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Mute reminders
- By Raghav Ramful
- Published 23rd May, 2008
- Discover Mauritius
- Unrated
Three of the finest examples of Martello Towers in the world stand majestically along the coasts of the island. One of these towers situated at an exquisite location at La Preneuse in Rivière Noire was restored in 1993. Before its restoration, that was conducted by Friends of the Environment, the tower was just a stonework ripped of by its guts made of teak wood and other accessories. In 1992, grants by the embassies of the United States, France and Britain as well as funds donated by the European Union and the local private sector allowed for the interior woodwork to be replaced. In order to facilitate access to visitors, the door on the ground floor was kept and a staircase was built linking the first floor to the ground level that replaced ladders that had disappeared. The interior stonework was sand-blasted to remove leached lime cement. The joints between the stones on the roof were resealed and the leaky internal drainpipes were replaced. The gun carriage and platform has been rebuilt and the original gun has been replaced on the roof.
Of the 218-odd examples which defended the coasts of the British Empire, from Canada to Ceylon and South Africa to Ireland and those constructed by the Americans against the British, the five towers built in Mauritius were among the last to be constructed.
The military reputation of Martello Towers rests solely on the remarkable performance of a single Tower at Cap Mortella, northern Corsica, in February 1794. A British naval force, prepared to capture the island from the French, was forced to withdraw. This led to serious damage and 62 casualties, on account of the single Tower's concerted cannon fire.
bold;">Building towersOf the 218-odd examples which defended the coasts of the British Empire, from Canada to Ceylon and South Africa to Ireland and those constructed by the Americans against the British, the five towers built in Mauritius were among the last to be constructed.
The military reputation of Martello Towers rests solely on the remarkable performance of a single Tower at Cap Mortella, northern Corsica, in February 1794. A British naval force, prepared to capture the island from the French, was forced to withdraw. This led to serious damage and 62 casualties, on account of the single Tower's concerted cannon fire.
The Tower eventually surrendered after two days of continual bombardment by a battery of four guns set up by the army under Generals Dundas and Moore. The British naval and military officers were so impressed by this heroic defence of Corsica by 38 men armed with only one 6-pounder and two 18-pounder guns, that they had the design copied.
Some 103 Towers, named "Martello", a distortion of the name of the Cape, were later built along the south-east and east English coasts against the threatening Napoléonic invasion. A further 115 or so Towers were also built by the English between 1796 and 1846 in South Africa, Canada, Ireland, Bermuda, Jamaica, Sri Lanka, Minorca, and in Mauritius. The Americans, in turn, copied the design and built six towers between 1809 and 1873 to serve as defence against the British. Similar towers, some of which precede the Martello design, are to be found in Jersey and Guernsey islands.
Martello Towers were built at the main bays as a military response to defending Mauritius against enemy landings. The enemy, the French, might aid the colonists in their resistance to the conditions surrounding the abolition of slavery; the colonists owing ancestral allegiance to France. It would be extremely interesting to know to what extent the French actually did consider invading the island and to what extent therefore the British were justified in building the towers and the citadel. As it transpired, the French did not attempt military activities.
Their compatriots in Mauritius successfully negotiated a massive compensation package with the British Government on the loss of their slaves who were eventually freed. The Martello Towers were never used in battle but stand as mute reminders of this turning point in Mauritian history.
