Field Trip to the French Fortress at Louisbourg

There is no denying that Canada does a marvelous job  on their national heritage sites and parks. A perfect example is the Fortress at Louisbourg. See the wikipedia article here. The original fort was built in 1720 to defend the French presence on Cape Breton Island from marauding British. The French fished, and traded with the Mi'kmaq indians. The British captured the fort in 1745 after a siege, then returned it to the French by treaty in 1748, and re-took it in 1758 in another siege, at which time the British destroyed the fort. The reconstruction was done meticulously to the original standards by copying the blueprints which had been preserved in France and in Quebec. Only about 30% of the fort has been rebuilt, at cost of some $33 million. Inside are re-enactments of daily life, blacksmithing, weaving, tatting, cooking (yes, real bread in real brick ovens) and a restaurant that serves period food on period style plates and cutlery. Fun.