Tootin' Sunshine

The main square of the Fort in between the barracks where uniform inspections would occur.

This is the prison on the Fort grounds. Cells faced inland and towards the sea. The Man in the Iron Mask faced the sea. He was held here on the orders of King Louis XIV until 1698 when he was transferred to the Bastille in Paris where he died four years later.

The legal system under the Ancien Regime was controlled by the king. Laws were controlled by the absolute monarch who got his authority from God. Judges were delegated legal proceedings but the judge was also allowed to act directly. Imprisonment in a state prison could be subject to the king's discretion. By virtue of a lettre de cachet, a subject could be imprisoned for an indeterminate amount of time without a proper trial or verdict, and held until further notice. Reasons for being held here and Bastille were based on offences to the king, wrongs against your family and honor, and religious offences.

The window view from his cell. Another man, Andrew MacDonagh of Irish decent was imprisoned in the same cell starting April 11, 1777. Imprisoned for being a presumed English spy and conspirator, he was not allowed any objects that would help him bribe his warders such as shoes, garter buckles, or a watch. Mr. de Montgrand was the fort's commanding officer at the time and ordered body searches of Macdonagh twice a day to ensure he didn't acquire any objects by which to escape. Despite these efforts, MacDonagh was still able to send messages to the Queen and the new Minister of War requesting justice and freedom. His reward for elevating his situation? Two months in chains with only straw to lie on.

During the restoration of the murals in the cell that held The Man in the Iron Mask and Macdonagh, these manuscripts were found in 1990. Written in French and English, wrapped in a small parcel tied with string and paper, these letters describe Andrew's internment. They were discovered hidden in a hole 2.2 meters below ground. They took everything from him, but he still beat the system. You have to love people with never-give-up spirits for that is what the world has been built on.

Tyler and Tanner standing in a doorway that connected two cells. You were not allowed to speak or communicate in any form to other prisons. If you did, you were punished severely.

Religious imprisonment was common. Most notable on Sainte Marguerite Island is the martyrdom of six Protestant ministers. In the late 1600's, they were captured and imprisoned. The king left the care of prisoners to the discretion of his officers. Each was placed in solitary confinement, to remain anonymous, to communicate with no one, especially any other ministers. The men continued to sing psalms which was against rules. Even if they were not communicating directly with each other, there was comfort in hearing and knowing someone else was suffering under the same plight you were. They were severely tortured for this, but continued anymore. Half of the ministers were driven mad by hte permanent confinement, lack of exercise, constant pressure, and poor diet. They continued to chant nonstop either because they had gome mad or they refused to be broken. Because they were deemed mad, the guards were not required to convert them. These men Paul Cardel, Pierre de Salve de Bruneton, Elisee Giruad, Gabriel Mathurin, Gardien Givry, and Matthieu de Malzac.

The entrance to the prison is part of an original Roman cistern which is displayed above. The room we were in was part of the second well partially covered. The cistern was built because the island had no fresh water source. Rain water was collected on the roof of a high building, usually a temple. The water is sent through an aquaduct to a collection basin above the cistern. The water is then distributed through an aquaduct system.