Fort George, Guernsey, Military fortress in Saint Peter Port, Guernsey.
Fort George is a historic military fortress in Saint Peter Port, Guernsey, built on a raised headland above Havelet Bay. The site is made up of stone fortifications, bastions, and barrack buildings that occupy a large section of land between Val des Terres and the clifftops.
Fort George was planned during the Anglo-French War of 1778–1783, begun in 1780 and completed in 1812, to house troops brought to Guernsey against the threat of French invasion. In 1798 Governor Charles Grey, fearing the half-built fort could shelter invaders, ordered it demolished, but the work continued. Lieutenant-General John Doyle pushed the construction forward after 1803, and the fort became the island's main army headquarters in place of Castle Cornet.
The fort's name comes from the reigning King George III, and its main entrance still keeps the original wooden gates. In 1795 two officers stationed here fought a duel over a matter of honour at L'Hyvreuse Avenue in St Peter Port; Major Byng of the 92nd Regiment died after challenging the regimental surgeon for not standing for the National Anthem.
The site is reached through the main gate or via the coastal paths from Val des Terres, with some sections being steep and uneven. Sturdy footwear is a good idea, as the approach is uphill and the views over the bay are clearest from the clifftop side.
During the German occupation in World War II, the fort was renamed Stützpunkt Georgefest and fitted with radar stations that Allied bombing failed to destroy completely. Some of these concrete installations are still visible on the site today.
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