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DAUPHIN BASTION

Preliminary Report

(1720 - 1745)

BY

MARGARET FORTIER

(Under the supervision of B. C. Bickerton)

January, 1966

(Fortress of Louisbourg Report H B 6)

NOTE:
Presently, the illustrations and graphs are not included here.
For these, please consult the original report in the archives of the Fortress of Louisbourg

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

The location of the Dauphin Bastion in relation to its physical surroundings was of the utmost importance throughout its history. To the north lay the sea; to the west, a commanding hill; and to the south, a large pond. During the period before 1745, the two bodies of water seem to have exercised the most influence on the engineers at Louisbourg. On the one hand, they necessitated extensive modification of what was "traditional,, in the construction of a bastion; and on the other, they made it incumbent upon those in charge to see to it that constant vigilance was maintained in the upkeep and repair of the Bastion itself.

Though the term "bastion" has been retained for the sake of convenience, the Dauphin was, more properly speaking, only a half or demi-bastion. While the left side of the work was constructed in keeping
with the form of a "regular" bastion, the rest, including the "right face" and the circular battery, were built to meet the specifications dictated by the nature of the Dauphin's surroundings. The same might be said of the outer works and the eperon which projected out into the sea. The Dauphin-King's Curtain, though "traditional" in its essential features, was influenced considerably by the pond which it crossed.

Each of these sections and the Dauphin Gate will be discussed in some detail in this report up to the year 1745. Very little of the information gathered has been taken from post-1745 references, though there are, no doubt, some which cast a light upon a feature in existence prior to that date. Most of the evidence for the specific features of the Bastion has been gathered from historic plans. For this reason, those found most helpful have been included in this report. Also, in order to provide a view of what actually seems to have stood on the site occupied by the Dauphin Bastion, several drawings accompany the text.

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