3 Forts to Explore in Guadeloupe

Fort Delgrès is a strong French overlooking the town of Basse-Terre in Guadeloupe. It was a high place of the Franco-English struggle in the West Indies than that of the Guadeloupeans led by the mulatto officer and resistant Louis Delgrès against the reestablishment of slavery by Richepanse. It was classified as a historic monument by decree of November 21, 1971.

Fort Fleur d'Épée is located in the hills of Bas-du-Fort, in the municipality of Le Gosier which was listed on the supplementary inventory of Historic Monuments. It was built from 1750 to 1763 to a polygonal plan by Vauban in the heights above the town of Gosier. It is composed of underground passages leading to small rooms. The powder magazine and the kitchen with its oven are still clearly visible. The vast corridors occasionally host various art exhibitions throughout the year.

Fort Napoléon is located on Terre-de-Haut Island, in the Îles des Saintes, Guadeloupe Perched some 400 feet above Les Saintes Bay. It was restored in the 1980s and houses a museum showcasing the history of Les Saintes. This superb fortress did not serve as a fortress either but as a penitentiary. On the ground floor, the four rooms of the main building are located above an enormous 350,000m3 cistern, designed to provide water autonomy in the event of a siege.