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Fort Catherine
St. George's Bermuda
Considered as Bermuda's most impressive fort by many,
Fort Catherine is one of Bermuda’s iconic landmarks.
Built in 1612 by Bermuda’s first governor, Richard Moore who was a carpenter by trade, Moore constructed a wooden fort to defend against the Spanish that has been rebuilt several times.
Originally named Riches Mount, in 1788 the fort was rebuilt and renamed Fort George for King George III.
The fort you see today includes two periods, 1788 and also the 1840's when it was finally rebuilt in the shape of an 8-pointed star surrounded by an inner keep reached by a drawbridge that spanned a dry moat.
The fort is noted for its 150-foot escape tunnel; not the best confidence building feature for soldiers to stand until the end.
The fort and its water catch are surrounded by cast iron fencing posts topped with wire. A main feature is the cannon points toward the empty Atlantic.
The fort has an important duty today as a housing area for many communications antennas for everything from sea rescue to local and overseas government agencies.
It is a fine photo subject from the outside. Whether it is open for tours is debate based on recent Bermudian sources.
To find out if it is, when on island call 441/297-1920. Regardless, you can see it quite well with a short walk from Tobacco Bay Beach or, much closer, from the outside.
This is a fairly long way to walk from the Town of St. George, probably about 30 minutes. But the views are worth the walk.
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