Fort Clarence was initially called the Eastern Battery because it covered the Eastern side of the Halifax anchorage. The original battery was built in 1754 to mount seven 12-pdr SB guns. By 1755 a number of 24-pdr SB guns had been added to the armaments. From 1756 to 1775 the Eastern Battery was largely neglected. With the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War the battery was restored with a Lower Battery on the shoreline and an Upper Battery behind it. The Lower Battery held some fifteen 24-pdrs SB guns. Behind stood a small fort with earthen ramparts, barracks and a magazine.
In 1795 the Lower Battery was reduced to ten 24-pdr SB gun on traversing platforms. The Upper Battery had a new redan added to protect the land approaches. In 1798 a new Martello Tower was built inside the old Upper Battery (redoubt). This Duke of Clarence Tower had three floor levels with a gun platform on the roof. Two caponiers also covered the ditch. The Duke of Clarence Tower had two 8-inch brass howitzers and four 32-pdr SB guns. It was in 1798 that the fortification name was changed from Eastern Battery to Fort Clarence.
Plans from 1809 (TNA WO 78/420) show the for has a large central tower surrounded by rectangular fort. The fort has two guns facing North and two facing South. The Lower Battery is shwon to mount nine smoothbore guns on traversing carriages. There were three portable magazines for ammunition.
Between 1863 and 1869 the site was reconstructed. The top floor of the Duke of Clarence Tower was removed and the remaining two floors used as barracks with a magazine in the underground basement. The new Fort was hexagonal in shape with a deep dry ditch with counter scarp gallery similar to the Halifax Citadel. The Lower Battery was converted to mount eleven 9-inch RML guns in bomb proof casemates.
In 1880 two 64-pdr RML guns on Moncrieff disappearing carriages were added to the Upper Battery.
In 1900 two 4.7-inch Q.,F. guns were mounted in concrete emplacements on the Southwest corner of the Upper Battery. It had also been proposed to mount two 12-pdr Q.F. guns on the Upper Battery to the North of the 4.7-inch guns, but this was cancelled. (WO 78/3964)
On 12th July 1899 three Defence Electric Lights were approved for Fort Charlotte, and these were built between 1900 and 1901. The Engine Room for the lights had been built between 1896 and 1897 with to 8.5-inch Horizontal engines and Boilers installed in 1897 and Hornsby Ackroyd Oil Engines installed in 1898. The oil storage, with eight tanks was immediately adjacent to the Engine Room with its’ coal store.
In decommission between 1906 and 1913 with the two 4.7-inch guns being moved to the new Connaught Battery.
All traces of Fort Clarence were lost during World War 2 when the site was fully converted to handle oil.
For some images of Fort Clarence (Eastern Battery) please follow this line to Halifax Military Heritage Preservation Society. These images show the front of one of the 9-inch RML casemates, a disappearing gun emplacement and the 4.7-inch QF emplacements.