The Battery

The Battery was once home to Fort George, surrounded by artillery that protected the harbor. Fort George was occupied by the Continental Army under George Washington in 1776, when a reading of the Declaration of Independence spurred the destruction of a statue of King George III at nearby Bowling Green. Following British evacuation on November 25, 1782, the American flag was raised over the harbor at last.

Today, visitors can explore the Battery at the southern tip of Manhattan, where the landscape provides a sense of New York’s strategic position at the entrance to the Hudson and East rivers. Although the Revolutionary fort is gone and the shoreline has changed dramatically, the park remains an excellent starting point for exploring the Revolutionary sites of lower Manhattan.