Fishguard had petitioned for coastal defense after earlier wartime alarms and financed the fort while the government supplied Woolwich gunners and weapons. By February 1797 the position had powder but no cannonballs, forcing its crews to consider improvised anti-personnel loads. A replacement supply was expected but had not arrived before the landing. Responsibility remains disputed: central government may have failed to supply the fort, or funds administered through Knox and his militia may not have been properly spent.
Notable Point · 2:08:45-2:09:26
Fishguard Fort's missing round shot exposes a readiness gap
Fishguard had paid to build its own fort and received government gunners and weapons, yet its cannon lacked round shot when the invasion arrived.