The Fort cover art

The Fort

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

The Fort

By: Bernard Cornwell
Narrated by: Robin Bowerman
Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

‘Captivate, kill or destroy the whole force of the enemy’ was the order given to the American soldiers.

THE FORT is the blistering new novel from worldwide bestseller Bernard Cornwell.

Summer 1779.

Seven hundred and fifty British soldiers and three small ships of the Royal Navy. Their orders: to build a fort above a harbour to create a base from which to control the New England seaboard.

Forty-one American ships and over nine hundred men. Their orders: to expel the British.

The battle that followed was a classic example of how the best-laid plans can be disrupted by personality and politics, and of how warfare can bring out both the best and worst in men. It is a timeless tale of men at war, written by a master storyteller.

©2010 Patricia Cornwell; 2010 HarperCollins Publishers Limited Classics Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Political Sea Adventures War & Military Adventure War

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Agincourt cover art
Young Bloods cover art
Crécy: The Age of the Archer cover art
The Guns Above cover art
Ring of Fire I cover art
Blood Oath cover art
Semper Fi cover art
Gone for Soldiers cover art
Dawn cover art
The King's Coat cover art
Mr Midshipman Hornblower cover art
War and Peace cover art
Dreadnaught cover art
Midshipman Bolitho cover art
The Rising Tide cover art
Tarnished Knight: The Lost Stars, Book 1 cover art

Critic reviews

‘Nobody in the world does this stuff better than Cornwell’ Lee Child

‘Bernard Cornwell is a literary miracle. Year after year, hail, rain, snow, war and political upheavals fail to prevent him from producing the most entertaining and readable historical novels of his generation.' Daily Mail
All stars
Most relevant
WOW this was a very good insight into the working life of americans during the American War of Independence. I enjoyed the picture that depicted how the English/Scottish soldiers interacted with the local residents and how they directed their fighting in this particular war. It was refreshing as it did not portray any particular side as villanous.

The Fort

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
historically correct and well read brought the revolution to life.Well narrated and enjoyable, giving me subjects to research

historically correct

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I enjoyed this story of an event during the American War of Independence. It tells of the British setting up a fort at Magdabigwajuce on the Penobscot River, and the attack on the fort, in the early stages of its construction, by the Americans. Cornwell has drawn the characters of the protagonists well, and has described how each considered the situation and responded. The British forces were trained professional soldiers and sailors, although many lacked fighting experience, and the Americans were largely pressed men, with a few trained Marines, but they were fighting for their liberty. The American officers were, in general, extremely cautious, not wanting to squander their slim resources and always looking for a certain victory, and this led to interesting conflict between them. The Americans had arrived with many ships, and the British over-estimated the actual number of men and their firepower. Both sides were hoping for the arrival of reinforcements.

From the way Cornwell set up the various battles between the Americans and the British, I could not predict which side would win, and this feeling that victory could go to either side continued right up to the end of the book. Even when reinforcements did arrive Cornwell did not tell us immediately which side they were on, and he continued to set up situations in which the reinforcements could be dealt a damaging blow.

The narration, by Robin Bowerman, was good, with each character having a distinctive voice.

Not Sharpe, but absorbing

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A good story easy for the modern reader to follow but rich in the language and nuance of the 18th century. The main characters do not exclude the supporting cast. Instead the reader is led through the weft and weave of the story by many different hands lending perspective depth and body to a conflict which at its heart set brother against brother. Colony against the founding homeland and democracy against perceived tyranny.

More compelling than the press gang

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Really enjoyed this. I hadn’t heard of the Penibscot Expedition until stumbling across this in Audible. I won’t hold my breath for Hollywood to make a film about this British victory during the American War of Independence😉. A pdf map of the battle area really ought to have been supplied by Audible. Managed to get it online after a bit of looking and suggest you do the same, as the map helps to understand where all the ships/batteries/etc were.

Great bit of history

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Very mixed reviews on this book both here and on Amazon. In short, if you want a "Sharp"style Story this book is not for you. If you love history this is yet another brilliantly researched and superbly written novel that brings real historical figures to life. No it is not action packed but I was never bored listening to it. Bernard Cornwell rights about real history and this is a very different kind of story, he is not going to change it to make it more exciting for the average reader. We get enough of that from Hollywood and it is for this reason why I believe Bernard Cornwell remains so successful. This book has left me wanting to know more about the War of Independence and I really hope he writes more - but then we want him to finish Starbuck and are there some more Sharp stories?................Excellent narration on this recording too.

Why do you read Bernard Cornwell?

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
love this book listened to numerous times and enjoy it everytime. hopefully this will lead to a film of the book.

fantastic story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This is a perfect example of the writers ability to craft a narrative around real events in history. He brings each character through a journey and allows you to see their motivations even when you are screaming at them to make a different choice. Would recommend this and any other of his novels to anyone who would care to listen. Great performance by Bowerman, giving even further depth to the characters.

A joy to listen too

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Set in the 18th century in the middle of the American war of Independance. This book tells a classic Bernard Cornwell tale of great imagination mixed with his unnerving ability to make actual history come to life. A small british force of sailors and royal marines are instructed to occupy and hold a small fort. In what seems a hopeless task when they come up against an overwhelming force of rebels.There are many side stories in this book but none of more interest than that of Paul Reveer. the Hero of the Boston night ride comes to life with some unexpected endings.

The Fort

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A very American tale of wartime confusion. Disappointing naration.
The editors would have been better of offering this story in the third person .
A clearly defined map would have helped enormously. But this is a very Swiss perspective.

A slice of the American war with the British

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews