Charles Fort

Charles Fort was built between 1677 and 1682 by the English military engineer William Robinson on a headland at the south side of Kinsale harbour, on the site of an earlier fortification. It is a classic star fort — a five-bastioned design with outer ditches, counterguards and a ravelin, intended to defend against both naval attack from the sea and land assault from the surrounding hills. It is one of the best-preserved examples of 17th-century military architecture in Europe and an OPW national monument.

The fort was built 76 years after the Battle of Kinsale (1601), when Spanish troops and their Irish allies were defeated by the English — an event that effectively ended the old Gaelic order in Munster. The fort's history runs from its construction through the Williamite War (1690s, when it was briefly held by Jacobite forces), the 1798 Rising (soldiers garrisoned here), the First World War and finally evacuation by British forces in 1921. The buildings within the fort walls include barracks, stores, officers' quarters and a chapel, most in ruinous but recognisable condition.

The guided tour runs about 45 minutes and gives clear context for both the architectural design and the historical events. The walk from Kinsale town to Charles Fort along the James Fort side of the harbour (about 45 minutes) is one of the finest coastal walks in Cork.