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Shirley Heights is an historic military compound in 
Antigua
Antigua ( ; ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the local population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the most populous island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua ...
. It was built in the 1780s to protect the Naval Dockyard
A naval base, navy base, or military port is a military base, where warships and naval ships are docked when they have no mission at sea or need to restock. Ships may also undergo repairs. Some naval bases are temporary homes to aircraft that usu ...
in English Harbour
English Harbour is a natural harbour and settlement on the island of Antigua in the Caribbean, in the extreme south of the island. The settlement takes its name from the nearby harbour in which the Royal Navy established its base of operations fo ...
. It is part of Nelson's Dockyard National Park and part of a UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
World Heritage Site
World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
.
History
In 1781,Thomas Shirley
Sir Thomas Shirley (c. 1564 – c. 1634) was an English soldier, adventurer and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1584 and 1622. His financial difficulties drove him into privateering which culminated in his cap ...
, recently appointed Governor of the Leeward Islands, urged the local government to fortify the area around and above English Harbour in order to protect the naval Dockyard. By 1788, construction had begun on and around the area known as The Ridge, which overlooked the harbour. The military compound built there became known as Shirley Heights.
Between 1781 and 1825, more than 50 structures were built at Shirley Heights. These included a fort (Fort Shirley) with barracks
Barracks are buildings used to accommodate military personnel and quasi-military personnel such as police. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word 'soldier's tent', but today barracks ar ...
, officers' quarters, powder magazines
A magazine is an item or place within which ammunition or other explosive material is stored. The word is taken originally from the Arabic word ''makhāzin'' (مخازن), meaning "storehouses", via Italian and Middle French.
The term is also u ...
, guard house, signal station, canteen, and cemetery. The Antiguan government funded construction of Shirley Heights through 1790, after which they refused to continue financing the project. From 1790, the British government funded the completion of the construction, due to growing fears of an attack by the French.
In 1803, 700 men on 13 schooners
A schooner ( ) is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail ...
went sent from Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre Island, Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Guadeloupe, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galant ...
to attack Antigua. Their attack was unsuccessful, as they were defeated by a British frigate
A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied.
The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...
. This was the only attack on Antigua by the French. After Napoleon's defeat in 1814, use of the compound and the dockyards below was scaled back.
Shirley Heights accommodated troops through the 1850s. In the 1830s, Fort Shirley was garrisoned by the 86th Regiment, who were replaced by 180 soldiers of the 36th Foot in 1833. In 1854, the last regiment
A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation.
In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...
left for reassignment in Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...
. There is evidence that some of the remaining facilities were used in the 1920s as an asylum
Asylum may refer to:
Types of asylum
* Asylum (antiquity), places of refuge in ancient Greece and Rome
* Benevolent asylum, a 19th-century Australian institution for housing the destitute
* Cities of Refuge, places of refuge in ancient Judea
* ...
. Since then, all of the structures fell into ruin, although restoration efforts have taken place in the late 20th and early 21st century.
In 1984, Shirley Heights became part of Nelson's Dockyard National Park. In 2016, it became part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as UNESCO recognized the English Harbour dockyard and the surrounding military archaeological sites together as The Antigua Naval Dockyard and Related Archaeological Sites.
Restoration
Some stabilization efforts have been undertaken at Shirley Heights. In 2010 and 2011, the Blockhouse was stabilized. In the 1980s, the military lookout buildings overlooking English Harbour were restored and turned into a restaurant. The restaurant, called Shirley Heights Lookout Restaurant, is known for the event it hosts for locals and tourists every Sunday, with live music along with food and drinks.References