The 18th century military folly of Fort Boyard between Aix and Oléron Island at La Rochelle in France abandoned since the early 20th century…

…conceived as an artificial island, originally built to protect the harbours of Aix Island (Île-d’Aix) and Rochefort. Due to the limited ballistic artillery range in the late 17th century, the site was seen as a gap in the line of defense which the fort should have filled.
Fort Boyard is oval-shaped, 68 metres (223 ft) long and 31 m (102 ft) wide. At the centre is a yard enclosed by walls 20 m high: on the ground floor the tickness of the walls is carved by stores and quarters, while the upper floors are occupied by casemates for guns and mortars. The first floor also houses the services, kitchens and canteens, the entrance to the guardroom, a police room and the latrines. Four sets of stairs connect the different floors. The façade on the interior yard is composed by three superposed floor of arcades, while on the exterior the fortified wall is only pierced by embrasures for the cannons. The language of the building, with its oval shape and the disposition of the exterior embrasures, seems inspired by the image of a 17th century vessel. For this peculiarity the fort is sometimes referred to as the “vaisseau de pierre” (stone vessel).

Fort Boyard, the Useless “Stone Vessel” (Socks)

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