Charles Fort () is a ''

trace italienne A bastion fort or ''trace italienne'' (a phrase derived from non-standard French, meaning 'Italian outline') is a fortification in a style developed during the early modern period in response to the ascendancy of gunpowder weapons such as c ...

'' fortification, a bastion fort with one section of the outer wall built in star fashion. It is located at the southern end of the village of Summer Cove, on

Kinsale Kinsale ( ; ) is a historic port and fishing town in County Cork, Ireland. Located approximately south of Cork (city), Cork City on the southeast coast near the Old Head of Kinsale, it sits at the mouth of the River Bandon, and has a populatio ...

harbour,

County Cork County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. First completed in 1682, Charles Fort was sometimes historically referred to as the "new fort", to contrast with

James' Fort James Fort () is an early 17th-century bastion fort, pentagonal bastion fort located on Castlepark peninsula in Kinsale harbour, County Cork, Ireland. Situated downstream from Kinsale on the River Bandon, the fort was built to defend the harbou ...

(the "old fort") which had been built on the other side of Kinsale harbour before 1607. The fort is now operated as a

heritage tourism Heritage tourism is a branch of tourism centered around the exploration and appreciation of a region's cultural, historical and environmental heritage. This form of tourism includes both tangible elements, such as historically significant sites, ...

site by the

Heritage Ireland The Office of Public Works (OPW) (; legally the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland) is a major Government of Ireland, Irish Government agency, which manages most of the Irish State's property portfolio, including hundreds of owned and ren ...

arm of the Office of Public Works.

History

Charles Fort was built on the site of the ruins of an earlier stronghold known as Barry Óg Castle, at Rincurran. The Ringcurran defences had featured prominently during the

Siege of Kinsale The siege of Kinsale (), also known as the battle of Kinsale, was the ultimate battle in England's conquest of Gaelic Ireland, commencing in October 1601, near the end of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, and at the climax of the Nine Years' War� ...

in 1601. The new fort, which is named after Charles II, was designed by the Surveyor-general Sir William Robinson – architect of the Royal Hospital Kilmainham. Additional site structures are attributed to engineer Captain Thomas Philips. The fort was built between 1677 and 1682 to a design which included elements similar to

star fort A bastion fort or ''trace italienne'' (a phrase derived from non-standard French, meaning 'Italian outline') is a fortification in a style developed during the early modern period in response to the ascendancy of gunpowder weapons such as c ...

ifications; a layout specifically designed to resist attack by cannon. It became known as the "new fort" – to contrast with

(the "old fort") which had been built on the other side of Kinsale harbour between 1602 and 1607. An early lighthouse was established here in the 17th century by

Robert Reading Sir Robert Reading, first and last Baronet Reading, (c. 1640 – c. March 1689) built several privately owned lighthouses in Ireland under letters patent from Charles II of England. He was educated at Christ Church, Oxford, receiving a BA i ...

, and additional works (including the development of internal "

citadel A citadel is the most fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of ''city'', meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core. ...

" defences) were added through the 18th and 19th centuries. The fort remained in use as a

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

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 ...

for two hundred years afterwards, before being relinquished by British forces following the

Anglo-Irish Treaty The 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty (), commonly known in Ireland as The Treaty and officially the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was an agreement between the government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain an ...

of 1921. The fort fell out of use after being burned by retreating anti-Treaty forces during the

Irish Civil War The Irish Civil War (; 28 June 1922 – 24 May 1923) was a conflict that followed the Irish War of Independence and accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State, an entity independent from the United Kingdom but within the British Emp ...

in 1922.

Architecture

Charles Fort is an example of a

pentagon In geometry, a pentagon () is any five-sided polygon or 5-gon. The sum of the internal angles in a simple polygon, simple pentagon is 540°. A pentagon may be simple or list of self-intersecting polygons, self-intersecting. A self-intersecting ...

ally

bastion A bastion is a structure projecting outward from the curtain wall of a fortification, most commonly angular in shape and positioned at the corners of the fort. The fully developed bastion consists of two faces and two flanks, with fire from the ...

ed fort. The five bastions are named, in turn, the "Kinsale" (also known as the "Devil's"), the "Charles", the "Cockpit", the "Flagstaff" and the "North". The "Kinsale" and the "Charles" – the seaward bastions – are more substantial than the other three, as it was expected that the fort would be attacked from sea. With a focus on seaward defence, the landward and inland bastions of the fort are overlooked by higher ground. This weakness was of critical importance when the fort was subject to a 13-day siege in 1690 during the

Williamite War in Ireland The Williamite War in Ireland took place from March 1689 to October 1691. Fought between Jacobitism, Jacobite supporters of James II of England, James II and those of his successor, William III of England, William III, it resulted in a Williamit ...

John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough General (United Kingdom), General John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, 1st Prince of Mindelheim, 1st Count of Nellenburg, Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, (26 May 1650 – 16 June 1722 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) was a Briti ...

(then 1st Earl) besieged Cork and captured Kinsale and its forts. Repairs were made following the siege.

Tourism development

The complex remained largely derelict for some time, but was named a National Monument of Ireland in 1971. Over the coming decades several sections of the fort were restored by Dúchas, the Irish heritage service. Restoration and development of the complex was later taken-over by the

Office of Public Works The Office of Public Works (OPW) (; legally the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland) is a major Government of Ireland, Irish Government agency, which manages most of the Irish State's property portfolio, including hundreds of owned and ren ...

(OPW), including the development of an exhibition space in the former commander's quarters. Charles Fort is one of the most visited OPW sites in the region, attracting in excess of 86,000 visitors in 2015.

Gallery

File:Kinsale-fortress.panorama.jpg, Fortifications File:Charlesfort (201000489).jpeg, Entrance File:CharlesFortCannon20041204Blorg.JPG, Carronades in the fort File:View from Guard House in Charles Fort.jpg, View from guard house File:Digital Eye-2014-Charles Fort-5.jpg, View of officer's house File:Kinsale 1714 (Moll).jpg , Kinsale Harbour in 1714, before the Royal Navy moved their operations to Cork

References

{{reflist Buildings and structures in County Cork Forts in the Republic of Ireland Tourist attractions in County Cork National monuments in County Cork Kinsale

History

Architecture

Tourism development

Gallery

See also

References