Visiting Historic Fort Cornwallis in Penang
As someone with an interest in military history, a visit to Fort Cornwallis was always going to happen.
So after visiting the Clan Jetties, I headed off in the direction of the fort, and after about 20 minutes of avoiding the insane traffic, I made it alive.
Getting my ticket at the gate, the staff told me most of the fort has been closed for renovation, and even showed me on the map the closed areas, which looked like it included most of what I was interested in seeing.
Anyhow, I was here, so I paid the 20RM entry fee, which is only about AUD$7 and headed in.
Not that there was much to see, just a grassy area and a construction fence, oh well, it is what it is, so heading toward the side of the fort, which was open.
Heading up the steps to what would have been the battlements, the first thing I came across was the old gunpowder magazine, with an open door that seemed to call me in.
Going in, it was underwhelming, just a small, crumbling room, no information, no signage or anything that talks about what it used to be.
The sign outside did have some information:
GUNPOWDER MAGAZINE Constructed in 1814, the magazine located at the North-West bastion of the fort was used to store explosives. Its pillbox-shaped design with thick walls was meant to minimise damage in the event of an explosion.
Wandering past the magazine, and up some stairs was the first of the canons, this one was not the rusted relic I was expecting.
Now, there has to be some history to this cannon, and yes, there was signage that detailed some of the history.
SRI RAMBAI CANNON Sri Rambai Cannon was one of the most famous cannons and was put onboard a long wooden boat facing the North Channel by the Japanese in 1941. It had the Dutch East India Company symbol and dated 1613. This date signified that the Sri Rambai Cannon was made at that time.
In 1871, a British boat sailed in Kuala Selangor and was attacked by pirates. The boat was sunken and after that two boats were sent to destroy the city in Kuala Selangor. It was during that time the weapons in Fort Cornwallis were seized included Sri Rambai.
According to history, the Sri Rambai Cannon surfaced from the sea by it's own. This incident happened in 1880. It was cursed by one prince who tied a thread on his finger and ordered the cannon to come afloat at the sea.
Local folklore even believed that women who were infertile would be able to conceive by placing flowers in the cannon barrel as a form of special prayers.
The above seems to have come from Documents in Malaysian History II, and from my reading of it, I think it was translated into English. And yes, I could have corrected some of the translation, but I decided against it.
I would have liked to spend more time examining this cannon, but there was a large tour group that wanted to take photos, so it was time to move on.
That's where things got interesting. Now, there is a lighthouse at the other end of the fort, so I figured I would have a closer look.
But nope, my timing is not good, as this was closed. Not sure why, or even if it's open to visitors. Maybe I will dig into this some more.
Heading back the way I came, I got up onto the wall by the Gun Powder Magazine to have a look at the renovations.
Ok, now while only half the fort being open was annoying, just looking at this part of the renovations, it seems they are doing more than just a repaint, etc.
Next trip back to George Town, I will return to see the fully renovated fort.
In its current state, was it worth the visit? To be honest, not really, just not enough to see.