Ford Boyard: Napoleon's grandiose creation, which only fit for a television show

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Fort Boyar (Fort Boyard) is located on the west coast of France, washed by the Atlantic Ocean. This building was erected by the order of the Emperor Napoleon, and this stone fort gained worldwide fame as the filming location of the television show of the same name.

The idea to build a fort in this place, in the middle of the Antjos Strait, arose among the French during the build-up of armed forces under Louis XIV in the 17th century. With artillery fire, he was supposed to protect the approaches to the seaport of Rochefort from the raids of enemy ships.

However, upon examining the construction site, the chief royal engineer de Vauban realized the complexity of the task. He told the Sun King: "Sire, it is easier to grip the moon with your teeth than to build a fortress in such a place."

The construction of the fort was started only in 1801 by order of Napoleon Bonaparte and, with long interruptions, was completed in 1857.

The erected building was oval in shape, 68 meters long and 31 meters wide. The erected walls reach a height of 20 meters. There is an open courtyard in the center of the fort. On the ground floor there are warehouses and premises for soldiers and officers. The floor above contains casemates for guns and warehouses. Even higher are the rooms for barbet guns and mortars.

The garrison of Fort Boyard numbered 250 people. By the time its construction was completed, rifled weapons were widely used in the world. Rifled guns fired farther and more accurately than the old smooth-bore guns. The Antios Strait could now be controlled by long-range artillery from the shore. Fort Boyar was not needed.

After 1871, Fort Boyard was briefly a military prison before being abandoned entirely in the early 20th century. As time went on, the fort slowly collapsed and was covered with a half-meter layer of bird guano. In the 1950s - 1980s, it was resold from hand to hand.

In 1990, the brightest page in the history of a hitherto unknown building begins. Shooting of the TV show of the same name begins at Fort Boyar. For 26 seasons in a row, its rules remain unchanged in general terms: a team of daredevils challenges the missions, secrets and mysteries of the fort. If they win, they will receive a monetary reward. At the same time, they are surrounded by the charismatic dwarfs Passepartout and Pastam, the elder Fura, Monsieur Lyaboul, and the tiger tamer Felindra.

Perhaps everyone knows the main characters of this program, in which domestic teams of pop stars, politicians, and athletes also took part. To win, they had to face the mysterious personalities of the inhabitants of the fort, live tigers, snakes and spiders.

The hero of the TV show, built by order of the Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, Fort Bayard keeps many secrets and secrets, like others 20 unusual islands around the world.