Fort George (Trinidad)
| Fort George | ||
|---|---|---|
 Signal house |
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| Alternative name (s): | Fort Vigie | |
| Creation time : | 19th century | |
| Place: | Port of Spain | |
| Geographical location | 10 ° 41 ′ 17 ″ N , 61 ° 32 ′ 30 ″ W | |
| Height: | 340 m | |
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Fort George is a former fort in the Trinidadian capital of Port of Spain that now serves as a museum.
history
In early 1803, the British colonial administration under Governor Sir Thomas Hislop began expanding Trinidad's defense against potential attack. The island part of Chaguarama , located northwest of the capital, was initially selected as the location . There an infantry post was set up on the Point Gourde peninsula and a naval base was set up in Chaguaramas Bay. At the end of 1803, Hislop changed his mind and now favored the current location of the fort for an expansion, where several cannons were already located, which covered the Gulf of Paria off Port of Spain. Since the financing of such construction projects was incumbent on the British Crown and, in addition to Hislop, several institutions had a say in such questions, there was a dispute between Hislop and the commander of the British West India Forces in Barbados , Lieutenant General William Myers, who felt that he had been left out and the continued construction of Point Gourde ruled. Hislop opposed this, called on the British government, for which a Secretary of State tried unsuccessfully to mediate, and finally prevailed by sending high dignitaries of Trinidad on a diplomatic mission to Myers, who finally gave in.
The place where the fort was built was originally called La Vigie (German: lookout), named by French settlers approved as part of the 1783 Cedula de populacion . In 1805 the fort was built in this strategically favorable place under Hislop, at that time still under the name Fort Vigie, to defend the island capital Port of Spain against sea attacks. It was built by African slaves under the direction of Jonas Mohammed Bath, the leader of the local Mandinka community and alleged sultan of Yulliallhad Alimant. A little later it was renamed in honor of the then British King George III. Although Trinidad was subject to frequent attacks in a row and although Fort George replaced the older Fort San Andres as it was intended to increase the defensive capabilities of Port of Spain, no shot was ever fired from the fort's cannons. Military use ended in 1846.
In 1883 a Victorian-style house was built on the fort's site to serve as a signaling station. From the building, flag signals were received by the North Post Wireless Station to the west and forwarded to the harbor master's quarters in Port of Spain to the south-east. The flag signals contained ship movements in the Caribbean Sea that could be observed from the North Post Wireless Station. The signal station was designed and built by Kofi Nti, son of the Ashanti king Kofi Calcali, who came to Trinidad after the third Ashanti War .
The restoration of the fort began in 1965. The beacon house was converted into a museum showing the fort's history. Several cannons from the early 19th century have been preserved. Due to its exposed location, the fort forms a tourist vantage point from which one can see Port of Spain, the Caroni Swamp behind it and the northern suburbs of Port of Spains and the islands off the Chaguaramas.
construction
In Hislop's time, the fort was flanked by five gun groups located outside the facility: Below the fort were the gun groups York, Princess Charlotte, Abercromby (which was built first) and Cambridge, and above the fort the gun group Cumberland. Inside the facility there is a prison cell, which consists of a cuboid room dug into the hill, the entrance of which is barred with a grid made of old gun barrels. Despite the facility as a prison, no one was held prisoner in this cell; instead, it was used by merchants and plantation owners as a storage place for valuables in troubled times.
reception
The local media reports regularly about Fort George, but mostly in connection with property crimes, which are more common around the relatively remote area within Port of Spains. Due to its importance and exposed location, the fort is also used as a location for events with historical connotations and its importance for the defense system of Trinidad in the early 19th century is shown in the media.
Individual evidence
- ^ Gertrude Carmichael: The History of the West Indian Islands of Trinidad and Tobago . Alvin Redman, London 1961, p. 71 .
- ^ Gertrude Carmichael: The History of the West Indian Islands of Trinidad and Tobago . Alvin Redman, London 1961, p. 72 .
- ↑ a b Michael Anthony: Historic Landmarks of Port of Spain, p. 87. Macmillan Caribbean, 2008.
- ^ Entry in the Caribbean History Archives. Retrieved December 2, 2014 .
- ^ CitizensForConservationTT.org: Fort George. Retrieved March 19, 2020 .
- ^ Bullets fly at Fort George . In: Trinidad Express . August 3, 2011.
- ↑ Claudia Pegus robbed . In: Trinidad Express . April 15, 2012.
- ↑ Elderly doctor kills teen robber . In: Trinidad Express . December 19, 2009.
- ↑ Trinidad Guardian, July 25, 2012, available online
- ↑ Trinidad Guardian, September 15, 2013, available online