Prince of Wales Fort
Encyclopedia
- For other uses of the name "Prince of Wales", see: Prince of Wales (disambiguation)Prince of Wales (disambiguation)Prince of Wales is the title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom. It originated as the title of independent princes of Wales in the 12th and 13th centuries.* It is currently used by Charles, Prince of Wales....
.
The Prince of Wales Fort is a historic fort on Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...
across the Churchill River
Churchill River (Hudson Bay)
The Churchill River is a major river in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Canada. From the head of the Churchill Lake it is 1,609 km long. It was named after John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and governor of the Hudson's Bay Company from 1685 to 1691...
from Churchill
Churchill, Manitoba
Churchill is a town on the shore of Hudson Bay in Manitoba, Canada. It is most famous for the many polar bears that move toward the shore from inland in the autumn, leading to the nickname "Polar Bear Capital of the World" that has helped its growing tourism industry.-History:A variety of nomadic...
, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, Canada.
History
The European history of this area starts with the discovery of Hudson Bay in 1610. The area was recognized as important in the fur tradeFur trade
The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
and of potential importance for other discoveries. The fort is built in a European "star" shape.
Original fort
This fort began as a log fort built in 1717 by James Knight of the Hudson's Bay CompanyHudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
and was originally called the "Churchill River Post". In 1719, the post was renamed Prince of Wales Fort, but is more commonly known today as Fort Prince of Wales. It was located on the west bank of the Churchill river to protect and control the Hudson's Bay Company's interests in the fur trade.
Construction
Construction on the fort, a structure still standing today, was started in 1731 near what was then called Eskimo Point, but work was never truly completed. It had forty-two cannons mounted on the walls with a battery across the river on Cape Merry meant to hold six more cannons.In battle
In 1782, with only 39 (non-military) men manning the fort, three French warships, led by Jean-François de La PérouseJean-François de Galaup, comte de La Pérouse
Jean François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse was a French Navy officer and explorer whose expedition vanished in Oceania.-Early career:...
, took it over
Hudson Bay Expedition
The Hudson Bay expedition of Jean-François de Galaup, comte de La Pérouse was a series of military raids on the lucrative fur trading posts and fortifications of the Hudson's Bay Company on the shores of Hudson Bay by a squadron of the French Royal Navy...
without a single shot being fired. The fort's Governor at the time, Samuel Hearne
Samuel Hearne
Samuel Hearne was a an English explorer, fur-trader, author, and naturalist. He was the first European to make an overland excursion across northern Canada to the Arctic Ocean, actually Coronation Gulf, via the Coppermine River...
, having quickly recognised the numerical and military imbalance, surrendered immediately. The fort returned to the HBC in 1783 after the French had partially destroyed it. Thereafter, its importance began to wane with the decline in the fur trade although the post was refounded a little way up the river.
Structures
None of the original structures are intact with roofs long deteroriated:- Rough Stone Dwelling House
- Governor's Quarters
- Storehouse
- Men's Quarters and Barracks
- Stonemason's Workshop
- Cooper and Carpenter Workshops
- Tailor's Room
- Blacksmith Shop
The courtyard is intact and all other exposed areas covered by grass.
Restoration
When the Hudson Bay RailwayHudson Bay Railway
Hudson Bay Railway is a Canadian railway operating over of trackage in northern Manitoba.HBRY was formed in July 1997 to purchase former Canadian National Railway trackage running north from CN trackage at The Pas, MB on two branches, one to Flin Flon, MB and on to Lynn Lake, MB, the other to...
to Churchill was completed in 1929, the labour and equipment used for the railroad construction was then used to restore the fort in the 1930s. Extensive and at times unfortunate restoration work was also carried out in the 1950s. There is no proper historical or archaeological study of the fort and its remains in spite of its importance to western Canadian history.