Crenellated guardhouse, 1846 model
Encyclopedia
The crenellated guardhouses of the 1846 model (corps de garde crénelés modèle 1846) were gun-batteries built along the coast of France as the result of a standardisation of coastal-defence redoubts during the reign of Louis-Philippe of France
. This standardisation came as an attempt to complete the defensive chain begun by Napoleon
in 1811 with his model towers
, left incomplete on his abdication in 1814. A mixed coastal armament commission set up in 1841 defined 3 types of work, known as crenellated guardhouses, crenellated towers and model-redoubt with defensive barracks. Along with the construction of the battleship La Gloire
, they represent part of a 20 year trend of French naval and coastal re-armament, to which the United Kingdom
eventually responded by building its own steam battleship (Warrior
) and its own coastal defence chain (the Palmerston Forts
) during the 1860s.
Louis-Philippe of France
Louis Philippe I was King of the French from 1830 to 1848 in what was known as the July Monarchy. His father was a duke who supported the French Revolution but was nevertheless guillotined. Louis Philippe fled France as a young man and spent 21 years in exile, including considerable time in the...
. This standardisation came as an attempt to complete the defensive chain begun by Napoleon
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
in 1811 with his model towers
Model-tower, 1811 type
A model tower , also known as an Empire tower or a Napoleon tower, was a standardised defensive fortification created in 1811.-History:...
, left incomplete on his abdication in 1814. A mixed coastal armament commission set up in 1841 defined 3 types of work, known as crenellated guardhouses, crenellated towers and model-redoubt with defensive barracks. Along with the construction of the battleship La Gloire
French battleship La Gloire
The French Navy's La Gloire was the first ocean-going ironclad battleship in history.She was developed following the Crimean War, in response to new developments in naval gun technology, especially the Paixhans guns and rifled guns, which used explosive shells with increased destructive power...
, they represent part of a 20 year trend of French naval and coastal re-armament, to which the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
eventually responded by building its own steam battleship (Warrior
HMS Warrior (1860)
HMS Warrior was the first iron-hulled, armour-plated warship, built for the Royal Navy in response to the first ironclad warship, the French Gloire, launched a year earlier....
) and its own coastal defence chain (the Palmerston Forts
Palmerston Forts
The Palmerston Forts are a group of forts and associated structures, around the coast of Britain.The forts were built during the Victorian period on the recommendations of the 1860 Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom, following concerns about the strength of the French Navy, and...
) during the 1860s.
2
This sub-type could house 40 men and 8 cannons.- Pointe du Grand GouinPointe du Grand GouinThe pointe du Grand Gouin is a rocky promontory with vertical cliffs to the west of the inlet of Camaret-sur-Mer. It protects a port which, in Vauban's era, was vulnerable to possible landings...
, Camaret-sur-MerCamaret-sur-MerCamaret-sur-Mer is a commune in the Finistère department in northwestern France, located at the end of Crozon peninsula.-Sights:Camaret-sur-Mer is home to the Tour Vauban or Tour dorée , a historic fortification guarding the harbor and built in 1669-94... - Île de l'Aber, CrozonCrozonCrozon is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.Crozon is located on the Crozon peninsula on the west coast of Finistère. It is bordered by the communes of Camaret-sur-Mer to the west, Roscanvel to the northwest, Lanvéoc to the north, Landévennec to the...
- Pointe du Kador, CrozonCrozonCrozon is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.Crozon is located on the Crozon peninsula on the west coast of Finistère. It is bordered by the communes of Camaret-sur-Mer to the west, Roscanvel to the northwest, Lanvéoc to the north, Landévennec to the...
- Postolonnec, CrozonCrozonCrozon is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.Crozon is located on the Crozon peninsula on the west coast of Finistère. It is bordered by the communes of Camaret-sur-Mer to the west, Roscanvel to the northwest, Lanvéoc to the north, Landévennec to the...
- Îlette de Kermorvan, Le ConquetLe ConquetLe Conquet is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.-Geography:Le Conquet is a fishing port in the northwest of Brittany...
- Pointe de Kermorvan, Le ConquetLe ConquetLe Conquet is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.-Geography:Le Conquet is a fishing port in the northwest of Brittany...
- Pointe Saint-MathieuPointe Saint-MathieuThe pointe Saint-Mathieu is a headland located near Le Conquet in the territory of the commune of Plougonvelin in France, flanked by 20m high cliffs.-Village:...
, PlougonvelinPlougonvelinPlougonvelin is a commune in the Finistère department in Bretagne in northwestern France.-Population:Inhabitants of Plougonvelin are called Plougonvelinois.-Breton language:... - Pointe entre Brenterc'h et Illien, PloumoguerPloumoguerPloumoguer is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.-Population:Inhabitants of Ploumoguer are called in French Ploumoguérois.-References:** -External links:* *...
3
This sub-type could house 20 men and 4 cannons.- Morgat, Rulianec, CrozonCrozonCrozon is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.Crozon is located on the Crozon peninsula on the west coast of Finistère. It is bordered by the communes of Camaret-sur-Mer to the west, Roscanvel to the northwest, Lanvéoc to the north, Landévennec to the...
- Pointe Sud-ouest, Île de BatzÎle de BatzThe Île de Batz is an island off Roscoff in Brittany, France. Administratively, it is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.-Population:...
- Plage des Blancs Sablons, Le ConquetLe ConquetLe Conquet is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.-Geography:Le Conquet is a fishing port in the northwest of Brittany...
- Calgrac'h, Ouessant
- Loqueltas, Ouessant
- Bourg, RoscanvelRoscanvelRoscanvel is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.-Population:Inhabitants of Roscanvel are called in French Roscanvelistes.-See also:*Quélern*Communes of the Finistère department...