Glengarriff,
County Cork
County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns a ...
. Several other towers are still extant, including one at
Rathmullan in
County Donegal
County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrcon ...
and two in
County Clare on the south coast of
Galway Bay in the townlands of
Finavarra and
Aughinish. There is also an extant Martello tower located near the settlement of
Magilligan Point
Magilligan () is a peninsula that lies in the northwest of County Londonderry, Northern Ireland, at the entrance to Lough Foyle, within Causeway Coast and Glens district. It is an extensive coastal site, part British army firing range, part n ...
in
County Londonderry, built between 1812 and 1871 to defend against a possible French invasion during the
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fre ...
; it is now a visitor attraction.
A Martello-like tower was built on
Achill Island
Achill Island (; ga, Acaill, Oileán Acla) in County Mayo is the largest of the Irish isles, and is situated off the west coast of Ireland. It has a population of 2,594. Its area is . Achill is attached to the mainland by Michael Davitt Brid ...
, according to local memory during the Napoleonic Wars. It is square rather than round, unlike the traditional Martello tower. This tower is known locally as the Gabhla Fhranca ("French Tower") or the Napoleonic Tower. It is marked on an 1838
Ordnance Survey
Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of 1745. There was a ...
chart and denoted "Signal Tower", suggesting it was used with a series of other stations for communication. The tower's position offers a view of the sea both to the north and south of the island and is therefore well-suited for that purpose. By the 1830s the tower was described as a "watch-house of the coast-guard."
Elsewhere
Antigua and Barbuda
The British originally constructed River Fort Martello Tower in the early 19th century, on the site of a previous fort (presumed to have been built by the Spanish) to guard nearby River Landing, which was
Barbuda's original quay. Confusion with the previous fort presumably explains the claims made in Barbudan tourism publications that this was the World's first, and is its oldest, Martello tower, built in 1745. The tower is located on the south coast of the island, a mile or so from River Landing and some seven miles south of the island's main village of
Codrington. The tower is 56 feet high, has a raised gun platform and extremely thick walls, but is missing the floors. It the first such tower constructed in the Caribbean, was built in 1745 by
Sir William Codrington, and was designed by Commodore Charles Knowles RN, later Admiral
Sir Charles Knowles Bt, who was then commanding the Leeward Islands station.
It is attached to what remains of the pre-existing fort. The tower mounted three cannon, and in all the fort mounted ten cannons, none of which remain. The tower is the highest building on Barbuda and serves as a
daymark
A daymark is a navigational aid for sailors and pilots, distinctively marked to maximize its visibility in daylight.
The word is also used in a more specific, technical sense to refer to a signboard or daytime identifier that is attached to ...
from land or sea. Today the fort is a popular location for weddings.
Australia
The last Martello tower built in the British Empire is said to be that which composes a part of the larger
Fort Denison, built on a small island, Pinchgut Island, in
Sydney Harbour,
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
. It is the only Martello tower to have been built in Australia.
Fortification of the island began in 1841 but was not completed. The construction had begun following an 1839 night-time incursion into
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mounta ...
Harbour by two American warships. Concern with the threat of foreign attack had caused the government to review the harbour's inner defences, which were found to be inadequate, and the establishment of a fort was recommended to help protect Sydney Harbour from attack by foreign vessels. Construction resumed in 1855 to provide Sydney with protection against the threat of a naval attack by the
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
ns during the
Crimean War
The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia.
Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...
of the 1850s. However, construction was completed only in 1857, well after the war had ended. Fort Denison is well preserved and is now a popular tourist attraction.
Bermuda
There is a Martello tower located at
Ferry Reach in
St George's Parish. The tower is the third fortification on the site. Major Thomas Blanshard built it of Bermuda limestone between 1822 and 1823. The tower shows the effect of thirty years of evolution on the design of coastal fortifications, between the 1790s and 1822. The earlier Ferry Island Fort nearby had multiple guns arrayed to cover the water westward, while the Martello tower used a single gun with 360° traverse to cover all of the surrounding area.
