The Fort of Saint Anthony of Barra (Portuguese: Forte de Santo António da Barra) is located overlooking the sea, in the parish of Estoril, Cascais municipality, District of Lisbon, in Portugal. It is sometimes known as the Old Fort (Portuguese: Forte Velho)), or as the Fort of Salazar as it was used by the Prime Minister, António de Oliveira Salazar as his seasonal residence during the Portuguese dictatorship. Until early 2018 the fort had been disused and subject to some vandalism, but it was then restored by the Municipality and opened for public viewing for the first time on April 25, 2018.[1]
The fort’s structure dates back to the time of the Philippine Dynasty, when Philip I of Portugal (Philip II of Spain) commissioned the military engineer and Neapolitan architect, Giovanni Casale, to develop plans. Following the successful landing of the troops commanded by the Duke of Alba in 1580 the monarch was aware of the need to improve the defensive system on the approaches to Lisbon on the River Tagus against the threat of English and Dutch ships.[2][3][4] The fort is laid out in a star-shaped irregular polygonal plan, with two outer bulwarks. In the center there is a square building with a chapel dedicated to Saint Anthony and vaulted barracks. There was a moat between the two outer walls. The construction took little more than a year. On February 16, 1591 the king received a letter from Casale, informing him that the castle was ready to receive soldiers and artillery.[5]
Part of the fort facing the sea, prior to renovation
After the War of the Restoration of Independence the Portuguese Crown undertook a comprehensive reform of land and sea fortifications under the direction of António Luís de Meneses, 1st Marquis of Marialva. The fort was subject to works of modernization and expansion to increase the existing firepower,[4][5] in recognition of the continued improvement of both ships and the artillery on them and the need to build forts that were more resistant to the greater firepower. The fort then formed an important part of what was arguably the largest set of fortifications in the world, stretching from Belém in Lisbon to Cabo da Roca on the Atlantic coast.[6]
The fort was heavily damaged by the 1755 Lisbon earthquake and underwent restoration in 1762-63.[2] At the end of the nineteenth century, the fort became a customs post. From 1915, its facilities began to be used as a holiday camp of the Odivelas Institute, a military school for girls. In 1950 it became the summer residence of Prime Minister Salazar.[1] On August 3, 1968, Salazar suffered a stroke and a fall while at the fort. A worsening in his condition would lead to the President appointing a new prime minister without telling Salazar, who, in fact, lived for a further two years.[5]
External view of St Anthony Fort, showing the moat
After the closure in 2015 of the Instituto de Odivelas, the site was abandoned. Following this the Municipality of Cascais signed an agreement aimed at transferring the site to the municipality, which intended to use it as a research centre, at an estimated cost of €6mn. The transfer finally took place in March 2018 and the fort was opened for public viewing on April 25, 2018, Freedom Day in Portugal,[1] which celebrates the overthrow of the authoritarian regime of the Estado Novo in 1974. In 2016, a fire had been reported in one of the areas of the fort. The fort also suffered internal damage and had been the victim of significant graffiti.[7]
In the Mediaedit
The fort featured in an RTP (Rádio e Televisão de Portugal) programme broadcast in February 2018, concerning degraded national monuments in Portugal. It was recorded before restoration work was carried out.[8]
Referencesedit
^ abcJanota, Susana. "Um Forte com novo fôlego" (PDF). Tudo sobre Cascais. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
^ abBoica, Joaquim; Barros, Maria de Fatima Rombouts de; Ramalho, Margareda de Magalhaes. As fortificações marítimas da costa de Cascais. Câmara Municipal Cascais.
^Olivera, Catarina. "Forte de Santo António da Barra (Forte Velho)". Patrimonio Cultural. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
^ abMagalhães Ramalho, Margarida (2010). Fortificações Marítimas(PDF). Roreiros do Património de Cascais. Vol. 3. Câmara Municipal de Cascais. pp. 38–43.
^ abcHenriques, João Miguel (2014). Cascais: 650 anos de história(PDF). Cascais: Câmara Municipal de Cascais. ISBN978-972-637-258-5.
^Lisboa, Mario. "Salvaguarda do Património" (PDF). Tudo sobre Cascais. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
^Alves, Marco (2 January 2017). "O Estado Novo está como novo". Revista Sábado.
^"Estado de Abandono". Linha da Frente. Retrieved 4 February 2019.
