Tobago Landing & Final Defense Sites (1781)
Trinidad And Tobago
Fort James, Shelbourne Street, Plymouth, Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago
PARK
VISITOR INFORMATION
Broadened the Scarborough-only draft to distinct campaign venues. Did not connect the existing Fort King George row without action-specific evidence for its 1781 phase. Map point reviewed October 3, 2026: Pin represents Fort James at Plymouth, overlooking Courland Bay, as a documented nearby historic reference. The National Trust identifies Fort James and its later Courland Monument as heritage destinations. It does not establish the 1781 French landing, British defense line or surrender venue. Do not identify the later Courland memorial as an invasion memorial. Check current site access. Visitor information reviewed October 3, 2026: Fort James offers public heritage grounds near Courland Bay. The original fort was destroyed in the eighteenth century; displayed cannons do not prove surviving original structures. Public toilets and routinely available fort tours remain unverified; the separately scheduled Trust tour is described below. Exact 1781 action positions remain separate. Parking researched October 3, 2026: On-site parking serves Fort James, the retained Plymouth visitor reference. Use designated spaces and confirm current opening with the Tobago Tourism Agency. This does not assign facilities to other historic landing/defence sites.
Visitor information continued October 3, 2026: Tours and Programs refer to the Trust’s scheduled November 14, 2026 Tobago Heritage Experience, which explicitly includes Fort James. The Ticket Info link books the full-day island tour; no routine guided-fort timetable or fort admission price is established. Public toilets at Fort James remain unconfirmed.
Visitor amenities reviewed October 3, 2026: No confirmed information was found for public restrooms. The NO entries reflect unverified provision, rather than confirmed absence. Check locally before relying on facilities.
The National Trust advertises its full-day Tobago Heritage Experience for Saturday November 14, 2026, at TTD 1,195 per person. The itinerary includes Fort James in Plymouth alongside other heritage stops, with transportation, guide services, refreshments, lunch and entry fees included. This is a scheduled island-wide tour price, not a Fort James entrance charge or daily opening schedule. Check remaining availability and joining arrangements directly with the Trust.
Peak visitation season unconfirmed. No reliable site-specific monthly attendance pattern was established.
January-April for generally drier conditions at Tobago's related fortifications, conditional on confirmed local access. Plan the chosen Fort James visit separately from any wider 1781 landing itinerary.
OFFICIAL WEBSITE
TICKET INFORMATION
HISTORIC SITES NEARBY
Nearby Historic Sites
miles
Landmark
WHO WAS HERE
0
PEOPLE WHO LIVED HERE
About Tobago Capture Landing and Final Defense Sites (1781)
Tobago's capture in 1781 involved French landings and the collapse of British resistance on the island. Great Courland Bay and the final defensive positions form a dispersed campaign landscape. Nearby forts provide heritage references, but neither represents every landing or the entire route of the invasion.
Fort James near Plymouth offers a nearby reference for Great Courland Bay, while Fort King George protects later military development above Scarborough. Their surviving works require careful dating. In particular, French construction at Fort King George after the capture should not be described as intact defenses from the 1781 battle.
History happened here at Tobago Capture Landing and Final Defense Sites (1781)
French forces invaded Tobago in May 1781 and pressed the British defenders inland. Landings near Great Courland Bay formed part of the operation, which ended with British capitulation in June. The capture shifted possession of an important Caribbean island during the wider Anglo-French war.
The island's fortifications continued to change under successive rulers. The National Trust records British military development at Fort King George before the invasion and later French construction beginning in 1784. These layers help explain Tobago's strategic value while remaining distinct from the campaign's still-unresolved individual landing and defense positions.
PEOPLE WHO DIED HERE
PEOPLE AT REST HERE
EXTERNAL LINKS
Research reviewed October 3, 2026. Event IDs bc608999-2231-4bb1-8472-a71e2a879819; Events Latest 10PM.csv rows 436.
https://nationaltrust.tt/location/fort-king-george-tobago/
https://www.trinicenter.com/Tobago/TobagoWars.htm
https://www.encyclopedia.com/sports-and-everyday-life/food-and-drink/food-and-cooking/caribbean
Map location reviewed October 3, 2026. Pin represents Fort James at Plymouth, overlooking Courland Bay, as a documented nearby historic reference. The National Trust identifies Fort James and its later Courland Monument as heritage destinations. It does not establish the 1781 French landing, British defense line or surrender venue. Do not identify the later Courland memorial as an invasion memorial. Check current site access. Map geometry © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
https://nationaltrust.tt/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/statues-and-monuments-printables-part-1-1.pdf
https://nationaltrust.tt/product/tobago-heritage-experience-2026/
https://www.openstreetmap.org/way/168347951
https://www.openstreetmap.org/copyright
Visitor classification and amenities reviewed October 3, 2026. Destination: Fort James heritage battery at Plymouth, nearby Courland Bay reference.
https://nationaltrust.tt/location/fort-james/
Prose batch 4 researched October 3, 2026. Fast pass; proofing pending. National Trust fort references checked. Separate later 1784 French construction from 1781 defenses. Fort James is nearby heritage reference; exact landing and Concordia defense footprints remain unresolved.
Visitor admission and access fields reviewed October 3, 2026. Destination: Fort James heritage battery at Plymouth, nearby Courland Bay reference.
Parking researched October 3, 2026. The tourism ministry’s VisitTrinbago directory, posted September 23, 2026, explicitly lists on-site parking and visitor readiness at Fort James, Plymouth, Tobago. On-site parking serves Fort James, the retained Plymouth visitor reference. Use designated spaces and confirm current opening with the Tobago Tourism Agency. This does not assign facilities to other historic landing/defence sites.