Like its predecessors in the UK, it has an ovoid footprint with the thickness of its walls ranging from nine to 11 feet. It is surrounded by a dry moat. The tower's purpose was to defend the Ferry Reach Channel and so impede any attack on
St. George's Island from the main island of Bermuda, and attacking vessels from slipping through
Castle Harbour Castle Harbour is a large natural harbour in Bermuda. It is located between the northeastern end of the main island and St. David's Island. Originally called ''Southampton Port'', it was renamed as a result of its heavy fortification in the early ...
and the channel between Ferry Reach and
Coney Island. The main channel by which vessels reach most parts of Bermuda west of St. George's, including the
Royal Naval Dockyard, on
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...
, the
Great Sound
The Great Sound is large ocean inlet (a sound) located in Bermuda. It may be the submerged remains of a Pre- Holocene volcanic caldera. Other geologists dispute the origin of the Bermuda Pedestal as a volcanic hotspot.
Geography
The Great Sound ...
,
Hamilton Harbour
Hamilton Harbour, formerly known as Burlington Bay, lies on the western tip of Lake Ontario, bounded on the northwest by the City of Burlington, on the south by the City of Hamilton, and on the east by Hamilton Beach (south of the Burlington ...
,
The Flatts,
Murray's Anchorage, and other important sites, carries them around the east ends of
St. David's
St Davids or St David's ( cy, Tyddewi, , " David's house”) is a city and a community (named St Davids and the Cathedral Close) with a cathedral in Pembrokeshire, Wales, lying on the River Alun. It is the resting place of Saint Da ...
and
St. George's Islands, where the coastal artillery was always most heavily concentrated. Two more Martello towers to protect the Dockyard were planned, but never built.
The tower was restored in 2008 and an 18-pounder cannon brought from
Fort St. Catherine
Fort St. Catherine, or ''Fort St. Catherine's'' (as it is usually referred to), is a coastal artillery fort at the North-East tip of St. George's Island, in the Imperial fortress colony of Bermuda. Successively redeveloped, the fort was used fir ...
was mounted on top. The site is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday to Friday in the summer and in the winter by appointment only, by calling the Parks Department. It is part of the
Bermuda Railway
The Bermuda Railway was a common carrier line that operated in Bermuda for a brief period (October 31, 1931 – May 1, 1948). In its 17 years of existence, the railway provided frequent passenger and freight service over its length spann ...
Trail.
British Virgin Islands
When the British rebuilt
Fort Recovery on the west end of
Tortola they added a Martello tower.
Canada
Nine of the fourteen Martello towers built in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
still survive. (In addition, the existing fortifications at
Fort Henry received two thin towers between 1845 and 1848. However, these are dry ditch defence towers, rather than true Martello towers.) A common characteristic of Canadian Martello towers was removable cone-shaped roofs to protect against snow. Today, many of the restored towers have permanent roof additions – for ease of upkeep, not historical accuracy.
Quebec City
Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the metropolitan area had a population of 839,311. It is t ...
originally had four Martello towers. Tower No. 1 stands on the
Plains of Abraham, overlooking the
St Lawrence River. It has been restored as a museum and can be visited during the summer months. Tower no. 2 stands close nearby and currently hosts activities for private groups. Tower No. 3 was demolished in 1905 after being used as a residence. The
McKenzie Memorial Building
Mackenzie, Mckenzie, MacKenzie, or McKenzie may refer to:
People
* Mackenzie (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name)
* Mackenzie (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name)
* Clan Mackenzie, a Sco ...
of
Jeffery Hale Hospital
Jeffery Hale - Saint Brigid's is a publicly funded health establishment located in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. It provides a range of primary health care services to the population of Quebec's Capitale-Nationale (Greater Quebec City) region.
