Fort Johnston, the first fort in the Province of North Carolina, was built under Act of Assembly of 1745, completed in 1764, and named in honour of Governor Gabriel Johnston. In 1766, the Patriots of the Cape Fear, resisting the execution of the Stamp Act, forced the spiking of its 24 cannon, a gift of King George II. After Governor Josiah Martin fled from New Bern, Fort Johnston served as his refuge from May 24, 1775, until the patriots compelled him to abandon it on July 18, 1775; on that day the fort was destroyed and Royal Government in North Carolina ceased.