Morne Fortune, Colonial military fortification and residential district in Castries, Saint Lucia
Morne Fortune is an elevated residential area on a hill above Castries that contains colonial military structures, schools, and neighborhoods spread across the slopes. The location rises approximately 850 feet (260 meters) above Castries Harbor and mixes historic fortifications with modern buildings.
French forces built fortifications on the hill in 1768 after relocating their settlement from a nearby location. The site became the setting for repeated conflicts between French and British troops, with British control finally established in 1803.
The site holds the graves of two Nobel Prize winners from Saint Lucia, Sir Arthur Lewis and Sir Derek Walcott, whose final resting places sit alongside French and British military cemeteries. These burials make this hilltop a meaningful memorial to the island's intellectual and artistic heritage.
You can freely explore the open grounds, military buildings, and historic monuments year-round without paying any entrance fee. The steeper sections are best tackled on foot, so wearing comfortable shoes and allowing time for the climb uphill is advisable.
The Powder Magazine, built between 1763 and 1765 to store gunpowder, stands as the oldest remaining structure on this fortified hill. This building reveals the site's early military needs that came before the more substantial fortifications constructed in 1768.
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