July 6, 2024
During the War of 1812 the British built a fort on Point Henry in Kingston with the purpose of defending the naval shipyards located near the mouth of the Cataraqui River. When this war finished in 1814 a period of infrastructure building was undertaken in response to possible future threats. One of these projects was the Rideau Canal. Due to the need to defend the canal, a new fort was built between 1832 and 1837 on the site of the earlier Fort Henry. This new fort was occupied by the British until 1870 when responsibility for self defense was passed on to the newly created Dominion of Canada. The Canadian military garrisoned here until 1891 and then the fort was abandoned for several decades during which time it fell into disrepair. In 1936 it was restored and then opened as a military museum. Fort Henry was the largest fortification west of Quebec city and cost the equivalent of $35 million dollars to complete. The image below shows the main gates, which could be closed with a set of double doors.
The upper fort, or advance battery, was initially separate from the main redoubt. It had 32-pounder guns that protected the entrance to the naval dockyards as well as Kingston Harbour. It had two lengthy buildings, one of which can be seen below, which held the Commissariat Stores. These rooms held various functions that were not required to be in the main redoubt. Today they house a restaurant and a few shops including the souvenir stand. Each room has an arched ceiling that was called a casement. These were deigned to protect the occupants from the effects of explosive cannonballs.
A dry ditch surrounds the entire fort and separated the upper and lower parts. It was designed to be difficult to cross. It was 12 metres wide and 9 metres deep with the facing made of cut stone blocks. If attackers got into the ditch they would face rifle fire from the little loopholes that lined the walls.
The main redoubt, or lower fort has only one entrance from the upper fort. It is protected by a drawbridge that could be closed if the upper fort was compromised. A date stone above the door reads “Fort Henry 1832”.
The central part of the lower fort was known as the parade square. This is where the infantry soldiers drilled and also where special events took place. The upward firing mortars were located here as well. Under the parade square were five large cisterns which held the forts water supply. This water served all the needs of the fort including a supply that was held behind a sluice gate. Occasionally the gate would be opened and water would rush through the men’s and women’s privies. This would flush the waste through a tunnel and into the Navy Bay.
There are a series of tunnels through the walls which connect the guns on the roof to the soldiers quarters which were located on the second floor. They also connected the reverse fire chambers to the rest of the fort. The lower floor of the main building contained things like the officer’s quarters, cookhouse, schoolroom and bakery.
Hidden inside the north-west and north-east walls were reverse fire chambers. Each side had three gun ports that faced the redoubt’s walls. This meant that any attacker who tried to cross the dry ditch or scale the walls would face fire from 18-pounder cannonades.
The cookhouse, along with the bakery, was set up to ensure that the soldiers could continue to be fed in the case of a siege. Each solder had a daily ration of about 1.5 pounds of bread, 1 pound of potatoes and 3/4 pound of meat. They also got rations of coffee, tea, sugar and beer or wine. A beef stew was the main meal that was prepared and unmarried soldiers took turns being the company’s cook. They took on a week’s duty but were often lacking in cooking skills and didn’t prepare the best of meals.
The balcony rooms on the second floor of the north wall originally housed the soldiers quarters but have been converted to display museum exhibits. These detail various parts of Fort Henry’s history including weapons that were typical of the British military of the period.
The Commandant’s quarters have been furnished to illustrate how the Captain who was responsible for running the daily operations of the fort lived. Their quarters also served as their office and a lot of paperwork was required. Important documents were tied in “red tape” and sent by military courier to headquarters in Quebec or on to England.
The museum exhibit that shows the weapons used over the decades is particularly interesting for anyone who is interested in the evolution of the methods of killing opposing soldiers.
There are four sets of garrison cells that were used for punishment of soldiers. The most common offence was drunkenness. Soldiers could be locked up in these tiny cells which barely had enough room for them to lay down. Punishment might simply be confinement with short breaks for fresh air or it might also include hard labour. This would entail extra cleaning duties or possibly breaking rocks.
Fort Henry never saw active fighting during a war but was used as an internment camp during the rebellions of 1837-1838 as well as both World Wars. Shortly after the building was completed rebellions happened in both Upper and Lower Canada. A number of rebels in Upper Canada, including John Montgomery who owned the tavern where they met, were arrested and found guilty of treason. They were sent to Fort Henry to await their sentencing, either death or exile. Montgomery and 14 others were made aware by a sympathizer of the tunnels that led through the walls to the reverse fire chambers. After removing the mortar between some of the stones in a sealed up doorway, the 15 men made their escape on the night of July 29, 1838. In the darkness Montgomery fell into the drop ditch and broke his leg but was able to get away. Two prisoners were recaptured but the other 13 made their way along the river toward Gananoque and stole boats with which they rowed across the river to the United States. When amnesty was declared in 1843 Montgomery and several others returned to Upper Canada. You can read more about the rebellions in our story on William Lyon Mackenzie.
Four Martello Towers were built in Kingston, two of which can be seen from Fort Henry. In addition, two tall, thin towers were built on the ends of the dry ditches. These towers were added between 1842 and 1848. The towers were built within sight of each other so that they could pass signals between them. The pointed roof could be removed quickly providing access to a cannon that could swivel giving it a 360 degree range. The image below shows the dry ditch tower on the Navy Bay side of the fort.
Fort Henry is a National Historic Site and has served as a museum since August 1, 1938. It is well worth a visit if you are in the Kingston area.
Related Stories: Fort York, William Lyon Mackenzie
Google Maps Link: Fort Henry
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