Fort Saint-Jean or Fort St. John guarded the entrance to the Port of Marseilles and is located on the north side of the bay. It stands just opposite the other fort, Fort St. Nicholas, and is separated by a narrow passage so that enemy ships could not enter the port. According to legend, in the 6th century B.C. the Phocaeans, the founders and first inhabitants of what was then Massalia, landed in the place where the Fort of St. John (or Fort Saint-Jean) is located. Louis XIV decided to build a fort on this site. The project was realized by Chevalier de Clerville in 1668-1671.
During the Great French Revolution, after the fall of Robespierre, the Jacobins were imprisoned in the fort. For a long time a military garrison was stationed on the territory of the citadel. German occupiers used the fort as an ammunition depot, which was eventually blown up.
In 1964, after the fort was transferred to the Ministry of Culture, it was recognized as a monument to French history. In the late 1970s, the southern walls, which had been destroyed by an explosion in 1944, were rebuilt.
Today on the territory of the fort there is the tower of King René, the chapel of St. John, the ruins of old barracks, a memorial to those who died in the death camps, the church of St. Lawrence, and a lighthouse.
The address of Fort Saint-Jean is Promenade Louis Brauquier,13002, Marseille.