Starting from settlement of St. George's Town in 1612 (the permanent settlement of Bermuda had begun with the wreck of the Sea Venture, the flagship of the Virginia Company, but the three men who remained from that ship had lived on Smith's Island, prior to the arrival of more settlers in 1612), the colony's militia built and garrisoned a range of fortifications, mostly protecting the entrances to St. George's Harbour and Castle Harbour, both of which gave access to the town.
These included forts on a string of islands separating Castle Harbour from the open Atlantic to the South, known collectively as the Castle Islands Fortifications, as well as other forts around the entrances to St. George's Harbour on St. George,s, St. David's, and Paget, Islands.

Although a company of regular infantry soldiers was detached to Bermuda from 1701 onwards, the militia remained the primary defensive force of the colony.
This changed, following US independence, which was recognised by the Crown in 1783.
US independence deprived Britain of all of her mainland bases between the Maritimes and Florida (which it returned to Spanish sovereignty, but continued to operate from until the First Seminole War resulted in Spain ceding the colony to the USA).
Bermuda was launched into prominence for the Royal Navy, which began buying land at the West End of the archipelago for the construction of a Dockyard and naval base.
At that time, no passage through the encircling reef sufficient to allow large Ships-of-the-line to reach the West End was known, so the Royal Navy built up its establishment in and around St. George's Town, including at Convict Bay, Bermuda and the storehouse built on the town's docks (Bermuda's only brick building, which currently houses the Carriage House Museum).
Within a dozen years, a suitable passage to the West End (Hurd's Channel) had been located, and the Royal Navy began relocating its shore establishments westwards.
The naval base in Bermuda was to play an important role in the American War of 1812.
Bermuda would also become the headquarters of the Royal Navy in the Western North Atlantic (in the Western South Atlantic, it was permitted to maintain a large base in Brazil) until the 1950s.

The build up of the naval base in Bermuda made the colony a likely target in any war in the Western North Atlantic.
This required the build up by the British Army of a large Bermuda Garrison of professional soldiers.
The regular soldiers took over the garrisoning of various militia forts, rebuilding and re-arming many of them.
They also set about building a series of new forts and batteries, military camps, and various other military facilities throughout the 19th and early 20th Centuries.
Although the Royal Naval Dockyard was at the Western extremity of Bermuda, concentrated on Ireland Island, and the capital of Bermuda had moved from St. George's to Hamilton, in the central parishes (which had already eclipsed St. George's as the economic centre), the only route by which any useful invading force could land, or carry out a naval attack on the West End, was still via the channels that led them around the North-East ends of St. David's and St. George's Islands, and this is where the coastal artillery and fortifications continued to be most concentrated.
In addition to the many forts and batteries scattered around the area, the army built a large munitions depot on Ordnance Island, within the Town itself, and barracks and other facilities in the St. George's Garrison area to the North of the town.
With so many regular soldiers in Bermuda, the Parliament of Bermuda came to see the militia as superfluous, and allowed it to lapse after the American War of 1812, not authorizing new part-time reserves until compelled to do so by the Secretary of State for War in 1885.

Although no military force ever attempted a serious invasion of Bermuda (a handful of small raids by Spanish, French and Bermudian-American vessels were either fended off with a few shots, or saw the attackers flee before militia and local privateers could reach them), the threa
Starting from settlement of St. George's Town in 1612 (the permanent settlement of Bermuda had begun with the wreck of the Sea Venture, the flagship of the Virginia Company, but the three men who remained from that ship had lived on Smith's Island, prior to the arrival of more settlers in 1612), the colony's militia built and garrisoned a range of fortifications, mostly protecting the entrances to St. George's Harbour and Castle Harbour, both of which gave access to the town. These included forts on a string of islands separating Castle Harbour from the open Atlantic to the South, known collectively as the Castle Islands Fortifications, as well as other forts around the entrances to St. George's Harbour on St. George,s, St. David's, and Paget, Islands.
Although a company of regular infantry soldiers was detached to Bermuda from 1701 onwards, the militia remained the primary defensive force of the colony. This changed, following US independence, which was recognised by the Crown in 1783. US independence deprived Britain of all of her mainland bases between the Maritimes and Florida (which it returned to Spanish sovereignty, but continued to operate from until the First Seminole War resulted in Spain ceding the colony to the USA). Bermuda was launched into prominence for the Royal Navy, which began buying land at the West End of the archipelago for the construction of a Dockyard and naval base. At that time, no passage through the encircling reef sufficient to allow large Ships-of-the-line to reach the West End was known, so the Royal Navy built up its establishment in and around St. George's Town, including at Convict Bay, Bermuda and the storehouse built on the town's docks (Bermuda's only brick building, which currently houses the Carriage House Museum). Within a dozen years, a suitable passage to the West End (Hurd's Channel) had been located, and the Royal Navy began relocating its shore establishments westwards. The naval base in Bermuda was to play an important role in the American War of 1812. Bermuda would also become the headquarters of the Royal Navy in the Western North Atlantic (in the Western South Atlantic, it was permitted to maintain a large base in Brazil) until the 1950s.
The build up of the naval base in Bermuda made the colony a likely target in any war in the Western North Atlantic. This required the build up by the British Army of a large Bermuda Garrison of professional soldiers. The regular soldiers took over the garrisoning of various militia forts, rebuilding and re-arming many of them. They also set about building a series of new forts and batteries, military camps, and various other military facilities throughout the 19th and early 20th Centuries. Although the Royal Naval Dockyard was at the Western extremity of Bermuda, concentrated on Ireland Island, and the capital of Bermuda had moved from St. George's to Hamilton, in the central parishes (which had already eclipsed St. George's as the economic centre), the only route by which any useful invading force could land, or carry out a naval attack on the West End, was still via the channels that led them around the North-East ends of St. David's and St. George's Islands, and this is where the coastal artillery and fortifications continued to be most concentrated. In addition to the many forts and batteries scattered around the area, the army built a large munitions depot on Ordnance Island, within the Town itself, and barracks and other facilities in the St. George's Garrison area to the North of the town. With so many regular soldiers in Bermuda, the Parliament of Bermuda came to see the militia as superfluous, and allowed it to lapse after the American War of 1812, not authorizing new part-time reserves until compelled to do so by the Secretary of State for War in 1885.
Although no military force ever attempted a serious invasion of Bermuda (a handful of small raids by Spanish, French and Bermudian-American vessels were either fended off with a few shots, or saw the attackers flee before militia and local privateers could reach them), the threa
Historic Town of St George and Related Fortifications, Bermuda