The Queen's Staircase is a walkway of 65 steps (originally 66) in Nassau, the capital city of

The Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of ...

. It was carved out of solid

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

by 600 slaves between 1793 and 1794 to create a direct route from Fort Fincastle to Nassau. It was later named for

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

of the

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the union of the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland into one sovereign state, established by the Acts of Union 1800, Acts of Union in 1801. It continued in this form until ...

in the 19th century, and is now a popular landmark of Nassau.

Description

The Queen's Staircase is located within the Fort Fincastle Historic Complex and leads to Fort Fincastle itself, which is situated partially on Bennet's Hill, the highest point of Nassau. Bennet's Hill is located in Downtown Nassau, next to Princess Margaret Hospital and the Grosvenor campus of the

University of The Bahamas The University of The Bahamas (UB) is the national Public university, public institution of higher education in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas with campuses throughout the archipelago. The main campus is located in the capital city of Nassau, Bah ...

. The Queen's Staircase has a total rise of and a step-count of 65 (formerly 66). It has water cascading alongside its steps to a pool below. The base of the stairs leads to a walkway that goes between high

stone walls Stone walls are a kind of masonry construction that has been used for thousands of years. The first stone walls were constructed by farmers and primitive people by piling loose field stones into a dry stone wall. Later, mortar and plaste ...

tropical plants Tropical vegetation is any vegetation in tropical latitudes. Plant life that occurs in climates that are warm year-round is in general more biologically diverse than in other latitudes. Some tropical areas may receive abundant rain the whole y ...

and

tropical trees Tropical vegetation is any vegetation in tropical latitudes. Plant life that occurs in climates that are warm year-round is in general more biologically diverse than in other latitudes. Some tropical areas may receive abundant rain the whole y ...

History

A group of 600 slaves began construction in 1793 on a staircase and road to connect Fort Fincastlecompleted that same yearto Nassau below. With limited tools, the slaves were forced to carve into solid

to fabricate the stairs and road. The staircase was later named in the 19th century in honour of

of the

, who ended slavery in the

British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...

. Although tour guides often claim that the number of steps correspond with the number of years Queen Victoria ruled, this is untrue; Queen Victoria reigned for a little under 64 years, from 1837 to 1901.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Queen's Staircase – Nassau Buildings and structures in Nassau, Bahamas

Description

History

See also

References