Lévis Forts

The Lévis Forts are a series of three forts located on the South Shore of the Saint Lawrence River in the Province of Quebec, Canada. They are at shooting distance of one another which allows the defend a wide area without the cost of a continuous defensive wall. The first one was built (1865-1872) by the British Army and the other ones by private businesses (1865-1869). The costs were almost identical for all three, ranging from 57,600 to 59,762 pounds.

During the American Civil War, Great Britain claimed to remain neutral in the conflict. However, the cotton directly imported from the south of the Unites States still had a great importance in the British textile industry. Following the Civil War, the British were still expecting an American invasion of Canada.

The tense political relationship between Austria and Prussia had the British worried about their wood supply, if the access to the Baltic Sea was blocked. The Canadian forests would then be used as Great Britain main wood supply.

Lieutenant-Colonel William Francis Drummond Jervois was sent to Canada to establish the Canadian defence plan. He suggested that detached forts be built on Pointe-Lévy, on the south shore of Quebec City. The original plans recommanded 5 forts, of which 3 were actually built.

ee also

* [http://www.pc.gc.ca/lhn-nhs/qc/levis/index_e.asp Lévis Forts] on "Parks Canada".