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took over the project. He modified the original design to create a simpler and cheaper fort. He gave what would become Fort
Louvois its present-day horseshoe shape with two pier heads and one tower, and reduced the two levels of batteries to one level. The new design resembled that of two other forts
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in the gorge or opening of the horseshoe. The tower is semi-circular on the seaward side, i.e., on the side within the horseshoe; the landward side is beak-shaped. A moat, which fills at high tide, separates the tower from the rest of the fort, with one drawbridge providing access to the fort, and a
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The area that the battery occupies is about 52 and 55 metres (171 and 180 ft). The firing platform is 12 metres (39 ft) above the surface of the water, and the battery's lateral coverage is 180 degrees. The keep has five levels and is 24 metres (79 ft) high. The tower had the powder
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Work on building the fort's foundations began on 19 June 1691. Because the islet was made up of shellfish and mud, the work was extremely difficult with the result that by 20 October only the stone foundations were in place despite the fact that the project had already expended more than half the
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In 1755 Fort
Louvois saw modifications that were intended to keep pace with advances in weaponry. One result was the reduction in the number of embrasures for artillery to ten from the original 16. The battery lost its roof, and the fort also received latrines on the walls. These were the last
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In 1824 the fort was armed with four 24-pounder guns and three 32-pounder mortars. Then in 1870 it received six 22-pounder howitzers. The fort was repaired in 1875 to undo damage from the action of the sea. At that time it received a telegraph station and six 16-pounder guns.
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at
Rochefort, informing him that the king wished that a fort be erected on Chapus. François Ferry, an engineer, took charge of the process, designing an oval fort measuring 52 metres (171 ft) by 78 metres (256 ft) and consisting of two levels, with
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Bourcefranc-le-Chapus purchased the fort from the French government in 1960. In the 1960s it was completely restored under the direction of the
Regional Administration for Cultural Affairs. Fort Louvois was opened to the public in 1972.
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then occupied the fort, only to come under fire from the Château d'Oléron, which was still in the hands of the German Army. The bombardment destroyed the guardhouse, the barracks, and much of the keep. After the
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magazine on the ground floor, and quarters for the commander and the other officers on the other floors. Today, there is a lighthouse on the tower. A barracks building on the fort's
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from the south. Fort
Louvois only saw action towards the end of World War II when bombardment greatly damaged the fort, necessitating later restoration.
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damaged Fort
Louvois. The storm flooded the fort and swept away the drawbridge. Still, the fort received 26,000 visitors in 2010.
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contained the arms room, food stores, and a water tank. A causeway that is underwater at high-tide joins the fort to the shore.
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After the completion of the arsenal at
Rochefort in 1666, Louis XIV wanted to create a chain of fortifications on the coast of
171:, which is known locally as Fort Chapus or Fort du Chapus, is a fortification built between 1691 and 1694, during the reign of
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After the First World War, the French military abandoned the fort. On 14 June 1929 it was declared a historical monument.
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332:. Construction of Fort Louvois took three years and was completed under the engineer Henri-Albert Bouillet.
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Vauban and the French
Military Under Louis XIV: An Illustrated History of Fortifications and Strategies
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Nevertheless, on 10 September 1944 it underwent shelling during the liberation of
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400 meters off shore in the town of
Bourcefranc-le-Chapus in the department of
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Faucherre, N., P. Prost, A. Chazette, & F. Le Blanc (2000)
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After
Louvois's death on 16 July 1691, the military architect
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View of the interior of the fort, with the keep on the right.
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and battery, which he had constructed on the Sillon at
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Les fortifications du littoral - La Charente Maritime
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Since 1972 the fort has been the site of a museum of
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on both levels. The design was analogous to that of
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401:"Brochure of the commune of Bourcefranc-le-Chapus"
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43:View of Fort Louvois from the landward side
621:Artillery battery fortifications in France
596:Buildings and structures completed in 1694
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350:Fort Louvois in the Pertuis de Maumusson.
601:Tourist attractions in Charente-Maritime
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16:Fort on a tidal island in France
611:Vauban fortifications in France
448:Lepage, Jean-Denis G.G. (2010)
217:-shaped battery, with a tower
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626:1694 establishments in France
310:that Vauban had constructed,
616:Islands of Charente-Maritime
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213:Fort Louvois consists of a
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297:Fort Louvois at low-tide.
265:On 16 December 1690, the
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382:Citations and references
606:Tidal islands of France
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183:in the department of
181:Bourcefranc-le-Chapus
365:liberation of France
101:45.85722°N 1.17417°W
374:In 2010, the storm
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560:Sablanceau battery
555:Sablanceau redoubt
550:Fortress of Fouras
360:Free French forces
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267:Marquis of Louvois
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130:Controlled by
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513:Charente-Maritime
458:978-0-7864-4401-4
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148:Site history
68:Fort Louvois
22:Fort Louvois
525:Fort Boyard
320:Tour Vauban
280:Fort Risban
260:Fort Boyard
232:terre plein
104: /
80:Coordinates
575:Categories
545:Fort Lupin
429:References
417:2012-11-04
312:Fort Lupin
276:embrasures
89:45°51′26″N
581:Sea forts
535:Fort Enet
387:Citations
271:Intendant
256:Saintonge
215:horseshoe
193:Rochefort
173:Louis XIV
153:Architect
92:1°10′27″W
356:Marennes
316:Charente
120:Fortress
376:Xynthia
288:Dunkirk
246:History
219:redoubt
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307:Vauban
284:Calais
209:Design
189:Oléron
161:Vauban
142:France
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411:(PDF)
404:(PDF)
252:Aunis
196:roads
177:islet
454:ISBN
440:ISBN
254:and
223:keep
117:Type
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221:or
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
