Forte de São Sebastião da Caparica
Encyclopedia
Forte de São Sebastião da Caparica (Fort São Sebastião da Caparica) also known as Torre de São Sebastião da Caparica, Torre Velha and Fortaleza da Torre Velha (literally the Old Tower Fortress) is a fortress located in Monte da Caparica in Caparica
, city of Almada
, Portugal
.
The Torre Velha da Caparica was one of the most famous examples of military architecture. In the Renaissance
period, it was one of the first systems of artillery
integrated into a defense station of rio Tejo
, mainly between Torre de Santo António de Cascais and Torre de São Vicente de Belém.
(1385-1433).
In the beginning of the 15th century, during the beginning of the Portuguese age of discovery, its defense over the Tejo and the port of Lisbon
was based with a naval artillery, situated between the river waters. Frontly under King John II
(1481-1495), a new plan was added for the port's protection based within the three towers, they were adapted into those artillery of the era:
Theses fortifications cooperated with the naval artillery which it patrolled the river with vigilant tariffs and defense of the country's capital.
was made up of a tower and a defense, that in which it was built, a few years later, the Baluarte de Cascais was added in 1498 along with two other, one in 1502 and another in 1515.
In 1570, with its cast which accounted several separate forts within the Portuguese coasts, King Sebastian
(1568-1570) modified its old tower turned into a fort with great dimensions. It was designated as Fortaleza de São Sebastião da Caparica. Its work progressed under the Philippine Dynasty
and made its project suffered an altered structure. This phase was known as the Torre dos Castelhanos (The Castilian Tower).
In the late 19th century, it fort went into received works, possibly the consolidation directly under the coloner Francisco D'Alincourt.
in 1801, its fortifications in the south bank of the Tejo were disabled. Meanwhile, the survey of October 1808 said:
In the survey of January 1828, it had:
In 1832, it underwent a renovation and military reactivity. It surveyed its data and had:L
In the late 19th century, it served mainly for the shipping and hiousing. This phase with its dependencies were used with quarantine
, mainly for sheltering passengers and crew members on vessels and ported the capital with suspected contagious diseases, for an example Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro
which was suspected of yellow fever
, he returned to Brazil
where he left registered with fine irony in its largest regret which with its regulations on its facilities and the treatment of the internal.
The fortress was classified under the National Monument on April 12, 1996. It is now an abandoned fortress.
A estrutura que chegou aos nossos dias conserva as partes fundamentais existentes em meados do século XVII, that it was compated with a plant that dates back to 1692 which collected the Torre do Tombo ( Coleção Casa de Cadaval = The Cadaval House Collection).
The plant of the forfication disappeared into a "u", made up of three bodies and three ramparts with barracks. One of the most extremities lasts out with a ramparts with its guard tower. The central body of Torre Velha featured a quadrangular plant located near the governor's house. Around the old port of the area had a tower mentioned in a rock with arms to arms of Portugal.
Caparica (Almada)
Caparica is a Portuguese parish, located in the municipality of Almada. It has a population of 19,327 inhabitants and a total area of 10.71 km². Its name of inhabitants are known as Caparicanos.-Name:...
, city of Almada
Almada
Almada is a municipality in Portugal, covering an area of 70.2 km² located on the southern margin of the Tagus River. Its municipal population in 2008 was 164,844 inhabitants; the urbanized center had a population of 102,357.The seat is the city of Almada....
, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
.
The Torre Velha da Caparica was one of the most famous examples of military architecture. In the Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
period, it was one of the first systems of artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
integrated into a defense station of rio Tejo
Tejo
Tejo can be:*The Tagus, a river on the Iberian Peninsula.*Tejo , a sport and national pastime of Colombia.*The Tutmonda Esperantista Junulara Organizo * Tejo, Ethiopia...
, mainly between Torre de Santo António de Cascais and Torre de São Vicente de Belém.
History
The fortification was located in the main strait point of the Tejo, in its left bank, remounted into a battalion for the decision of John IJohn I of Portugal
John I KG , called the Good or of Happy Memory, more rarely and outside Portugal the Bastard, was the tenth King of Portugal and the Algarve and the first to use the title Lord of Ceuta...
(1385-1433).
In the beginning of the 15th century, during the beginning of the Portuguese age of discovery, its defense over the Tejo and the port of Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
was based with a naval artillery, situated between the river waters. Frontly under King John II
John II of Portugal
John II , the Perfect Prince , was the thirteenth king of Portugal and the Algarves...
(1481-1495), a new plan was added for the port's protection based within the three towers, they were adapted into those artillery of the era:
- Right Bank:
- Torre de Santo António de Cascais (Baluarte de Cascais);
- Torre de São Vicente de Belém (Baluarte de São Vicente a par de Belém)
Theses fortifications cooperated with the naval artillery which it patrolled the river with vigilant tariffs and defense of the country's capital.
