Le Portel Plage

The town of Le Portel seeks to showcase its historical heritage through its three forts which, given their position on the coast, can help to develop its attractiveness for tourism.

Fort de l'Heurt was constructed in 1803 by order from Napoleon Bonaparte, who was 1st Consul at the time, as part of plans for a landing in England. “Heurt” comes from the noun "heustrière", which means "Oyster Island". Through contraction, this name became “heustre” and then “Heurt”. Plans for the structure were drawn up by Lieutenant Colonel Dode. The fort was commissioned in July 1804.
It was abandoned in August 1805 (when the camp at Boulogne was lifted). The fort is in ruins today, but its impressive bulk still braves the waves.

Seeking to take back Boulogne, which had been occupied by the English, Maréchal du Biez decided to build a fort. In 1550, the Peace of Capécure put an end to the war and the fort was abandoned. In planning for his invasion of England, Napoleon re-armed it. It was often used for quartering troops, especially during wartime. A semaphore was also set up.

Fort d'Alprech was built during the 3rd French Republic between 1875 and 1880 by Engineering General Séré de Rivières. There were bunkers for housing the personnel (some one hundred men), stores and an explosive magazine. The Alprech battery was armed with cannons and howitzers. It was operational during World War I and was occupied by the German army from 1940 to 1944. Fort d'Alprech was restored in 1999.


Le Portel Plage
Hôtel de Ville – 51 rue Carnot – BP 26 62480 – Le Portel
Tel.: +33 (0)3.21.87.73.73
E-mail: mairie@ville-leportel.fr

Website of the Regional Tourism Committee of the Nord Region

Quizz : Forts et citadels