Halifax Citadel

The last weekend in October I visited the Halifax Citadel. It’s quite easy to find- it’s the fort on the top of a very large hill in the middle of downtown Halifax. I wanted to go before it closed for the winter. There are two roads up the hill, so you either go up the main road or the back road. I happened to pick the back road. I climbed up to the top of the hill and walked by this fee booth:

It was empty and I figured that you must pay inside. So I went through the big arch marked ‘entrance’ and found myself in the Citadel. Which is how I accidently got in for free (sorry Parks Canada, but it wasn’t intuitively obvious that I needed to walk all the way around to the other side of the Citadel to pay. It won’t happen again).

The highlight of my visit was the view. You can see all of Halifax from up there and also have the pleasure of standing next to a cannon while you admire everything.

Now I love historic buildings and spaces but I wasn’t enchanted by this one because, frankly, not much has actually happen at the Citadel. It’s a very important fort that represents a number of historical eras, but not very much has actually occurred there. It’s never been invaded. It didn’t blow up in the Halifax Explosion. No political prisoners or King’s riches have been stored in its rooms. Sure, it’s a part of the story of the history of the Halifax harbour, but it’s not on the waterfront.  It’s been rebuilt four times but unless you are an architecture nerd that’s not very thrilling. But it still is the kind of place that you should go and visit for the costume interpreters.

Because I was there on the last weekend they were open, there were only a few interpreters working. I’m sure in the summer there would be lots of them, which would make a visit more interesting. However, I was content with the demonstration of this one:

See that rifle in his hand? He told us a little about its history and how to use it. And then he fired it, which makes such a loud noise that my fingers were in my ears (so I don’t have any photos, sadly). Oh, and I really liked his pants. Even if they are a costume, not many people can pull off plaid pants without looking silly.

Finally, a pretty shot of the parade square, even if it was taken from the entrance of the bathrooms: