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Origin and history

The fort of the Aiguille, also known as the dread of the Eiguille, was built between 1673 and 1674 on the peninsula of Fouras, in a strategic area called Pointe de l'Aiguille. This military monument was part of a defensive system designed to protect the area from a possible English invasion by the tip of the Smoke. Its position at the edge of the water, at the narrowest part of the peninsula, made it possible to control access to the hinterland and estuary of the Charente. The fort was low in order to avoid being spotted from the ocean, and was designed to withstand enemy ship fire.

The dread consists of a main building and coastal fortifications, with cliffs trimmed in the 18th century. Originally, two isolation ditches, fed by valves, surrounded the main quadrangle, only the south side of which is now bathed by the sea. The inner courtyard, accessible by a narrow door on the south side, houses two vaulted crib cases in the southwest and southeast angles. The north wall, without a taluting, once supported a barracks, some of which were destroyed and replaced by a concrete hangar.

Acquired by the municipality of Fouras in 2001, the fort was registered as historical monuments by order of 19 September 2001. Although protected, it is currently not accessible to the public. This monument illustrates the military architecture of the late seventeenth century, marked by low and discreet constructions, adapted to the challenges of the naval wars of the time.

The Aiguille dread is the largest of the fortifications of this type built on the Charente coast around 1673-1674. Its role was to bar a passage, thus strengthening the coastal defence line. The remains still visible today, including advanced defences and protections against the sea, testify to its strategic importance in the local defensive system.

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