Fort Fleur d'Epee

Fort Fleur d'Épée was built in the eighteenth century on a hill above what is now Gosier to command the approaches to Pointe-à-Pitre, and it was fought over between French and British forces in the 1790s. Its ditches and galleries are cut into the limestone rather than built up, and the underground passages can be walked. The terrace gives a view over the bay to Les Saintes and, on a clear day, Dominica.

History

Fort Louis, built at the end of the 17th century, could not cover all the anchorages of Pointe-à-Pitre, so around 1763, after the Seven Years' War, the engineer Labbé de Talsy set up a battery of 18 heavy guns on the Morne Fleur d'Épée. Facing the threat of a British attack after the French Revolution, Governor Collot had it hastily turned into a fort. The British took it on 2 April 1794; on 6-7 June a French force under Victor Hugues and General Rouyer won it back, helped by people freed by the abolition decree of 4 February 1794, and by 11 December the British had been driven out of Guadeloupe. The fort was strengthened again in 1801-1802, during the uprisings against Napoleon's restoration of slavery and the revolt led by Louis Delgrès, given its ditch, rampart and drawbridge in the 1830s, and recommended for abandonment in 1854; it has been a protected historic monument since 1979 (Wikipedia, Fort Fleur d'épée).

What to look for

• The rock-cut ditches - defences cut down into the limestone rather than built up.
• The underground galleries - passages cut through the rock beneath the fort.
• The bay view - Gosier, the islets and Les Saintes beyond.
• The 1790s fighting - the contest between French and British forces here.

When to go

December to April is the dry season. Mornings are coolest. The fort is free and open in daylight.

Good to know

Interpretation is limited and mostly in French. The galleries are dark and a torch helps. Parts of the site are overgrown.

Nearby

Ilet du Gosier is offshore, and Pointe-a-Pitre is west.

Key facts