Apparently there’s no recognised collective noun for a group of forts or castles. Google’s AI overview (for what that’s worth) suggested ‘cluster’ as one possibility – can anyone do any better ?
Anyway, Phil has come up with a fine quartet of fortifications from around the world for our Small Scale Scenery range. All modelled at 1/1000th scale, they range from the tiny Fortín San Juan de la Cruz to the rather more imposing Fuerte de Loreta.
Working up in size order, Fortín San Juan de la Cruz is a small coastal fort in San Juan Bay, Puerto Rico. It guards both the harbour on one side and the Bayamón River on the other. It was bombarded by the US Navy during the 1898 Spanish-American war (remember the Maine ?) although it seems to be debatable as to whether it was manned or armed at the time. It originally sat on a rocky islet, but is now connected to the mainland by an artificial causeway.
Next up is Fort Saint Tropez. Renowned nowadays as a tourist resort on the French Riviera, the village has a chequered history involving pirates, a murdered saint, occupation by Saracens and the distinction of being the first place liberated by the Allied landings in August 1944. Overlooking the harbour is the Citadel of Saint Tropez, the hub of which is a hexagonal keep with three towers. Built between 1602 and 1607, it’s not clear if its guns ever saw action, but it was present when fleet of Spanish galleons was repulsed in 1637. As well as a standalone piece, it would make a good alternative keep using our modular castle components.
Porto Palermo Castle is an Ottoman castle near Himarë on the mountainous eastern coast of Albania. It sits in Porto Palermo bay on a small islet that, like Fortín San Juan, is now connected to the mainland. It has an unusual shape, a bit like an isosceles triangle with a bastion at each corner. It was built in the early 19th century by Ali Pasha of Yanina, an Albanian ruler, who seemingly almost immediately offered it to the Royal Navy. It was apparently used as a barracks in WW2, but other than that we can’t find much else about it. But it’s a great design – and look how thick those walls are !
Finally for this week, Fuerte de Loreto is a large fort in the city of Puebla, Mexico. One of a pair with the smaller Fuerte de Guadalupe, they overlook the city. The fort as we’ve made it was built in 1816 on the site of a chapel, and was crucial in the famous Mexican victory over the French at the Battle of Puebla on May 5th, 1862.
SSS-8218 – Porto Palermo Castle – £3.75
SSS-8219 – Fuerto de Loreto – £6.00
SSS-8220 – Fort Saint Tropez – £2.00
SSS-8221 – Fortin de San Juan de la Cruz – £1.25
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