The Historical Archaeology of Halifax’s Earliest Defences

Dr Jonathan Fowler, Professor of Archaeology at Saint Mary’s University, spoke to RUSI(NS) and guests on 7 February and 24 April with a presentation titled “The Historical Archaeology of Halifax’s Earliest Defences.” The presentation was made the two occasions becasue so many people indicated their interest in attending.

Like Quebec, Montreal, and Louisbourg, Halifax was once a walled town. The main difference was that the parsimonious British girded this place with timber while the French monarchs built on a grander scale with stone. Still, Halifax’s earliest fortifications were elaborate and would have been one of the most distinctive features presented to visitors in those early years. This illustrated presentation used documentary and archaeological evidence to reconstruct a picture of Halifax’s wall and its five perimeter forts. One of our best 18th century informants is a French spy who secretly mapped the town and drafted plans for an invasion that never happened!

A PDF of Dr Fowler’s presentation is available here.