The Royal Engineers Arch
The Royal Engineer’s Arch is located near the entrance of Fort Charles, in Port Royal, across the harbor from Kingston, Jamaica. Reflective of the triumphant arches of ancient Rome, the British army built this beautiful red brick archway to mark the entrance to the old military complex.
It was erected in 1853 in memory of the Royal engineers who died in the chlorea outbreak of 1850. The deadly disease started in Port Royal and spread over the island where it claimed an estimated 32,000 lives. The monument was damaged in the 1907 earthquake and was repaired in 1911.
Port Royal
Once known as the ‘Wickedest City on Earth,’ Port Royal was one of the largest towns in the English colonies during the late 17th century. Founded in 1494 by the Spanish, it was also once the largest city in the Caribbean
On the morning of June 7th, 1692, a massive earthquake hit Jamaica. The tremors rocked the sandy peninsula on which the town was built, causing buildings to slide and disappear beneath the sea. An estimated 2000 people were killed during the disaster and many more perished from injuries and disease in the following days.
