The National Museum of Bermuda, previously the Bermuda Maritime Museum from its opening in 1974 until 2009 (legislatively formalised in 2013), explores the maritime and island history of

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = " Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , e ...

. The

maritime museum A maritime museum (sometimes nautical museum) is a museum specializing in the display of objects relating to ships and travel on large bodies of water. A subcategory of maritime museums are naval museums, which focus on navies and the militar ...

is located within the grounds of the fortress Keep of the former Royal Naval Dockyard in

Sandys Parish Sandys Parish ( "sands") is one of the nine parishes of Bermuda. It is named for English aristocrat Sir Edwin Sandys (1561–1629), and hence there is no apostrophe in the name. It is located in the south west of the island chain, occupying the ...

on the

Ireland Island Ireland Island is the north-westernmost island in the chain which comprises Bermuda. It forms a long finger of land pointing northeastwards from the main island, the last link in a chain which also includes Boaz Island and Somerset Island. It ...

at the western end of Bermuda. The museum publishes a number of books relating to Bermuda's history.

History

After the English colonies in North America had established their

independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...

, Bermuda was developed as a major British naval base to control the sea lanes to North America. The Dockyard construction started in 1809 and continued for a century. Buildings of the Keep were constructed using the local

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

. Work was done initially by slaves, later by convicts, prisoners, and laborers imported from the West Indies. The dockyard closed in the late fifties, and buildings started to fall into disrepair. In 1974 the Bermuda Maritime Museum took over the site of the Keep and restoration began. The museum changed its name in 2009 to reflect its broader national focus; this name change was formalised in 2013 after an amendment was made to the Museum's Act.

Buildings

The Keep of the dockyard was its

citadel A citadel is the core fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of "city", meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core. In ...

and

arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

and protected it against potential attacks from land or sea. Defenses include

bastion A bastion or bulwark is a structure projecting outward from the curtain wall of a fortification, most commonly angular in shape and positioned at the corners of the fort. The fully developed bastion consists of two faces and two flanks, with fi ...

s "A" to "G", ramparts and casemats, equipped with numerous guns including now displayed 24-pounder and 32-pounder

carronade A carronade is a short, smoothbore, cast-iron cannon which was used by the Royal Navy. It was first produced by the Carron Company, an ironworks in Falkirk, Scotland, and was used from the mid-18th century to the mid-19th century. Its main func ...

s, 6-inch shell guns and magazine breech-loading guns. The Keep Yard is surrounded on three sides by buildings and magazines; the fourth side is the location of a statue of Neptune. The 1837 Shifting House once stored muskets and gunpowder. Among the storage facilities are the 1850 Ordnance Building that stored 4,860 kegs of gunpowder on a floor of non-sparking

bitumen Asphalt, also known as bitumen (, ), is a sticky, black, highly viscous liquid or semi-solid form of petroleum. It may be found in natural deposits or may be a refined product, and is classed as a pitch. Before the 20th century, the term a ...

, the 1852 Ordnance House, and the 1853/1890 Ordnance House. The 1870 High Cave magazine is located above a now flooded cave. The Commissioner's House takes a commanding position at the center of the Keep. Designed by Edward Holl, it was erected within five years in the 1820s as the world's first residence using

prefabricated Prefabrication is the practice of assembling components of a structure in a factory or other manufacturing site, and transporting complete assemblies or sub-assemblies to the construction site where the structure is to be located. The term is u ...

cast-iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...

for its structural framework. It decayed after the departure of the British, but after the museum took control in 1974, it has been restored over a period of 25 years.

Exhibits

The Commissioner's House is used to display a number of exhibitions. The basement shows ''Bermuda's Defence Heritage'', a display about Bermuda's defenses and fortifications since 1612, and the role of local forces in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

(this is devoted only to the British aspect of Bermuda's naval and military history, although there is a separate exhibit devoted to the United States bases). The pillared hall is site of a two-storey ''History of Bermuda'' mural by the Bermudian artist Graham Foster. The main floor has a number of themes related to Bermuda's history including

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

, and

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...

. One room is dedicated to the history of the

Bermuda Race The Newport Bermuda Race, commonly known as the ''Bermuda Race'', is a biennial, 635 nautical miles (1175 km) sailing yacht race from Newport, Rhode Island to the British island of Bermuda. According to its website, the Race is the oldest r ...

. The upper floor contains collections of maps, books, coins, maritime art, and exhibits concerning activities of the Royal Navy and the US Forces, specifically during World War II. Other buildings show

shipwreck A shipwreck is the wreckage of a ship that is located either beached on land or sunken to the bottom of a body of water. Shipwrecking may be intentional or unintentional. Angela Croome reported in January 1999 that there were approximately ...

artifacts, local watercraft, or are under renovation (2009). The High Cave magazine displays artifacts relating to prisoners from the

Boer Wars The military history of South Africa chronicles a vast time period and complex events from the dawn of history until the present time. It covers civil wars and wars of aggression and of self-defence both within South Africa and against it. It in ...

, and World Wars I and II. A small building, the Dainty/ 1906 RA Store, shows yacht ''Dainty'', once a local participant of the

, that was built more than a century ago and at least three-times restored. The Keep Pond once used to transport ammunition from outside anchored ships to the fortress is now home of the ''Dolphin Quest'', a place where visitors can interact with dolphins.Dolphin Quest, Bermuda
/ref> Bermudadockyard

Film

The 1850 Ordnance Building interior, also called the Queen's Exhibition Hall, appeared as the fictitious 'Hamilton Library' in the 1977 adventure movie '' The Deep''. The scene, starring

Jacqueline Bisset Winifred Jacqueline Fraser Bisset ( ; born 13 September 1944) is a British actress. She began her film career in 1965 and first came to prominence in 1968 with roles in '' The Detective'', ''Bullitt'', and ''The Sweet Ride'', for which she rec ...

and

Nick Nolte Nicholas King Nolte (born February 8, 1941) is an American actor. He won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for the 1991 film ''The Prince of Tides''. He received ...

, was filmed in October 1976, at the location of the real Tucker Cross crime scene. The emerald-studded 22 karat gold cross had been discovered stolen when

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

came to name the building on February 17, 1975. Bermudian explorer
Teddy Tucker
appears in cameo during the film.

References

External links