Tower of Strength

Community Historian, Brendan Matthews for Millmount Museum, Drogheda Co. Louth, has written the following article.

Tower of strength

The beginning of the 19th century again brought major changes to the town of Drogheda.
The population was on the increase and a town of major industrial importance was emerging. Corporation records show that many of the older buildings were being demolished, new roads, pavements and streets were being laid down; many of the fine buildings, that survive to this day, were constructed around this time, while there is even a mention of the building of public toilets on the `new quay` at the foot of Stockwell lane.
At one meeting, the corporation ordered that there would be no more money paid for road repairs in the town until the `Dikes` at each side of the road was filled up.

The meat market was still in the possession of the military throughout the summer of 1802, however the Barrack Board finally surrendered the premises back to the corporation by the end of October of that year.

Throughout the year of 1803, the corporation were still hoping to secure a more permanent base for the military and a number of locations were proposed at several assembly meetings, including a premises situated to the west of West Gate and; at a specially held meeting of the corporation, held at the end of November 1803, it was resolved that they were ready to grant, free of rent, St. Laurence’s Gate to the English Government for the use of a `Military Post`.

By the spring of 1805 there was also a large force of reserve soldiers within the town who had been enlisted from Drogheda and the surrounding area.

The Act of Union came about in the year 1800, which abolished the Irish parliament and united Britain and Ireland into one Kingdom under one parliament; however this resulted in Great Britain’s domination over her smaller, poorer neighbour.

Britain was also involved in the Napoleonic Wars against the French and, it was during this period (1804-1812) that the structures known as Martello Towers were erected along the southeast coast of England and the east coast of Ireland as a defensive mechanism against a threatened Napoleonic invasion of these islands.
The towers were first introduced in the 15th century around Corsica to protect coastal villages and shipping from North African pirates. Although the pirate threat subsequently dwindled, the Genoese built a newer generation of the circular towers at the end of the 18th century, which were then used to ward off later foreign invasion.







The origins of this new Martello tower came from the place-name of Mortella point, situated in the bay of St. Florent on the island of Corsica, which had a round tower based there in the mid 1790`s during the campaign of the British under Nelson whose flagship `Victory` was deployed there; ironically, Corsica was also the birthplace of Napoleon.

A Lieutenant Moore, in Nelson’s army, was so impressed with the structure of the tower at Mortella point that he had the plan adopted by the British, however the name `Mortella` was misspelled by a Captain Wolsely and the name was subsequently corrupted to that of Martello.

Back in Drogheda, in the summer of 1806, the corporation ordered that the `New gate` in Fair Street, and all the materials of wood and stone be taken down and sold at public auction. On the 17th July 1807, the corporation granted the freedom of the town to the, newly appointed, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and, subsequently under his orders, a Martello type tower was constructed on top of the great mound at Millmount.

This new Lord Lieutenant or British Viceroy to Ireland was one Mr. Charles Lennox, who was also the 4th Duke of Richmond. He had succeeded the Duke of Bedford as Viceroy to Ireland in April 1807.

Born at Gordon castle near Thirsk in Scotland on the 9th December 1764, Charles Lennox was a keen British soldier and politician. He became an army captain at the young age of 23 in 1787 and in 1789 he was involved in two duels, one of which was against the Duke of York who had accused him of `ungentlemanly behaviour`. In late 1789 he married Lady Charlotte Gordon, daughter of the 4th Duke of Gordon, and they had fourteen children, seven daughters and seven sons.

In the late 1790`s he participated in Naval engagements against the French in the West Indies and Gibraltar; however he was soon back in Britain after he became involved in several conflicts with his military superiors. It appears that Lennox also loved the `high life`, partying and heavy drinking. He also had a great love of Cricket and, it was he who, in 1786, offered his full backing and support to Mr. Thomas Lord on the opening of his first cricket ground and, although Lord’s cricket ground has been moved a couple of times since then, it was the backing of Lennox that provided the foundations for the best known cricket ground in the world. The first Lord’s cricket ground was opened in 1787.


Charles Lennox also became an MP for Sussex in England from 1790 until 1807.
On the 27th December 1806 he became the 4th Duke of Richmond after the death of his uncle the 3rd Duke of Richmond, who was also named Charles Lennox.






In April 1807 he became Lord Lieutenant, also known as, Viceroy of Ireland, succeeding Sir John Russell, the 6th Duke of Bedford and, on the 17th July of that year, he was granted the freedom of Drogheda by the corporation who also presented him with a gold box. In March of 1808 the corporation petitioned the Duke for £100, which was to be competed for at Bellewstown races; the Duke honoured the request and a grant for a King’s Plate of 100 guineas was subsequently competed for at Bellewstown in July.

