Bere Island

The Bere Island towers were reported as ready on 2 February 1805 and were therefore probably the earliest Irish towers to be completed . The four, all circular in shape and built of rubble masonry, were sited to defend the anchorage between the mainland and the small harbour of Lawrence Cove on Bere Island.

In addition to the Martello Towers, a signal tower, a barracks for 2 officers and 150 men, a quay and storehouses were also constructed.

After the end of the Napoleonic Wars there followed a period of military stagnation. This ended in 1898 when the British Military raised a compulsory purchase order on large areas of the island in order to construct additional fortifications in order to protect the British Fleet at anchor in the bay.

In 1922, under the terms of the Anglo-Irish Treaty that followed the Irish War of Independence, the British withdrew from most of Ireland but three deep water Treaty Ports, at Berehaven, Queenstown (renamed Cobh) and Lough Swilly, were retained as sovereign bases until 1938.