Fort de la Pree was built by the Ile de Re's governor, Toiras, following the expulsion of Huguenot forces from the island in 1625.
When the British invaded the island in 1627 to try to lift the siege of La Rochelle, they besieged the larger
Citadel of Saint-Martin, whose new fortifications weren't yet complete. Ignoring the seemingly dinky and insignificant Fort de la Pree gave French forces a safe harbor from which to launch their counterattack, and the British were eventually forced to withdraw, unsuccessful.
During the Second World War, the Germans built a bunker in Fort de la Pree. Today it sits unused and (somewhat) abandoned.
