Many residents and visitors alike pass by the ruins of St. Peter’s Battery daily without knowing its significance.
This is so much the case that heavy pipes for the ongoing roadworks in Pointe Blanche have been rested on the site. The Battery was built in the 18th century as a defence against enemy invasion via Great Bay. This Battery is unique, because it was financed not by the Netherlands, but was built and paid for by the people of St. Maarten after numerous requests for defence funds to the Dutch West India Company went unanswered. The Battery, a low wall with a platform for cannons, was built on the shore at sea level. Prior to land reclamation in the area, the waters of Great Bay hit against the cliffs and shoreline where the battery stands.
