# Fort Liberté

Fort Liberté is a city of 34,000 people (2015) in Northern Haiti.

## Understand

It is one of the oldest cities in the country.
In the colonial era, the area was a major plantation area, and today it remains an important coffee-producing area. Its pine forests are heavily exploited for charcoal. In addition, several colonial-era forts, mostly in ruins, are situated here.
Fort-Liberté is a natural harbour of the Saint-Domingue. It is strategically located in the centre of the bay facing the Atlantic Ocean. It was used as a naval base by the French, with four forts that "guarded the bay like beads on a string." Two of the larger forts are Fort Lachatre and Fort Labourque.

### Climate

The city has a pleasant climate with a cool ocean breeze and an average temperature of 30 °C. Hispaniola island as a whole is subject to varying weather changes, which result in severe storms, such as hurricanes and sunshine.

## See

* Arc de Triomphe (Arch of Triumph). The triumphal arch is a yellow monumental structure built in the early 20th century at the entrance to the city. Above it, an inscription, "gentleness in the effort", reflects the drowsy character of the city, which has long been isolated from regional development. (updated Nov 2019)
* 19.6751-71.84171 Fort-Liberté. The fort within the city limits was constructed in 1731 at the port near the land end facing the bay, built under the directive of Louis XV, King of France, to defend against invasions. Fort-Liberté is on the southern shore of the bay. It is about 800 m north of the city centre. The shoal in front of the fort is steep and extends to about 20 18 m. Now, only the fort ruins are seen as evidence of the ingenious design of the architects who selected the most strategic point on the island to build it overlooking the ocean. However, efforts were made during the middle of the 1990s to restore the fort and the structures within it. Pilferage has seen the loss of the cannons and the cannonballs, apart from removal of stones imported from Nantes, France. The fort has a colonial cathedral, which is now the renovated entrance to the city. It is called the "Belle Entrée" (Beautiful Gate). (updated Feb 2022)
* 19.6666-71.84032 St. Joseph's Cathedral (Cathédrale Saint-Joseph). Historic cathedral, completed in 1703. (updated Feb 2022)
* The colonial fountain, placed on the Grande-rue (avenue Sténio-Vincent), was built in freestone imported from France. It is now painted red and embedded between two houses.
* The Place d'Armes dates from the colonial era. It has undergone great changes since the 18th century. The fountain sits in the middle of the square. It was completed in 1787, and sparked controversy because of its exorbitant cost at the time.
* The Fort Dauphin or Fort Saint-Joseph is at the end of the Grande rue, at the Pointe de Roche. The fort was built in the extension of the central axis of the city. It has been, since 1730, a strategic place completing the defensive system of protection of the interior of the grounds.
* The Bayau island was the favorite haunt of pirates in the x17h century. The west of the island was then reserved for the refit of large vessels.
* The fort of La Bouque is located at the eastern mouth of the bay of Fort-Liberté, it can be reached with a canoe, motor or a boat from the pier located near the customs. The fishermen organize excursions in the bay allow access to the four forts on the western shore of the gully, the "bouque" that the French built to defend access to Fort-Dauphin. From south to north:
* Fort Saint Frédérique, started in 1740, was built north
* Fort Saint Charles, built in the 1740s, and the Battery of the Cove ( Batterie de l'Anse), which dates from 1756, with its broken line parapet beside the sea and its powder magazine. Built on the site of an old Spanish fort