...
now occupies the site. The fourth surviving Martello Tower in Quebec, No. 4, is located in a residential area on the north side of the Upper City overlooking Lower Town. It is now used as an escape game tourist activity by The National Battlefields Commission.
Halifax, Nova Scotia
Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348,634 people in its urban area. Th ...
, had five towers, the oldest of which, the
Prince of Wales Tower located in
Point Pleasant Park, is the oldest Martello-style tower in North America. It was built in 1796 and was used as a redoubt and a powder magazine. Restored, it is now a National Heritage site. The
Duke of York Martello Tower
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranke ...
was built in 1798 at
York Redoubt
York Redoubt is a redoubt situated on a bluff overlooking the entrance to Halifax Harbour at Ferguson's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada, originally constructed in 1793. It was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1962.
History
York Redoub ...
. Its lower level still stands, though it has been boarded up for conservation purposes. The
Duke of Clarence Martello Tower stood on the Dartmouth shore.
Sherbrooke Martello Tower stood opposite York Redoubt on
McNabs Island; it was demolished in 1944 and replaced by a concrete lighthouse at Maughers Beach. Another Martello tower stood on
Georges Island
Georges Island, or George's Island, may refer to:
Geography
* Georges Island (Massachusetts), offshore from the city of Boston, Massachusetts
*Georges Island (Nova Scotia), offshore from the community of Halifax in the Halifax Regional Municipal ...
.
Four Martello towers were built at
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the north-eastern end of Lake Ontario, at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River (south end of the Rideau Canal). The city is midway between Tor ...
to defend its harbour and naval shipyards in response to the
Oregon Crisis
The Oregon boundary dispute or the Oregon Question was a 19th-century territorial dispute over the political division of the Pacific Northwest of North America between several nations that had competing territorial and commercial aspirations in t ...
. Their builders intended for the towers to serve as redoubts against marine attacks.
Murney Tower and the tower at Point Frederick (at the
Royal Military College of Canada
'')
, established = 1876
, type = Military academy
, chancellor = Anita Anand ('' la, ex officio, label=none'' as Defence Minister)
, principal = Harry Kowal
, head_label ...
) are now museums that are open during the summer.
Fort Frederick has the most elaborate defences as it includes earthen ramparts and a limestone curtain wall. The
Shoal Tower, the only tower completely surrounded by water, stands in Kingston's Confederation Basin. Since 2005, it is open to the public as part of
Doors Open Ontario for one day only in June each year.
Cathcart Tower, the fourth tower, stands unused on Cedar Island near Point Henry.
Carleton Martello Tower
Carleton Martello Tower in Saint John, New Brunswick, is one of the nine surviving Martello Towers in Canada. The tower dates from the War of 1812 and played a significant role in conflicts until the Second World War. The site now features a resto ...
, overlooking the harbour of
Saint John, New Brunswick
Saint John is a seaport city of the Atlantic Ocean located on the Bay of Fundy in the province of New Brunswick, Canada. Saint John is the oldest incorporated city in Canada, established by royal charter on May 18, 1785, during the reign of ...
, is now a museum and a
National Historic Site.
The Canadian Press reported on 16 April 2006 that the Canadian military has named a Forward Operating Base (FOB) in
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...
FOB Martello. The logo of the
International Hockey Hall of Fame
The Original Hockey Hall of Fame, formerly the International Hockey Hall of Fame (IHHOF) is a museum dedicated to the history of ice hockey in Canada, located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. The IHHOF was intended to be the original Hall of Fame fo ...
and Museum in
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the north-eastern end of Lake Ontario, at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River (south end of the Rideau Canal). The city is midway between Tor ...
, features a Martello tower. Since the amalgamation of the Township of Kingston in 2000, the city's flag has also borne a Martello tower.
