Diamond Rock (Rocher du Diamant) is a 173 meter (570 feet) high basalt island located south of Fort-de-France, the main port of the Caribbean island of Martinique. In 1804 Commodore Sir Samuel Hood, aboard HMS Centaur (Captain Maxwell) and aided by calm weather, was able to run lines ashore and hoist three long 24 pounder and two 18 pounder cannons to the summit of the Rock. Fortifications were hastily built, and the position supplied with food and water for a garrison of twenty men under the command of Lieutenant Maurice, Hood's 1st lieutenant. The fort was able to harass French shipping trying to enter Fort-de-France for fifteen months. The Royal Navy garrisoned island was officially commissioned as HM Sloop-of-War Fort Diamond. On his voyage to Martinique in 1805, Admiral Villeneuve was ordered by Napoleon to recapture Diamond Rock. A French-Spanish combined naval force of sixteen ships[1] under French Captain Cosmao-Kerjulien attacked the garrison on Diamond Rock. The garrison's stone water cistern had cracked, due to an earth tremor, so they were without water and short of food. After a fierce bombardment, they surrendered to the superior force on June 3, 1805. The 1950 novel The Diamond Rock by Geoffrey Bennett is based on the 1804 event. The 1976 novel Ramage's Diamond by Dudley Pope is based on the same event.
Diving attraction
Below water the Diamond Rock cavern, a deep triangular cave, is a popular attraction for scuba divers. The cave is said to contain prolific quantities of beautiful sea fans and corals, though strong currents make diving the island a risky venture.
