Fort Macquarie was a square castellated battlement fort built at Bennelong Point, Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, where the Sydney Opera House

Sydney Opera House

The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in the Australian city of Sydney. It was conceived and largely built by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, finally opening in 1973 after a long gestation starting with his competition-winning design in 1957...

 now stands.

History

A half moon battery on the east point of Bennelong Point was constructed in May 1798 when the ship HMS Supply was withdrawn from service, Lieutenant William Kent

William Kent

William Kent , born in Bridlington, Yorkshire, was an eminent English architect, landscape architect and furniture designer of the early 18th century.He was baptised as William Cant.-Education:...

 and crew were assigned to man the battery. The battery consisted of some of the guns taken from HMS Supply.

Governor Lachlan Macquarie

Lachlan Macquarie

Major-General Lachlan Macquarie CB , was a British military officer and colonial administrator. He served as the last autocratic Governor of New South Wales, Australia from 1810 to 1821 and had a leading role in the social, economic and architectural development of the colony...

 directed that a fort be built between December 1817 to February 1821 under the direction of Francis Greenway

Francis Greenway

-References:* *...

. The fort was named after Governor Lachlan Macquarie was a square fort with circular bastions at each corner and a castellated square tower.

The battery consisted of fifteen pieces of ordnance: ten 24-pounders and five 6-pounders. Three sides of the fort abutted Sydney Harbour.

The two-storey tower in the middle of the fort, housed a guardroom and storehouse. The tower was 27.4m (90 ft) in circumference. A powder magazine capable of storing 350 barrels of gunpowder was constructed underneath and the tower could provide accommodation for a small military detachment of 1 officer and 18 men, with stores for the battery.
A drawbridge, on the landward side, over a small channel leading to a gate beneath the tower provided entry to the fort.

Fort Macquarie was demolished in 1901 to make way for new electric tramway sheds named Fort Macquarie Tram Depot

Fort Macquarie Tram Depot

The Fort Macquarie Tram Depot or Sydney Tram Depot was built on Bennelong Point in Sydney in 1901, on the site of the old Fort Macquarie. The depot was constructed in the design of a fortress with castellated ramparts in homage to the previous building...

.

Cannon Disposal

Two 42 pdr ML cannon from Fort Macquarie were removed from the fort and transported to Newcastle

Newcastle, New South Wales

The Newcastle metropolitan area is the second most populated area in the Australian state of New South Wales and includes most of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Local Government Areas...

 in 1903 to form a memorial in Gregson Park, Hamilton

Hamilton, New South Wales

Hamilton is a suburb of Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia, located from Newcastle's central business district. The main commercial centre is located around Beaumont Street and boasts a vibrant multicultural atmosphere providing an array of restaurants, retail, fashion and commercial outlets...

. In 2006 they underwent a refurbishment and have been replaced back into Gregson Park.