Guernsey
There are three similar Martello towers in
Guernsey, all built in 1804:
Fort Grey,
Fort Hommet and
Fort Saumarez
Fort Saumarez is a Martello tower in Saint Peter (Saint Pierre du Bois), Guernsey, on a headland that forms the northern tip of L'Erée and extends to the Lihou causeway.
Martello tower
The Martello tower was constructed on the site of an existin ...
.
[Clements (1998), p.83-90.]
In addition, there are a number of earlier towers in Guernsey (the
Guernsey loophole towers), that many people refer to as Martello towers, though they are not Martellos. They were built in the late 18th century, i.e., before the Martellos, and differ from them in a number of ways. One may think of them as precursors,
like the
Genoese towers they resemble.
Lastly,
Bréhon Tower, built in 1856, is an oval tower that represents the final evolution of the Martello tower.
India
Although European in origin, a primitive form of Martello tower had existed in
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi Language, Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also Romanization, romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the I ...
by the time it was conquered by the
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Sou ...
. There is a Martello Tower that the Portuguese built at the southern tip of the island where the
Arnala fort
Arnala Fort is built on a small island off the port town of Arnala, located around 13 km (8 miles) north of Bassein, Maharashtra, India. Being an island fort, it is also called Jaldurg or Janjire-Arnala. The Portuguese, who built the p ...
stands. The Portuguese are said to have built many of these towers, but Arnala's is the best surviving specimen. After the
Indian Rebellion of 1857
The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the for ...
, the British erected Martello towers at the
British Residency in
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern Indi ...
, which were demolished in 1954. An earlier example of such is the one found in Pakur, a town in the state of Jharakhand. This tower was built in 1856 by Sir Martin with view to protect the British Raj from the
Santhals
The Santal or Santhal are an Austroasiatic speaking
Munda ethnic group in South Asia. Santals are the largest tribe in the Jharkhand and West Bengal state of India in terms of population and are also found in the states of Odisha, Bihar and A ...
. It was an important position for the British forces watching fighting the rebellion of the Santhals. This example is reported to still be in good condition, but decaying due to a lack of maintenance.
Indonesia
The
1883 eruption of Krakatoa caused a
tsunami that damaged Menara Martello, which the Dutch colonial government of the East Indies built in 1850 on Bidadari Island (Pulau Bidadari), one of the
Thousand Islands (Kepulauan Seribu), as part of a set of fortifications built between 1850 and 1852 that protected the approaches to
Batavia. Photos suggest that Martello Menara was not a true Martello, but rather a circular fort. The tower was operational until 1878, when it became a storage site, and was abandoned in 1908. Bidadari Island was also known as Pulau Sakit (Sick Island) as it housed a leper colony during the 17th century. More recently, the island came to be called "Angel Island", to honour the
leprosarium that had been there.
Other towers were built at Onrust, Kuiper (Cipir), and Kerkhof (Kelor) islands. All four were demolished in part or in whole after the advent of rifled guns made them obsolete.
Italy
At the beginning of the nineteenth century, during the British "Protectorate" of
Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Ethnicity
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographi ...
after the escape of the
Bourbons
The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a European dynasty of French origin, a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Navarre in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Spani ...
from Naples, Sicily began to build towers to resist an invasion by Napoleon's armies led by
Joachim Murat. The new higher rate of fire of ships' guns led to the choice of the Martello tower as the model.
The Sicilian Martello towers were built around 1810. The estimate rests on the historical context and on the descriptions of the topographer
W.H. Smyth, who carried out his research in 1814 and 1815.
Of the seven towers built in Sicily, only four remain. One is the Mazzone Tower (or the British Fort) at Faro Point, Messina. The second is the Magnisi tower at
Priolo Gargallo, Syracuse. The Italian Navy used this tower as an observation post during the Second World War. Third is the Cariddi tower at
Ganzirri in
Messina. Lastly, the fourth tower is situated on a rocky outcrop overlooking the sea from where it can defend the
Castello Maniace in
Syracuse.
