
|||
|
|||
| Location: | Virginia , United States | ||
| Specialty: | Historic coastal fortification | ||
| Next city: | Hampton | ||
| Surface: | 1.3 km² | ||
| Founding: | November 1, 2011 | ||
_location_map.svg)
Fort Monroe is a memorial of the type of National Monuments , American US from a coastal fort in Hampton , Virginia , there is. The fort played a major role in the American Civil War . It is pentagonal and surrounded by a wall and a moat. The lengths of the individual sides are unequal, several bastions were built at the corners and the structure of the pentagon has changed a lot over time.
The fort was dedicated as a National Monument on November 1, 2011 by President Barack Obama . Since then it has been under the National Park Service .
history
First fortifications (1608–1812)
In 1608, Captain John Smith recognized the strategic importance of the so-called Point Comfort at the entrance to Hampton Roads . If you wanted to reach Jamestown , one of the first colonies in this area by sea, you had to pass the narrowness. Fort Algernourne was built on this site in 1609 to protect the colony. During the colonial period there were still some rather insignificant changes to the fortifications.
The War of 1812 (1812-1814)
During the Anglo-American War, it was recognized that the old systems of coastal protection were inadequate to protect the coasts and port cities. The best example of the failure of this system was when the British burned down Washington DC in 1814.
Between the Wars (1814–1861)
The Americans learned from the war of 1812 and developed an entirely new system of coastal defense . Fort Monroe played an important role in this: it was the first and largest fort that was involved in this new plan. Between 1819 and 1834 the fort was also expanded to its present form. It was bolstered by 32-pound guns in its original mission to protect the entrance to Hampton Road - the finest artillery pieces at the time. In 1824 the new artillery school was housed in the fort.
The Civil War (1861-1865)
Fearing that the fort would fall to the southern states , the fort was reinforced during the civil war . In cooperation with the navy , the fort's troops controlled large stretches of coast. Several landing operations against Confederate units were also carried out from the fort, notably the Battle of Big Bethel in June 1861, General McClellan's Peninsula Campaign of 1862, and the Siege of Suffolk in 1863. In 1864 the Army of the James was formed at Fort Monroe . General Benjamin Franklin Butler took over the command and here he declared all slaves of the southern states who came into the area of command of the northern states to be confiscated for the benefit of the Union. This enabled him to circumvent the Fugitive Slave Act, which was still in force despite the war .
The time up to the Second World War (1865–1939)
During this time, the fort's armament continued to improve. Small bases, commanded from Fort Monroe, were built around the entire Hampton Road. That made the Hampton Road area one of the best defended areas in the entire United States.
The Second World War (1939-1945)
During the Second World War, the fort housed the headquarters of the American coastal artillery. The arsenal ranged from three-inch rapid-fire guns to sixteen-inch guns that could fire up to 40 km. In addition, underwater mine fields and submarine barriers were installed. However, these measures were out of date in view of the new aircraft carriers and long-range bombers .
post war period
In 1946 the artillery school was relocated to California . After all weapons were dismantled, the fort was given the task of training soldiers. A museum has been located in the old fortress walls since 1953. With the help of figures and old objects, scenes from the everyday life of the fortress are depicted as authentically as possible.
In 1973 the fort was adapted to the military requirements and the fort facility housed the Training and Doctrine Command training camp . It recruited soldiers and trained them. The soldiers were introduced to the latest Army techniques. Most recently around 1105 uniformed men and 1991 civilians were employed there.
In 2005, the United States Armed Forces closed Fort Monroe. The state of Virginia created a management plan under which the historic parts would be designated as a federal memorial, while other parts of the former garrison would be converted into housing in an attractive location. The plan was approved in 2010, and President Obama dedicated the memorial with an area of around 1.3 km² on November 1, 2011 according to the Antiquities Act , which authorizes the President to designate federally owned objects and areas as national monuments without consulting Congress .
Fort Monroe has been a National Historic Landmark since December 1960 and is one of 121 such sites in Virginia. In October 1966, it was listed as a Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places .
Famous pepole
- Stafford LeRoy Irwin (1893–1955), born here, Commander in World War II and Commander in Chief of the United States Forces in occupied Austria
- Edgar Allen Poe (1809–1849), American writer, was temporarily stationed in Fort Monroe during his military service and wrote the poem "Annabell Lee" during this time.
Web links
- National Park Service: Fort Monroe National Monument (official site; English)
- US Army Training and Doctrine Command: Casemate Museum at Fort Monroe
Individual evidence
- ↑ White House: ESTABLISHMENT OF THE FORT MONROE NATIONAL MONUMENT ( Memento of the original from February 17, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 16 kB) , dedication text from November 1, 2011
- ↑ Fort Monroe Authority: Fort Monroe Reuse Plan ( Memento of the original from October 4, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Listing of National Historic Landmarks by State: Virginia. National Park Service , accessed February 27, 2020.
- ↑ Fort Monroe on the National Register of Historic Places , accessed February 27, 2020.
- ^ Fort Monroe Authority: For Researchers and History Lovers. Retrieved October 6, 2018 (American English).
