Ramparts of Rochefort

En un regard

Le château en bref

The enceinte of Rochefort was built to protect the new town that grew up around the royal arsenal founded in 1666. Clerville had designed the town-arsenal, laid out on a chequerboard plan around three squares, but a first redan-style enceinte, of limited military value, was judged insufficient. Work on the urban enceinte began in 1674 and was completed around 1679; the Mérimée notice attributes the design to Vauban and dates the campaign to 1676. In 1681, Vauban found that the wall did not enclose the whole arsenal and left the left bank of the Charente unoccupied. Following his directions, François Ferry completed the enceinte in 1686, with a front along the river and a closure to the south. It comprised two bastioned fronts, each flanked by a corner bastion and two half-bastions, preceded by a wet moat, and a gate to the west protected by a demi-lune. The urban enceinte was dismantled in 1938. The parts formerly near the Martrou gate were listed as a monument historique by order of 30 mai 1930, the Martrou gate itself being struck off the list in 1931.