Baluarte da Caparica
The original structure, second founded by Garcia de ResendeGarcia de Resende
Garcia de Resende was a Portuguese poet and editor. He served John II as a page and private secretary, and later became a knight in the Order of Christ...
was made up of a tower and a defense, that in which it was built, a few years later, the Baluarte de Cascais was added in 1498 along with two other, one in 1502 and another in 1515.
In 1570, with its cast which accounted several separate forts within the Portuguese coasts, King Sebastian
Sebastian of Portugal
Sebastian "the Desired" was the 16th king of Portugal and the Algarves. He was the son of Prince John of Portugal and his wife, Joan of Spain...
(1568-1570) modified its old tower turned into a fort with great dimensions. It was designated as Fortaleza de São Sebastião da Caparica. Its work progressed under the Philippine Dynasty
Philippine Dynasty
The Portuguese House of Habsburg, commonly known as the Philippine Dynasty, is the third royal dynasty of Portugal. It was named after the three Spanish kings who ruled Portugal between 1580 and 1640 in a dynastic union of the two crowns...
and made its project suffered an altered structure. This phase was known as the Torre dos Castelhanos (The Castilian Tower).
In the late 19th century, it fort went into received works, possibly the consolidation directly under the coloner Francisco D'Alincourt.
The Peninsular War
During the Peninsular WarPeninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
in 1801, its fortifications in the south bank of the Tejo were disabled. Meanwhile, the survey of October 1808 said:
- 5 pieces of bronzeBronzeBronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
, 36 calibre - 4 pieces of calibre 18;
- 9 pieces of calibre 12;
- 5 pieces of ironIronIron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
, 24 calibre; - 9 pieces of iron, 18 calibre and
- 6 pieces of iron, 6 calibre.
- 6 repairable pieces of artilleryArtilleryOriginally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
, of 35 calibre; - 9 repairable pieces of company artillery, of 12 calibre;
- 2 marine carts of pieces of 36 calibre;
- 5 marine carts of pieces of 24 calibre;
- 13 marine carts of pieces of 18 calibre;
- 6 marine carts of pieces of 6 calibre;
- 2,400 balls and lanters of 36, 18, 2 and 8 calibre.
In the survey of January 1828, it had:
- 1 piece of iron, 28 calibre;
- 6 pieces of iron, 6 calibre;
- 17 pieces of iron, 13 calibre
- 2 iron mortarMortar (weapon)A mortar is an indirect fire weapon that fires explosive projectiles known as bombs at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing ballistic trajectories. It is typically muzzle-loading and has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....
s, 98 calibre; - 2,500 balls of diverse calibres and
- 50 bombs 9 calibre
In 1832, it underwent a renovation and military reactivity. It surveyed its data and had:L
- 2 pieces, 26 calibre
- 6 pieces, 24 calibre
- 3 pieces, 18 calibre
- In its latest data, the garrison contained:
- 1 subordinate
- 1 sergeant
- 3 cables
- 31 soldiers
In the late 19th century, it served mainly for the shipping and hiousing. This phase with its dependencies were used with quarantine
Quarantine
Quarantine is compulsory isolation, typically to contain the spread of something considered dangerous, often but not always disease. The word comes from the Italian quarantena, meaning forty-day period....
, mainly for sheltering passengers and crew members on vessels and ported the capital with suspected contagious diseases, for an example Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro
Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro
Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro was a Portuguese artist known for his illustration, caricatures, sculpture and ceramics designs, and is considered the first Portuguese comics creator.- Life :...
which was suspected of yellow fever
Yellow fever
Yellow fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease. The virus is a 40 to 50 nm enveloped RNA virus with positive sense of the Flaviviridae family....
, he returned to Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
where he left registered with fine irony in its largest regret which with its regulations on its facilities and the treatment of the internal.
The fortress was classified under the National Monument on April 12, 1996. It is now an abandoned fortress.
Characteristics
The fort conserves some fundamental existences in the mid 13th century with itsA estrutura que chegou aos nossos dias conserva as partes fundamentais existentes em meados do século XVII, that it was compated with a plant that dates back to 1692 which collected the Torre do Tombo ( Coleção Casa de Cadaval = The Cadaval House Collection).
The plant of the forfication disappeared into a "u", made up of three bodies and three ramparts with barracks. One of the most extremities lasts out with a ramparts with its guard tower. The central body of Torre Velha featured a quadrangular plant located near the governor's house. Around the old port of the area had a tower mentioned in a rock with arms to arms of Portugal.
Sources
- Here, at Torre Velha, D. Francisco Manuel de Melo wrote "Carta de Guia de Casados" (Casados Map Guide) (Lisbon, 1651).