Jamaica
There is a Martello tower located at what was Fort Nugent. In 1709, the Spanish slave agent in Jamaica, James Castillo, built a fort in
Harbour View, to guard his home against attack. An English Governor,
George Nugent, later strengthened the fort to guard the eastern entrance of the city of
Kingston Harbour. The tower was probably built between 1808 and 1811,
at a reported cost of £12,000.
Jersey
The British built eight true Martello towers in
Jersey
Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label= Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the ...
, three between 1808 and 1814, and five between 1834 and 1837, one of which, L'Etacq, the German occupation forces destroyed during World War II. The three original towers are:
*
Icho Tower Icho or ICHO or IChO may refer to:
* International Chemistry Olympiad The International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO) is an annual academic competition for high school students. It is one of the International Science Olympiads. The first IChO was held ...
(1811)
*
Portelet Tower
Portelet Tower, Jersey, is a Martello tower that the British built in 1808 on the tidal island ''L'Île au Guerdain'' in Portelet Bay in the parish of Saint Brélade, Jersey. The site is often referred to as ''Janvrin's tower'' or ''Janvrin's Tomb ...
(1808)
*
La Tour de Vinde
La Tour de Vinde, (aka Noirmont Tower), is a Martello tower that the British erected between 1808 and 1810 to command the approaches to St Aubin's Bay, Jersey. The tower stands at the foot of the cliffs of Noirmont Point, in the Vingtaine de N ...
(AKA Noirmont; 1808–1814)
[Grimsley (1988), p.43.]
The four surviving, later towers are:
*
Lewis Tower (AKA St Ouen 1; 1835)
*
Kempt Tower
Kempt Tower, in La Grande Cueillette, Saint Ouen, Jersey, is also known as ''Saint Ouen No. 2'' and ''La Grôsse Tou'' in Jèrriais, and is a Martello tower that the British completed in 1834. It is named for Sir James Kempt, the Master-General ...
(AKA St Ouen 2; 1834)
*
La Collette Tower
LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States.
La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* La (musical note), or A, the sixth note
* "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...
– Absorbed into the 19th-century artificers' barracks and workshops
*
Victoria Tower
The Victoria Tower is a square tower at the south-west end of the Palace of Westminster in London, adjacent to Black Rod's Garden on the west and Old Palace Yard on the east. At , it is slightly taller than the Elizabeth Tower (formerly known ...
(1837)
In addition, there are a number of towers in Jersey (the
Jersey Round Tower
Jersey is a heavily fortified island with coastal fortifications that date to the English Civil War, the Napoleonic Wars, and Nazi Germany's occupation of the Channel Islands. The fortifications include castles, forts, towers, Martello towers, art ...
s), that are frequently referred to as Martello towers, though they are not Martellos. They were built in the late 18th century, i.e., before the Martellos, and differ from them in a number of ways. One may think of them as precursors,
like the Genoese towers they resemble.
Malta
The British never built any true Martello Towers in Malta. However,
Madliena Tower, which was one of thirteen
De Redin towers
The De Redin Towers ( mt, Torrijiet ta' De Redin) are a series of small coastal watchtowers built in Malta by the Order of Saint John between 1658 and 1659. Thirteen towers were built around the coast of mainland Malta, eight of which still surv ...
built in Malta in 1658–1659, began to be used as if it was a Martello Tower and it is sometimes considered as such. Various modifications were made, including mounting a 64-pound rifled muzzle loading (RML) gun on the roof for coastal defence. From the late 19th century onwards it defended part of the
Victoria Lines. The tower remained in use until World War II. It still stands today, despite having some minor modifications to its original structure, and it was recently restored.
Mauritius
The British built five Martello Towers between 1832 and 1835 at Grand River North West (2), Black River (2), and Port Louis (1), of which three survive.
