Fort Napoléon is located on Terre-de-Haut Island

Terre-de-Haut Island

Terre-de-Haut Island is an island in the Îles des Saintes archipelago. It belongs to the commune of Terre-de-Haut. The Fort Napoléon des Saintes is located on this island. The bay of Terre-de-Haut is one of the most beautiful bay of the world including the club of the most beautiful bay of the...

, in the Îles des Saintes

Îles des Saintes

The Îles des Saintes , also called simply Les Saintes , is a small archipelago of French Antilles located in the South of Basse-Terre Island, on the West of Marie-Galante and in the North of Dominica in the arc of Lesser Antilles...

, Guadeloupe

Guadeloupe

Guadeloupe is an archipelago located in the Leeward Islands, in the Lesser Antilles, with a land area of 1,628 square kilometres and a population of 400,000. It is the first overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. As with the other overseas departments, Guadeloupe...

. Built on the morne (Caribbean French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

 word for "bluff

Hill

A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. Hills often have a distinct summit, although in areas with scarp/dip topography a hill may refer to a particular section of flat terrain without a massive summit A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. Hills...

") called Mire, it was originally named Fort Louis. It was destroyed by British forces in 1809. It was rebuilt in 1867, and named after Napoleon III, but never saw use in battle, and was instead used as a penitentiary

Prison

A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...

. It has now been turned into a museum dedicated to the Saintes’ history, culture, and environment. It also has contains the Jardin exotique du Fort Napoléon

Jardin exotique du Fort Napoléon

The Jardin exotique du Fort Napoléon is a botanical garden specializing in succulents. It is located on the grounds of Fort Napoléon at 120 meters altitude above Terre-de-Haut, Îles des Saintes, and is open daily....

, a botanical garden

Botanical garden

A botanical garden The terms botanic and botanical, and garden or gardens are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word botanic is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is a well-tended area displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names...

 dedicated to local succulent plants and iguanas.