Project launch 1810 (≈ 1810)
Beginning of the conception by Napoleon I.
1841-1861
Main construction
Main construction 1841-1861 (≈ 1851)
Period of building forts.
1855-1860
Batteries of Bagaud
Batteries of Bagaud 1855-1860 (≈ 1858)
Building island batteries.
20 janvier 1989
Official protection
Official protection 20 janvier 1989 (≈ 1989)
Registration for Historic Monuments.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
Fortins north, south and east (cad. J 1238-1240) : entry by order of 20 January 1989
Key figures
Napoléon Ier - Emperor of the French
Initiator of the defence project.
Origin and history
The Hyères forts are part of a vast coastal defence project initiated by Napoleon I to secure the Mediterranean coasts. Although their design dates back to 1810, the majority of constructions, including those on Bagaud Island, were completed between 1841 and 1861. These works, accessible by drawbridges and surrounded by ditches, illustrate the military architecture of the period, adapted to strategic maritime issues.
The batteries of Bagaud Island, built between 1855 and 1860, complement this device. Their island location reinforced protection against attacks from the sea. The northern, south and east forts, inscribed in the Historical Monuments in 1989, today bear witness to this period of militarization of the coastlines, marked by geopolitical tensions in the Mediterranean.
Their partial preservation allows us to study 19th-century fortification techniques, although their present state and accessibility remain limited. These vestiges recall the strategic importance of Hyères and its region, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, in the French defensive systems of the time.