One tower, named Cunningham Tower after Lieutenant-Colonel Cunningham, the commanding Royal Engineer, was constructed as part of Fort George at the northern side of the entrance to Port Louis harbour. Two towers were built at Grand River North West; on the south-west side of the river bay the tower was built at Pointe aux Sables whilst Fort Victoria was built covering the north-eastern flank. The remaining two were built to support existing batteries, which were also improved, at the mouth of the Black River; one to the north at La Preneuse and the other south of Grande-Rivière-Noire at Batterie de l'Harmonie. Cunningham Tower disappeared after 1914. The Tower at Fort Victoria was last mentioned in 1880. In 1865, the ''Mauritius Almanac and Civil Service Register'' listed "Two Artillery Men, at 1
s each per diem", for the towers at Fort George and Grand River. The Friends of the Environment have restored one Martello tower near the
La Preneuse
La Preneuse is a public beach in western coast of the island Mauritius in the district of Rivière Noire located in the village of Black River. It was named after a French ship, the frigate ''Preneuse'', which served as a commerce raider at Isl ...
public beach, in the Rive Noire/Black River district. The Friends operate it as a museum for visitors. The original entrance to the tower is raised above ground but a new entrance has been constructed at ground level. The other tower in Rive Noire/Black River district ''
’Harmonie' still exists but has remained neglected for many years. The other existing tower is at Pointe aux Sables, Grand River North West.
Sierra Leone
A Martello tower was built on Tower Hill at
Freetown
Freetown is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, educ ...
,
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierr ...
in 1805 to defend the port from attacks by the
Temne people. It was significantly modified in 1870 when it was truncated to allow the installation of a water tank to supply Government House (Fort Thornton) with water. The tower has now been incorporated into Sierra Leone's Parliament Buildings.
South Africa
The British built three Martello towers in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...
, one at
Simon's Town Naval base near
Cape Town
Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
, one at Cape Town, and the third at
Fort Beaufort. The tower at Simon's Town and Cape Town were both built in 1795. The tower at Cape Town was demolished over 100 years ago, but the tower at Simon's Town now is sometimes claimed as the oldest Martello in the world. It is arguable as to whether one should properly call it a Martello Tower.
That said,
Vice Admiral George Elphinstone
George Elphinstone of Blythswood (died 1634) was a Scottish landowner, courtier, and Provost of Glasgow.
Life
George Elphinstone was the son of George Elphinstone of Blythswood (died 2 April 1585), a leading Glasgow merchant and shipowner, and ...
, who commanded the force that captured the colony and then served briefly as its governor, had served with the Mediterranean fleet off Corsica in 1794.
The British built the tower at Fort Beaufort in 1837, and it is probably the only example of an inland Martello tower.
Spain
During the last period of British occupation (1798–1802) of
Menorca
Menorca or Minorca (from la, Insula Minor, , smaller island, later ''Minorica'') is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. Its name derives from its size, contrasting it with nearby Majorca. Its cap ...
, Sir
Charles Stuart, the then British governor, ordered Engineer Captain Robert D'Arcy to build some 12 Martello towers along the coast.
These, when added to the three Spanish towers already in place, gave Menorca 15 towers.
The British built five towers to protect
Mahón: Phillipet on Lazareto Island, Cala Taulera (St. Clair) and Los Freus (Erskine) on the peninsula of La Mola, Stuart's Tower, and a tower on the Punta de Sant Carlos, which the Spanish destroyed when they took regained possession of Menorca. To the northwest of Mahón the British built two more towers, Sa Torreta and Sa Mezquita.
One tower, the Princess Tower, or the Erskine Tower, was incorporated into the
Fortress of Isabel II
A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
, built between 1850 and 1875. The tower was converted to a powder magazine, which led to its destruction in 1958, when lightning struck the tower. The explosion destroyed the tower, blowing out large sections of its walls.
