Royal Naval Dockyard at Bermuda was established in 1809, almost three decades after the end of the American Revolutionary War, the conflict that dictated its construction, as the British had lost all of their seaports in eastern North America south of Canada. The Royal Navy presence in Bermuda began in St. George's in 1795 and ended 200 hundred years later with the closure of the Dockyard in March 1995. During two centuries, Bermuda served as the only strategic outpost in the North Atlantic for the Royal Navy in America waters and participated in the War of 1812, the American Civil War and both World Wars.

At the beginning of the third millennium, the Bermuda Dockyard survived as an extraordinary collection of historic buildings and fortifications, covering some 20 acres at the northern end of Ireland Island. Built of the hard local limestone, blasted from the bedrock and chiseled into shape by convict labour, the buildings include the outstanding Great Eastern Storehouse (1857), the Casemate Barracks, the Mast Stores, the houses and warehouses of the Victualling Yard, the powder magazines of the Keep and overlooking all of these, the great Commissioner's House, now part of the Bermuda Maritime Museum.

Dockyard is now the most visited place in Bermuda, according to some statistics and that attendance has given justification to the expenditure of funds for the restoration of its buildings and landscapes. All of the Museum buildings, bar one, have wheelchair access. Access to historic buildings must be carried out in a sensitive manner as to not impose damage to the historic fabric of the buildings.

Dr. Edward Harris, MBE, JP, FSA
Executive Director, Bermuda Maritime Museum