Architecture

Halifax Defence Complex

The Halifax Defence Complex includes five forts and batteries constructed by the British and Canadian militaries in Halifax, Nova Scotia:

• Fort McNab National Historic Site
• York Redoubt National Historic Site
• Prince of Wales Tower National Historic Site
• Halifax Citadel National Historic Site
• Georges Island National Historic Site

More information about the Halifax Defence Complex

Fort Charlotte

In 1794, Prince Edward, later the Duke of Kent, arrived as the commander of the Halifax forces. Seeing Georges Island as key to the harbour defences, he ordered the construction of a star-shaped fortification on the island which he named in honour of his mother, Queen Charlotte.

In the 1860s, the fort was largely reconstructed in response to the development of rifled muzzle-loading artillery and, as a result, acquired two powerful seaward-facing batteries.

Lighthouse and light keeper's residence

In 1856, following a number of ship collisions with Georges Island at night or in heavy fog, Halifax merchants began lobbying the local government to have a lighthouse erected on the island.

Twenty years later, in 1876, the first lighthouse was constructed on the western slope of Georges Island to serve as a navigational aid for vessels in the harbour. Made of wood and with a residence for the lighthouse keeper attached, it operated for 40 years before being destroyed by fire in 1916.

Submarine mining establishment

In the 1870s, Georges Island became the headquarters for a system of submarine mining developed to protect Halifax harbour from enemy vessels.

Submarine mining was possible due to improvements in the science of explosives and electrical technology. Mines were made of charges of gun cotton (fibrous material like cotton or flax soaked in explosive liquid like nitric acid) enclosed in water tight metal cases, and moored underwater at the appropriate depth to sink or damage a nearby vessel when exploded by electrical contact from shore. This was state-of-the-art technology in this period and Halifax was one of the first colonial harbours in the British Empire to be approved for a system of submarine minefields.

With the addition of submarine mines to its arsenal of weapons, Georges Island reached the zenith of its military importance. However, due to the dangers it posed to non-enemy vessels, submarine mining was stopped in 1906.