The British erected Stuart's Tower in 1798 on Turks Hill or Hangman's Hill to the south of the port of
Mahón at San Esteban or Saint Stephen's bay on the southern side of the
Fortress of San Felipe. In 1756 and again in 1781, batteries on the hill had supported successful attacks on the Fortress. The tower was built both to secure the hill and protect the entrance to the bay. The tower's name was later changed to Torre d'en Penjat, or Hangman's Tower.
To protect the harbor of
Fornells, the British built a tower on the rocky headland overlooking the harbor's mouth, and a small tower on the island of Sargantana. They complemented these two towers with two more small towers nearby, one at Sa Nitsa and one at Addaya.
Lastly, the British built one tower at Santandria to protect the old capital of
Ciutadella.
In addition to the 12 towers that they built, the British made use of three towers that the Spanish had built earlier.
[Grundy (1991).] In 1781, Captain Francisco Fernandez de Angulo had built towers south of Port Mahon at Punta Prima and Alcufar, based on the design of those that the Spanish had built in Gando,
Gran Canaria, in 1740. At
Ciutadella the British used the St. Nicholas's Tower, built in 1690. The
Treaty of Amiens returned Menorca to Spain in 1802. Around 1804, the Spanish built a tower at Punta Na Radona to protect the beach at
Son Bou, Menorca. In 1808, Captain
Lord Cochrane, commanding the 38-gun
fifth-rate frigate
A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat.
The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed an ...
, sent ashore a landing party that destroyed the unarmed tower. (
Frederick Marryat, later a naval captain and author, was serving as a
midshipman aboard ''Imperieuse'' at the time.)
(This fort has 17 walls.)
There are also four towers on the island of
Formentera, and one on the nearby island of
S'Empalmador ().
Another tower was erected by English troops stationed in the fortress of
Cartagena, during the
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spai ...
. The tower was erected in the center of 1799 fort, in mount St. Julian, dominating port and mouth. In the summer of 1812 English engineers destroyed the fort and erected a tower.
The later constructions that gave rise to the present fortress of
San Julián is still in good condition and is used as a base for telephone aerials and antennas. The interior, which is only accessible to technicians, is supposedly well preserved.
Saint Helena
There is a Martello tower at
Saint Helena that was incorporated into
High Knoll Fort. The tower was very similar in design to the tower at Simon's Town, with a diameter of about and a height of approximately .
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
has one
Martello tower, located at
Hambantota
Hambantota ( si, හම්බන්තොට, ta, அம்பாந்தோட்டை) is the main town in Hambantota District, Southern Province, Sri LankaThe prominent Malays (මැලේ) most part of the population is to be partly de ...
on the south coast, which was restored in 1999. This tower may have been involved in repelling a French attack though there is nothing more than circumstantial support for the notion. British engineers commenced work on three towers to protect
Trincomalee but never completed them.
United States
The
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
government built several Martello towers at locations along the eastern seaboard. Two are at
Key West, Florida; others were built at the harbours of
Portsmouth, New Hampshire,
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...
and
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. Two more Martello towers stood at
Tybee Island, Georgia
Tybee Island is a city and a barrier island located in Chatham County, Georgia, 18 miles (29 km) east of Savannah, United States. Though the name "Tybee Island" is used for both the island and the city, geographically they are not identica ...
and Bayou Dupre,
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is bord ...
.
Although the Americans copied the design from the towers the British erected in Canada, the American Martello towers differed in some significant respects from the British. The Martello tower built at
Tybee Island, Georgia
Tybee Island is a city and a barrier island located in Chatham County, Georgia, 18 miles (29 km) east of Savannah, United States. Though the name "Tybee Island" is used for both the island and the city, geographically they are not identica ...
was constructed around 1815 utilizing wood and
tabby
A tabby is any domestic cat (''Felis catus'') with a distinctive 'M'-shaped marking on its forehead; stripes by its eyes and across its cheeks, along its back, and around its legs and tail; and (differing by tabby type), characteristic striped, d ...
