Fort Énet (, also spelled ''fort Énet'' in French) is a fortification in the

Pertuis d'Antioche The Pertuis d'Antioche (, ''Passage of Antioch'') is a strait on the Atlantic coast of Western France between two islands; Île de Ré to the north, and Oléron to the south. To the east lies the continental coast between the cities of La Rochelle ...

, in

Charente-Maritime Charente-Maritime (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Chérente-Marine''; ) is a Departments of France, department in the French Regions of France, region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, on the country's west coast. Named after the river Charente (river), Charen ...

Nouvelle-Aquitaine Nouvelle-Aquitaine () is the largest Regions of France, administrative region in France by area, spanning the west and southwest of Metropolitan France. The region was created in 2014 by the merging of Aquitaine, Limousin, and Poitou-Charentes ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. It is located on the "Pointe de la Fumée", the roadway extending from the city of Fouras, between Fouras and

Île-d'Aix Île-d'Aix () is a communes of France, commune in the departments of France, French department of Charente-Maritime, region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine (before 2015: Poitou-Charentes), off the west coast of France. It occupies the territory of the sma ...

, and can be accessed from there at low tide. Fort Énet formed a line of fortification with Fort Boyard and Fort de la Rade on Île-d'Aix, designed to protect the arsenal of

Rochefort Rochefort () may refer to: Places France * Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, in the Charente-Maritime department ** Arsenal de Rochefort, a former naval base and dockyard * Rochefort, Savoie in the Savoie department * Rochefort-du-Gard, in the G ...

from

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

incursions.''The Companion Guide to Gascony and the Dordogne'' Richard Barber p.5

/ref> The building of the fort was started in 1810 by

Napoleon I Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

, following the devastating 1809

Battle of the Basque Roads The Battle of the Basque Roads, also known as the Battle of Aix Roads ( French: ''Bataille de l'île d'Aix'', also ''Affaire des brûlots'', rarely ''Bataille de la rade des Basques''), was a major naval battle of the Napoleonic Wars, fought in ...

. The Fort can be reached on foot at low tide, and can be visited. Fort Enet is listed as a

Monument Historique () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, ...

. It is indexed in the

Base Mérimée The ''Base Mérimée'' () is the database of French monumental and architectural heritage, created and maintained by the French Ministry of Culture. It was created in 1978, and placed online in 1995. The database is periodically updated, and conta ...

, a database of the French architectural patrimony maintained by the

French Ministry of Culture The Ministry of Culture () is the ministry (government department), ministry of the Government of France in charge of List of museums in France, national museums and the . Its goal is to maintain the French identity through the promotion and pro ...

, under the reference PA00132807. File:Fort Enet from Ile d Oleron.jpg, Fort Énet from the

Island of Oléron An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

. File:Pointe de la Fumée(6).jpg, Fort Enet at low tide, with Fort Boyard (left) and Fort de la Rade on

(right) in the background. File:Fort Énet 001.jpg, Fort Enet from the bay of

. File:Internal structure of Fort Enet.jpg, Internal structure of Fort Énet. File:Inside of Fort Enet.jpg, Inside Fort Énet. File:Fort Enet gun with Ile d Aix in the background.jpg, Fort Enet gun, with

in the background.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fort Énet Enet Buildings and structures in Charente-Maritime Military installations established in 1810 Tourist attractions in Charente-Maritime Islands of Charente-Maritime