Castle Harbour is a large natural

harbour A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be Mooring, moored. The t ...

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

. It is located between the northeastern end of the main island and St. David's Island. Originally called ''Southampton Port'', it was renamed as a result of its heavy fortification in the early decades of the Seventeenth century.

Geography

Castle Harbour is surrounded by St. George's Parish to the north, east, and south, as well as Hamilton Parish to the west. A chain of islands and rocks stretches across the main opening to the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

, in the east, notably Cooper's Island (which was made a landmass contiguous to St. David's Island and Longbird Island in the 1940s), and Nonsuch Island. The only channel suitable for large vessels to enter the harbour from the open Atlantic is Castle Roads, which was historically guarded by a number of fortifications, on Castle Island, Southampton Island, and Charles Island. Forts were also placed nearby on other small islands, and on the Tucker's Town peninsula of the Main Island. In the west,

The Causeway The Causeway is an arterial traffic crossing in Perth, Western Australia, linking the inner-city suburbs of East Perth, Western Australia, East Perth and Victoria Park, Western Australia, Victoria Park. It is carried over the Swan River (Weste ...

crosses from the main island to St. David's Island, and beyond this a stretch of water known as Ferry Reach connects the harbour with St. George's Harbour to the north, where Bermuda's first permanent settlement, St. George's Town, was founded in 1612. An unincorporated settlement, Tucker's Town, was established on the

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

of the Main Island at the south-west of the harbour. The settlement was cleared by

compulsory purchase order A compulsory purchase order (CPO; , ) is a legal function in the United Kingdom and Ireland that allows certain bodies to obtain land or property without the consent of the owner. It may be enforced if a proposed development is considered one for ...

in the 1920s in order to create a luxury enclave where homes could be purchased by wealthy foreigners, and the attendant Mid Ocean Golf Club. In Hamilton Parish, on the western shore of the harbour, lies Walsingham Bay, the site where, in 1609-10, the crew of the wrecked ''

Sea Venture ''Sea Venture'' was a seventeenth-century English sailing ship, part of the Third Supply mission flotilla to the Jamestown Colony in 1609. She was the 300 ton flagship of the London Company. During the voyage to Virginia, ''Sea Venture'' encount ...

'' built and launched the ''Patience'', one of two ships built, which carried most of the survivors of the wrecking to Jamestown,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, in 1610. The ''Patience'' returned to Bermuda with Admiral Sir George Somers, who died in Bermuda later that year. There are many islands and beach areas in the harbour, and numerous subterranean waterways link its waters with that of

Harrington Sound Harrington Sound is a large inland body of water in the northeast of the main island of Bermuda. It is surrounded by the main island on all sides, only appearing open to the ocean via a small channel called Flatt's Inlet, Bermuda, Flatt's Inlet ...

in the southwest, notably Crystal Cave.

Climate

Castle Islands

PSM V60 D034 Ruined fort on castle island bermuda

Several of the islands were fortified in the early days of the territory, hence the harbour's name. When official settlement of the archipelago by England began in 1612 (unofficial settlement having begun with the 1609 wrecking of the ''

'') the first permanent town, St. George's (then called ''New London'') was placed on the north side of St. George's Harbour. St. George's Harbour could be accessed directly by channels from the East. Those channels, however, were shallow, suitable, originally, only for small ships. As a consequence, and despite any major settlement on its shores, Castle Harbour was an important anchorage in the early years of the colony, with its main entrance, Castle Roads being an important route in from the open Atlantic for shipping. It was also a weak point, as it was remote from the defences of St. George's Harbour, and difficult to reach. It was quickly fortified and garrisoned by a standing militia.Adventure guide to Bermuda – Google Books
/ref> Initial fortification by the Virginia Company's (Bermuda was originally settled as an extension of

) first deliberate settlers in 1612, was around the inlets to St. George's Harbour, but by the end of that year work had commenced on Castle Harbour's defences, starting at Castle Island (previously called ''Gurnett's Head'', and ''King's Island''. As a temporary measure, two guns had been salvaged from the 1609 wreck of the ''

'', one of which was installed on Castle Island ) in 1612. Proper fortifications were soon raised under the instructions of Governor Richard Moore. King's Castle is, today, the oldest surviving English fortification in the

New World The term "New World" is used to describe the majority of lands of Earth's Western Hemisphere, particularly the Americas, and sometimes Oceania."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: ...

. It is Bermuda's oldest standing stone building, predating the State House. Its ''Captain's House'', built a year after the State House, in 1621, is the oldest stone home in Bermuda. It is also the oldest standing English house in the New World. In 1614, King's Castle famously repulsed Spain's only ever attack on Bermuda. Two shots were fired from its

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

. Although neither struck, the Spanish vessel abandoned the attack (its crew did not realise that the gunners in the fort had only enough ammunition for one more shot). This fort was used as late as the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

by Bermuda's military garrison, with soldiers living in tents within its walls, watching over the channels with machine guns. Other forts built at the south of Castle Harbour included ''Devonshire Redoubt'' (1620) and the ''Landward Fort'', on Castle Island, ''Southampton Fort'' (1620), on Southampton Island (originally known as ''Moore's Island'' and ''Brangman's Island''), at the east side of Castle Roads, ''Old Castle'', or ''Charles' Fort'', (1615), on Goat Island, ''Pembroke Fort'', on Cooper's Island, and Fort Bruere, on the Main Island.

Other fortifications on Castle Harbour

At Ferry Reach, on the north of Castle Harbour (an area now separated by the

Causeway A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet T ...

), ''Burnt Point Fort'', or ''Ferry Point Battery'' (1688), and ''Ferry Island Fort'' (1790s) were built,Bermuda Attractions: Ferry Island Fort
/ref> and, much later, in 1822, a

Martello Tower Martello towers are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards. Most were coastal forts. They stand up to high (with two floors) and typica ...

. The island chain across the south of Castle Harbour is often referred to as the ''Castle Islands''. Their fortifications are the oldest surviving English New World fortifications (due primarily to their having been constructed of stone, whereas contemporary English fortifications on the North American continent were built from timber and earth). They were also the first English coastal fortifications in the New World. As a result of their historical significance, they have been made 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 ...

, together with St. George's Town. Castle Harbour is the only breeding ground in the world of the famous rare seabird, the

Bermuda petrel The Bermuda petrel (''Pterodroma cahow'') is a gadfly petrel. Commonly known in Bermuda as the cahow, a name derived from its eerie cries, this nocturnal ground-nesting seabird is the national bird of Bermuda, pictured on Bermudian currency. Berm ...

or cahow. The north of the harbour was altered considerably during the Second World War, when the US Army built a large airbase, Kindley Field, which is today the

Bermuda International Airport L.F. Wade International Airport , formerly named Bermuda International Airport, is the sole airport serving the British Overseas Territories, British overseas territory of Bermuda in the north Atlantic Ocean. It is located in the parish of St. Ge ...

. This involved the levelling of Longbird Island, and several smaller islets, and infilling waterways and much of the harbour to create a land mass contiguous with St. David's Island and Cooper's Island.

References

External links

{{Commonscat, Castle Harbour, Bermuda Geography of Bermuda Hamilton Parish St. George's Parish, Bermuda Martello towers World War II sites in Bermuda Ports and harbours of Bermuda