, a common local building material at the time, instead of the brick or stone that the British towers used. Also unlike the British towers, the Tybee tower featured
gun loops on the garrison floor that enabled
muskets to be fired through the walls.
It was never tested in battle and by the time of the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...
was in a state of disrepair. Its unfamiliar design confused local writers, who often said that the Spanish had built the tower when Georgia was Spain's colony.
The Key West towers, though the locals refer to them as Martellos, were square instead of round and had thin walls with long gun loops. In addition, a curtain wall of heavy guns encircled the Key West towers making them, effectively, keeps instead of standalone towers.
A Martello tower figures in the arms of the
41st Infantry Regiment of the United States Army.
List of Martello towers outside Great Britain
See also
*
Blockhouse
*
Fortified tower
A fortified tower (also defensive tower or castle tower or, in context, just tower) is one of the defensive structures used in fortifications, such as castles, along with curtain walls. Castle towers can have a variety of different shapes and fu ...
* Scottish
Broch
A broch is an Iron Age drystone hollow-walled structure found in Scotland. Brochs belong to the classification "complex Atlantic roundhouse" devised by Scottish archaeologists in the 1980s. Their origin is a matter of some controversy.
Origin ...
Lists:
*
List of castles
__NOTOC__
This is a list of castles from around the world.
By country
Africa
* Castles in Ghana
* Castles in South Africa
Americas
* Castles in Brazil
* Castles in Canada
* Castles in Mexico
* Castles in the United States
Asia ...
*
List of fortifications
*
List of forts
This is a list for articles on notable historic forts which may or may not be under
current active use by a military. There are also many towns named after a Fort, the largest being Fort Worth, Texas, United States.
Antigua and Barbuda
* Fort ...
Notes, citations, and references
Notes
Citations
References
* Abram, David (2003) ''The Rough Guide to Corsica'' Rough Guides.
* Bolton, J., Carey, T., Goodbody, R. & Clabby, G. (2012) The Martello Towers of Dublin. (Dublin: Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown & Fingal County Council).
* Brock, B.B. & Brock, B.G. (1976) ''Historical Simon's Town''. (Cape Town).
* Ciucevich, Robert A. (2005) ''Tybee Island: The Long Branch of the South'' (Arcadia Publishing).
* Clements, William H. (1998) ''Towers of Strength: Story of Martello Towers''. (London: Pen & Sword). .
*
* Grimsley, E.J. (1988) ''The Historical Development of the Martello Tower in the Channel Islands''. (Sarnian Publications).
*
*
*
*
*
* Rooke, Octavius (1857) ''The Channel islands: pictorial, legendary and descriptive''.
* Saunders, Ivan J. (1976) "A History of the Martello Towers in the Defence of British North America, 1796–1871", ''Occasional Papers in Archaeology and History'' #15, National Historic Parks and Sites Branch, Thorn Press Limited.
* Sutcliffe, Sheila (1973) ''Martello Towers''. (Cranbury, NJ: Associated Universities Press).
* Vigano, M. (2001) ''Fort'' (
Fortress Study Group) 29.
*
External links
Martello Towers EncyclopediaMartello Tower No.24 in Dymchurch, KentYouTube video showing a 3D reconstruction of a Martello towerEnglish Heritage Report into Martello Towers on the East Coast of EnglandLocation list and explanatory article of most Martello towers in the UK, with picturesCarleton Martello Tower National Historic Site of Canada The Dymchurch tower: English HeritageNote on Sir John Moore– pictures of the original tower at Mortella
Mortella Point (Punta Mortella) in Corsica– the ancestor of Martello towers all over the world
Restoration of an Irish Martello tower''The Genie Gazette'', Newsletter of th
Genealogical Society of Ireland Seapoint Martello Tower, County Dublin
Eastbourne Redoubt Fortress Military Museum
{{Fortifications , state=expanded
Coastal fortifications
Forts in Key West, Florida
Round towers