Signal Hill

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Signal Hill is a hill which overlooks the city of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.

Signal Hill, a National Historic Site
View of St. John's from Signal HillBecause of its strategic placement overlooking the harbour, fortifications have been placed on the hill since the Napoleonic wars. The United States maintained anti-aircraft guns on the hill during World War II.

Cabot Tower was built on the hill at the end of the 19th century to commemorate Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee in 1897 and the 400th anniversary of John Cabot's landfall in 1497.

Before the days of radio, signal masts on the hill were used to send messages to ships entering St. John's harbour. In 1901, the first trans-Atlantic wireless message was received here by Guglielmo Marconi. This location has been designated a Canadian National Historic Site.

A nature trail exists behind Signal Hill, granting an impressive view of the Atlantic Ocean and a number of islands off Newfoundland's shore, running from the base of the hill to the peak.

[color="Red"]The final battle of the Seven Years' War in North America was fought in 1762 at the Battle of Signal Hill, in which the French surrendered St. John's to the British under the command of Colonel William Amherst.[/color]

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http://www.pc.gc.ca/lhn-nhs/nl/signalhill/natcul/histor_f.asp

En juin 1762, les Français se sont à nouveau emparés de St. John's, cette fois dans le but de renforcer leur position de négociation après la perte de Louisbourg et de Québec. En septembre, les troupes du lieutenant-colonel William Amherst marchaient sur St. John's à partir de Torbay. En s'emparant d'abord de Signal Hill, Amherst a gagné un avantage stratégique : après une nuit de bombardement au mortier depuis la colline, les Français, cantonnés au fort William, se sont rendus et les Anglais ont repris la ville. Par la suite, en 1770, ils allaient ériger le fort Townsend hors de portée des pièces de Signal Hill.