Media related to Forte de Santo António da Barra at Wikimedia Commons
April 12, 2024
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The Fort of Saint Anthony of Barra Portuguese Forte de Santo Antonio da Barra is located overlooking the sea in the parish of Estoril Cascais municipality District of Lisbon in Portugal It is sometimes known as the Old Fort Portuguese Forte Velho or as the Fort of Salazar as it was used by the Prime Minister Antonio de Oliveira Salazar as his seasonal residence during the Portuguese dictatorship Until early 2018 the fort had been disused and subject to some vandalism but it was then restored by the Municipality and opened for public viewing for the first time on April 25 2018 1 Fort of Saint Anthony of BarraForte de Santo Antonio da BarraEstoril Lisbon District PortugalView of the Fort of Santo Antonio da BarraCoordinates38 40 12 N 9 23 06 W 38 67000 N 9 38500 W 38 67000 9 38500TypeBastion fortSite informationOpen tothe publicWeekends and holidaysConditionRestored in 2018Site historyBuilt1590Built byPhilip II of SpainIn useto 2015MaterialsBasaltHistory editThe fort s structure dates back to the time of the Philippine Dynasty when Philip I of Portugal Philip II of Spain commissioned the military engineer and Neapolitan architect Giovanni Casale to develop plans Following the successful landing of the troops commanded by the Duke of Alba in 1580 the monarch was aware of the need to improve the defensive system on the approaches to Lisbon on the River Tagus against the threat of English and Dutch ships 2 3 4 The fort is laid out in a star shaped irregular polygonal plan with two outer bulwarks In the center there is a square building with a chapel dedicated to Saint Anthony and vaulted barracks There was a moat between the two outer walls The construction took little more than a year On February 16 1591 the king received a letter from Casale informing him that the castle was ready to receive soldiers and artillery 5 nbsp Part of the fort facing the sea prior to renovationAfter the War of the Restoration of Independence the Portuguese Crown undertook a comprehensive reform of land and sea fortifications under the direction of Antonio Luis de Meneses 1st Marquis of Marialva The fort was subject to works of modernization and expansion to increase the existing firepower 4 5 in recognition of the continued improvement of both ships and the artillery on them and the need to build forts that were more resistant to the greater firepower The fort then formed an important part of what was arguably the largest set of fortifications in the world stretching from Belem in Lisbon to Cabo da Roca on the Atlantic coast 6 The fort was heavily damaged by the 1755 Lisbon earthquake and underwent restoration in 1762 63 2 At the end of the nineteenth century the fort became a customs post From 1915 its facilities began to be used as a holiday camp of the Odivelas Institute a military school for girls In 1950 it became the summer residence of Prime Minister Salazar 1 On August 3 1968 Salazar suffered a stroke and a fall while at the fort A worsening in his condition would lead to the President appointing a new prime minister without telling Salazar who in fact lived for a further two years 5 nbsp External view of St Anthony Fort showing the moatAfter the closure in 2015 of the Instituto de Odivelas the site was abandoned Following this the Municipality of Cascais signed an agreement aimed at transferring the site to the municipality which intended to use it as a research centre at an estimated cost of 6mn The transfer finally took place in March 2018 and the fort was opened for public viewing on April 25 2018 Freedom Day in Portugal 1 which celebrates the overthrow of the authoritarian regime of the Estado Novo in 1974 In 2016 a fire had been reported in one of the areas of the fort The fort also suffered internal damage and had been the victim of significant graffiti 7 In the Media editThe fort featured in an RTP Radio e Televisao de Portugal programme broadcast in February 2018 concerning degraded national monuments in Portugal It was recorded before restoration work was carried out 8 References edit a b c Janota Susana Um Forte com novo folego PDF Tudo sobre Cascais Retrieved 12 May 2018 a b Boica Joaquim Barros Maria de Fatima Rombouts de Ramalho Margareda de Magalhaes As fortificacoes maritimas da costa de Cascais Camara Municipal Cascais Olivera Catarina Forte de Santo Antonio da Barra Forte Velho Patrimonio Cultural Retrieved 15 April 2018 a b Magalhaes Ramalho Margarida 2010 Fortificacoes Maritimas PDF Roreiros do Patrimonio de Cascais Vol 3 Camara Municipal de Cascais pp 38 43 a b c Henriques Joao Miguel 2014 Cascais 650 anos de historia PDF Cascais Camara Municipal de Cascais ISBN 978 972 637 258 5 Lisboa Mario Salvaguarda do Patrimonio PDF Tudo sobre Cascais Retrieved 12 May 2018 Alves Marco 2 January 2017 O Estado Novo esta como novo Revista Sabado Estado de Abandono Linha da Frente Retrieved 4 February 2019 nbsp Media related to Forte de Santo Antonio da Barra at Wikimedia Commons Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Fort of Santo Antonio da Barra amp oldid 1191283152, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