It was also during this period, from 1808, that the corporation had granted the use of the Millmount complex to be used, yet again, as a Military Barracks and by the end of 1809 the Martello type tower was erected on the summit of the great mound and which was to become known as the Richmond Fort. Perhaps as a consequence of being responsible for the construction of the tower, the corporation again acknowledged the Lord Lieutenant by hosting a lavish banquet in his honour in January 1810 at a huge expense; the cost of which was debated at their monthly meetings. At a special general assembly meeting held on the 24th January 1810, the corporation were, `taking into consideration the ruinous state of the Mayoralty House and the necessity of its immediate repair` and, it was also ordered that, `the sum of £250.00 be granted to the Mayor to deploy the expense of the dinner given to his grace the Lord Lieutenant`.

Also at this time, there was a large force of officers and privates of the Wicklow regiment of the militia stationed in the town with the corporation expressing their thanks to this militia for their `very correct and proper conduct during their residence in this town`. The following May the corporation resolved that `a sum, not exceeding £700.00, shall be paid by the treasurer of the corporation to deploy the expense of repairing and furnishing the Mayoralty House`. It is also interesting to note that, the corporation ordered that St. John’s Gate, situated on the south bank of the Boyne and northwest of Millmount, be taken down and sold at public auction in October of 1810.

There has always been controversy on whether the Richmond Fort at Millmount was ever indeed a true Martello tower built under Britain’s National Defence Act of 1804 in anticipation of an Napoleonic invasion of these islands. The 4th Duke of Richmond, along with that of his predecessor, the 3rd Duke and also his successor, the 5th Duke, were all heavily involved in the wars against France and all three were involved with the surveying, planning and the erection of several of such towers from the 1790`s until the 1820`s.

In the later 1790`s, the 3rd Duke of Richmond was responsible for the surveying, map publishing and the erection of a number of the early towers on the islands of Guernsey, Jersey and along the south east coast of England. From the late 18th century, the towers were being constructed around Britain and were known under different names such as Coastal-batteries, Beacons, Watchtowers, Gun-batteries, Coastal-forts, Citadels, Redoubts, Round-towers, etc. and, subsequently, the name `Martello` was then applied as a universal term for any round defensive tower.









In 1803 Napoleon had subdued Italy and Austria and was preparing to invade Britain and, at this time, 74 Martellos, along with 3 circular fortresses were constructed around the southeast coast of England. After the defeat of the French at the battle of Trafalgar in 1805, the threat from the French diminished a little, however, from around 1808 a further batch of Martello towers were also constructed. In total, 103 towers were built around the southeast coast of England between 1804 and 1812, with 29 of the 103 towers having been constructed between 1808 and 1812 and which were slightly larger than the earlier towers.

In Ireland, the majority of the Martello towers were erected between 1804 and 1806.
Originally there was 74 towers planned for Ireland, however the total number erected came to around 50, with 22 of them having been constructed around Dublin Bay and 14 of these were actually constructed between Sandymount in south Dublin and Bray in Co. Wicklow, while a number of towers were also located along the north Dublin coast as far as Balbriggan; perhaps giving us an indication that the British were of the believe that Napoleon was sending a fleet of warships to Dublin Bay.

The tower at Millmount was built in 1808/09 and a further two Martello type towers were constructed in 1812 on the banks of the Foyle river at Magilligan and Greencastle in Co. Derry, while a number of similar towers were also erected on the south shore of Galway Bay and along the Shannon River at places such as Banagher and Meelick, which were also built between 1810 and 1812. Martello towers were also erected at this time as far south as Cork Harbour. In fact, Martello type towers were constructed across Europe, Australia, the U.S.A, Canada, Jamaica, Mauritius and Sri-Lanka from the later 18th century up until the late 1850`s, when a Martello tower was constructed in Sydney Harbour as a protection against a proposed Naval attack by the Russians.

In 1854, the rifled breech-loading gun was invented by Sir William Armstrong, who tested this new artillery out on a Martello Tower in Eastbourne, Sussex, in August of 1860. The tower, which was already being lost to the sea by coastal erosion, was devastated and it became clear that such towers could not withstand this new rifled artillery firepower and so, from this time on, the Martello towers were discontinued.

Although the towers were built to `type plans`, there was local variations depending on the contractors employed and the materials available; however, most of the towers stood approximately 40 feet high, 35 to 45 feet in diameter and a single doorway situated some 15 feet off the ground and which was reached by means of a ladder. The towers had two floors and contained a garrison of around 25 men and 1 officer. The wall of the towers, facing the coast, were also thicker than the rest of the tower so that it could withstand heavy fire from ships. The majority of the towers in both Britain and Ireland were erected, almost at the waters edge along the coast; in fact, one third of all the towers that were built in England have been lost to the sea by erosion. It is also estimated that it took approximately six months to construct such a tower.



