O'Hara's Tower was a

watchtower A watchtower or guardtower (also spelt watch tower, guard tower) is a type of military/paramilitary or policiary tower used for guarding an area. Sometimes fortified, and armed with heavy weaponry, especially historically, the structures are ...

in the

British Overseas Territory The British Overseas Territories (BOTs) or alternatively referred to as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs) are the fourteen dependent territory, territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom that, ...

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

. It was located at the highest point of the

Rock of Gibraltar The Rock of Gibraltar (from the Arabic name Jabal Ṭāriq , meaning "Mountain of Tariq ibn Ziyad, Tariq") is a monolithic limestone mountain high dominating the western entrance to the Mediterranean Sea. It is situated near the end of a nar ...

, at what is now

O'Hara's Battery O'Hara's Battery is an artillery battery in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar. It is located at the highest point of the Rock of Gibraltar, near the southern end of the Upper Rock Nature Reserve, in close proximity to Lord Airey's Bat ...

, near the southern end of the

Upper Rock Nature Reserve The Gibraltar Nature Reserve (formerly the Upper Rock Nature Reserve) is a protected area, protected nature reserve in the British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar that covers over 40% of the territory's land area. ...

. Initially known as St. George's Tower, it was constructed in the late 18th century on the order of then Lieutenant Governor

Charles O'Hara General Charles O'Hara (1740 – 25 February 1802) was a British Army officer who served in the Seven Years' War, the American War of Independence, and the French Revolutionary War and later served as governor of Gibraltar. He served with d ...

, under the presumption that it would be useful in observing the enemy at the Port of Cadiz. Not only was it unsuccessful; it was struck by lightning shortly after it was built, and remained in ruins for much of the 19th century until its demolition in 1888. Formerly referred to as ''St. George's Tower'', it came to be known as O'Hara's Tower or, frequently, O'Hara's Folly.

History

O'Hara's Tower was in Gibraltar, the British Overseas Territory at the southern end of the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

. The watchtower was located at the summit of the Rock of Gibraltar near what is now O'Hara's Battery in the southern end of the Upper Rock Nature Reserve, at an altitude of . It was positioned at the southern terminus of the current O'Hara's Road, known as O'Hara's Point. The tower had first been proposed by General Charles O'Hara, then Lieutenant Governor, who served as

Governor of Gibraltar The governor of Gibraltar is the representative of the British monarch in the British overseas territories, British overseas territory of Gibraltar. The governor is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the British government. The role of ...

from 1795 to 1802. He was notorious for having surrendered to both

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

and

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

, at Yorktown (1781) and

Toulon Toulon (, , ; , , ) is a city in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the French Riviera and the historical Provence, it is the prefecture of the Var (department), Var department. The Commune of Toulon h ...

(1793), respectively. O'Hara had been of the opinion that a tower at The Rock's summit would enable the garrison to observe the activity of the Spanish fleet at the Port of Cadiz, about away. He was alone in this belief; despite this, with persistence, he succeeded in having the tower built. It was constructed of hewn stone and iron between 1787 and 1791. However, others' concerns were justified, as it turned out that Cadiz was not visible from the tower due to the elevation of intervening mountains. Not long after the tower's construction, it was hit by lightning during a violent storm and severely damaged. One of the tower's sentinels died in the lightning strike. By 1811 the tower had garnered the nickname of "O'Hara's Folly", bestowed by the garrison. O'Hara's Tower was in ruins through much of the remainder of the 19th century.

Demolition

O'Hara's Tower had been scheduled for demolition in 1888. The details of its demolition vary slightly. In one account, the tower came down that year as a result of target practice by the crew of . In another, there was a wager between the gunners of the garrison and the officers of HMS ''Wasp''. The men of HMS ''Wasp'' adjusted their guns such that they were able to target at a high elevation, and brought down the tower with their sixth shot. However this is unlikely due to the fact HMS Wasp (1880) foundered in 1884 and HMS Wasp (1886) was lost with all hands in 1887. Following demolition of the tower, O'Hara's Battery was constructed on the same site, with the first 6-inch breech-loading gun installed on a Vavasseur mounting in 1890.

Gallery

File:The Governor's Villa with O'Hara's Tower.png, The Governor's Villa, now known as Governor's Cottage. O'Hara's Tower. File:Windmill Hill and O'Hara's Tower.png, Windmill Hill and O'Hara's Tower at the south end of

. File:Crew of HMS Wasp.png, The crew of HMS ''Wasp'' that brought down O'Hara's Tower in 1888.

References

External links

Google map of the former location of O'Hara's Tower, now the site of O'Hara's Battery
{{Fortifications of Gibraltar Fortifications in Gibraltar Observation towers Former towers Towers completed in 1791 Buildings and structures demolished in 1888 Demolished buildings and structures in Gibraltar