The Bastille Fort

Well done to those who walked! The rest of you, I hope you got a thrill and some great shots! Now that you’ve all arrived at the Fort de la Bastille. Don’t hesitate to explore the site, with its terraces and belvederes offering breathtaking views, as well as information on Grenoble, the surrounding region and the fortifications. The first were built in the 16th century by Lesdiguières, leader of the Huguenots of the Dauphiné, who had just taken Grenoble. He immediately built a fortified citadel and a bastille overlooking the city to ensure that no enemy from the neighboring Duchy of Savoy could enter unseen! At the same time, the city’s original Roman walls were demolished, as they were no longer suited to the new warfare techniques. A century later, the true expert in fortifications, French military engineer Vauban, came to inspect the fortress and found it utterly useless! The new fortifications were completed at the beginning of the 19th century by General Haxo with the aim of protecting the city from the Duchy of Savoy. They turned out to become completely useless as they were never really used in time of war! Indeed, barely 13 years later, Savoy became part of France and no longer had a reason to attack the Dauphiné. Now that you’re up here, why don’t you take a look at the Mandrin Caves? They are named after Mandrin, a famous Dauphiné outlaw, kind of like Robin Hood, who actually, had nothing to do with the caves themselves as they were created almost a century after his death. These caves are connected by a path invisible from the Chartreuse Mountain range. It should be noted that the fort’s only real weak point was the Chartreuse massif which dominated it. Everything was done to prevent an attack from above and to be able to fire towards the mountain. The Bastille is listed in the supplementary inventory of historic monuments and is also part of the Mont Jalla site of ecological interest. I’ll leave you to enjoy the place with these words from Stendhal’s Memoirs of a Tourist: “I do not have the strength to describe the admirable view, which changes every hundred steps, that one has from the Bastille…”.