The tower at Millmount however, may have been deliberately constructed here by reason that Drogheda was a very important garrison town of the British Empire, thus protecting, not only the estuary of an important river, but also the town and its inhabitants. The sight of the tower would also have been a strong military statement by the British dominating, as it did, the surrounding town, countryside and coastal area. Prior to the time of the towers construction, the corporation of Drogheda were seeking to establish a permanent military barracks within the town and with the coming of the new Viceroy; the 4th Duke of Richmond, to Ireland in 1807, with his experience of such towers and fighting the French, along with a threat from Irish insurgents, the timing was right for such an undertaking in Drogheda.

The nearest Martello tower to Millmount was that of Balbriggan some 15km south-east of Drogheda; however, it is also possible that the Maiden tower, situated at the estuary of the Boyne was also used as a look-out post in these troubled times? The majority of the towers also had their guns placed on the roofs of the martellos, but at Drogheda the two, nine-pounder, guns were placed on a moveable platform beside the tower. The reason for this may have been that, the tower was already sitting on top of a great mound, being very much higher than any of the rest in Britain or Ireland and, placing the guns on the roof of the tower would not have been of any great benefit and, in fact, may have been a hindrance in any defensive situation due to the height at which they would have been placed.

The majority of the towers were also protecting the coastal areas, acting as Beacons for a proposed threat; however, the tower at Drogheda was in fact protecting a garrison and a prosperous town; a jewel in the crown of Britain’s policy in Ireland after the Act of Union less than a decade earlier. The topography of Drogheda and the surrounding area, including a major route-way to the north also made Drogheda a `Key Player` in these troubled times of the British Empire.

A stonewall parapet also surrounded the tower at Millmount protecting the gunners; while at the other towers the parapet was situated on the roof where it too protected the guns. It is clear that the tower at Millmount then was not just erected as another, `Martello` tower as a result of a proposed Napoleonic invasion, but rather that it was erected as a backup for the coastal watchtowers and that its line of defence was therefore the protection of the north-east territory and guarding one of the most important trade routes; that of the estuary, which, if fallen into French hands, would have been detrimental to Britain.

The Duke of Richmond was also very anti Catholic and a strong advocate of oppressive measures to subdue the populace and, after the rising of 1798 and the follow-up executions of rebels including that of Robert Emmett, the construction of the Richmond Barracks in Drogheda was also yet another symbol of oppression by Britain in Ireland and the erection of such a magnificent tower on top of the great mound also reflected a symbol of great strength to any future insurgency against the town.



Charles Lennox, the 4th Duke of Richmond, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, was a very colourful character, to say the least. The tower at Millmount was aptly named Richmond Fort in his honour and his name will be synonymous with Drogheda as long as the tower remains. He left his position as Viceroy to Ireland in July of the year 1813; the new Lord Lieutenant being Charles Whitworth, also known as the First Viscount Whitworth. At a meeting held on the 16th July 1813, the corporation addressed a letter to `His Grace, the Lord Lieutenant Charles Lennox on the eve of his departure`, expressing their grateful thanks and acknowledging the great work that he had done for Drogheda at a time of great trouble and strife in the country.
After the 4th Duke of Richmond left Ireland, he and his family moved to Brussels from their family estate in Goodwood in Sussex and, again, this was due to the fact that the Duke was unable to maintain his estate as a result of his extravagant lifestyle.

While he was abroad he continued to participate in the Napoleonic Wars and in 1815 he was in command of a reserve force in Brussels. He was protecting that city in case Napoleon had won the battle of Waterloo. His command were also involved in heavy fighting with the French at this time, however, he himself was not involved in any of the fighting, preferring instead to have dinner parties with fellow officers.

In the year 1818 he was appointed Governor General of Upper Canada and, it was while he was on one of his visits to a small British Garrison, about 200 km from Quebec, in 1819, that he was bitten by a pet fox and died of rabies on the 28th August of that year; Charles Lennox, 4th Duke of Richmond, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland 1807 – 1813.

In Britain and the Channel Islands there are several places named Richmond fort and Richmond barracks in his honour. There was also a Richmond barracks in Thurles, Co. Tipperary named in his honour, along with a Richmond barracks at Inchicore and the Richmond Gatehouse at Kilmainham, which were also named after him. He also laid down the foundation stone for the erection of Nelson’s Pillar in Dublin in February 1808.

The towns of Richmond in Ontario, Richmond Hill, also in Ontario and the town of Richmond in Quebec were also named after him. Apart from the forts, barracks, towers, etc, there are numerous streets, hospitals, asylums, etc, named, not only in his honour, but also in the honour of his predecessor and uncle the 3rd Duke of Richmond, who also played a key role in the erection of the early Martello towers, while a number of other places, including a tower in Canada, are named after his son, also named Charles Lennox and who became the 5th Duke of Richmond after the death of his father in 1819.