Fort George

Fort George stands on the southern side of the Moray Firth opposite Fortrose and about 9 miles north-east of Inverness. The first Fort George was built in 1727 on the site of Inverness Castle and incorporated the remains of the medieval fortification. This fort was destroyed in 1746 and the new site chosen in 1747. For some, the fort is regarded as one of the finest examples of 18th-century military engineering ever built in Britain and cost more than the gross national product of Scotland in 1750. To others, it is a monument to the Hanoverian Government's paranoia and a folly which has never fired even a single shot in anger. Whichever way you personally regard Fort George, it is a magnificent structure and a working garrison to this day. Fort George is unusual in so much as it is still a military base but is also open to the public.