Post by Frostbyte on Dec 24, 2011 21:27:38 GMT
King's Wharf - also called the Royal Naval Dockyard is located on Bermuda's Ireland Island.
After the American War of Independence, the British were no longer able to use ports in their former American colonies, so they chose this site on hilly Ireland Island at the western tip of Bermuda as their 'Gibraltar of the West.' It served as a dockyard facility and resupply depot for ships heading between Nova Scotia and the British West Indies. The fort was built between 1814 and 1863 by nearly 10,000 convicts who were quartered in unspeakable conditions on prison ships stationed in the deep-water cove. The fort is built of limestone blocks in Georgian style and was first used by the British navy as a base to launch their raid on Washington, DC, in 1814. It later served as a North Atlantic base during both World Wars but was abandoned as a costly outpost in 1951.
Since then the buildings have been renovated and given a second life. The dockyard now includes the fascinating Bermuda Maritime Museum, located in the fort's former keep, an atmospheric pub, a movie theatre, a craft market and the Bermuda Snorkel Park. It is the only unrestricted Bermuda Cruise Ship Dock.
After the American War of Independence, the British were no longer able to use ports in their former American colonies, so they chose this site on hilly Ireland Island at the western tip of Bermuda as their 'Gibraltar of the West.' It served as a dockyard facility and resupply depot for ships heading between Nova Scotia and the British West Indies. The fort was built between 1814 and 1863 by nearly 10,000 convicts who were quartered in unspeakable conditions on prison ships stationed in the deep-water cove. The fort is built of limestone blocks in Georgian style and was first used by the British navy as a base to launch their raid on Washington, DC, in 1814. It later served as a North Atlantic base during both World Wars but was abandoned as a costly outpost in 1951.
Since then the buildings have been renovated and given a second life. The dockyard now includes the fascinating Bermuda Maritime Museum, located in the fort's former keep, an atmospheric pub, a movie theatre, a craft market and the Bermuda Snorkel Park. It is the only unrestricted Bermuda Cruise Ship Dock.
