Fort Beaufort was founded in 1824 and was named after the father of Lord Charles Somerset,
the Duke of Beaufort. Originally a military garrison, Fort Beaufort boasts many fine buildings
dating back to the Frontier wars, including the Martello Tower, a circular fort of the kind usually
erected as part of a coastal defence system. The old Victorian barracks is probably the finest to
be found anywhere outside the United Kingdom. During the War of MIanjeni, the town was
attacked and nearly overrun by anti-colonial forces led by Hermanus Matroos.
Fort Beaufort is an excellent base from which to explore the fascinating Kat River Valley and the
surrounding Katberg and Amatola Mountains which saw some of the heaviest fighting anywhere in
South Africa. At Fort Fordyce the great Xhosa chief Maqoma humiliated the British hero Sir
Harry Smith.
