Fort Mahon

Fort Mahon
Fort d'Ambleteuse or Fort Vauban
Near Ambleteuse in Pas-de-Calais in France
Seaward view of Fort d'Ambleteuse
Coordinates	50°48′19″N 1°36′02″E / 50.80528°N 1.60056°E / 50.80528; 1.60056Coordinates: 50°48′19″N 1°36′02″E / 50.80528°N 1.60056°E / 50.80528; 1.60056
Height	15 m (49 ft)
Site information
Owner	Association of Friends of the Fort Ambleteuse
Open to the public	yes
Condition	Restored
Purpose	Coastal artillery
Website	http://asso.nordnet.fr/fortdambleteuse/Accueil.html
Site history
Built	1680 (1680)
Built by	Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban
In use	17th century to 1945
Materials	Stone
Garrison information
Garrison	French Army

Fort Mahon (French: Fort d'Ambleteuse or Fort Vauban) is a sea fort by the commune of Ambleteuse in the Pas-de-Calais, northern France. The fort was built at the end of the 17th century by the military architect Vauban on the orders of Louis XIV to defend the port in the estuary of the Slack. It was designated a Monument historique in the 1960s.

The original title of the fort or tower is Ambleteuse in all official documents including the Napoleonic cadastre of 1803. However the name Fort Mahon, which is used in English, did not appear until in 1840 and is probably the result of an administrative or transcription error.

On October 19, 1965, the government of France classified the fort as a historical monument. However the decree stated that although the fortification was named Ambleteuse it was also sometimes called Fort Mahon. Demonstrating that the misnomer remained in circulation. The private heritage group that manages the site adheres to what they consider to be the official name: Fort of Ambleteuse.

Work to build Fort Ambleteuse at the mouth of the Slack was completed in 1680. Vauban sited the fortification at a point at which access can only be made at low tide. Its defences consisted of a five-piece coastal artillery battery situated within a stone-lined bastion (or casemate) with seaward facing embrasures set in walls up to 3 m (9.8 ft) thick. An outer sea wall provided further protection for the inner scarp's gun terrace. In 1945, two sea mines exploded destroying the outer defences. But the wall has been restored in its original form with battlements.

To the landward side, Vauban built a small parade ground and living quarters for the fort's garrison. The gun platform within the bastion was once was a large open space but this was cut in half by a concrete partition that was added by German forces during the Second World War. A pillbox was also added to the inner side of the fort to strengthen its landward defences. The landward walls had embrasures for muskets and small cannons.