The Fort of Casa was the most easterly of the forts and

redoubt A redoubt (historically redout) is a fort or fort system usually consisting of an enclosed defensive emplacement outside a larger fort, usually relying on earthworks, although some are constructed of stone or brick. It is meant to protect soldi ...

s built in 1809-10 during the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...

on the second line of the three defensive

Lines of Torres Vedras The Lines of Torres Vedras were lines of forts and other military defences built in secrecy to defend Lisbon during the Peninsular War. Named after the nearby town of Torres Vedras, they were ordered by Arthur Wellesley, Viscount Wellington, ...

aimed at protecting the capital of

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

. It is situated in the town of

Forte da Casa Forte da Casa is a town and former civil parish in the municipality of Vila Franca de Xira, Portugal. Since 2013, it is part of the civil parish Póvoa de Santa Iria e Forte da Casa. Its population in 2011 was 11,056 in an area of 3.96 km2. ...

, in the municipality of

Vila Franca de Xira Vila Franca de Xira () is a city and municipality in the Lisbon District in Portugal. The population in 2021 was 137,659, in an area of 318.19 km2. Situated on both banks of the Tagus River, 32 km north-east of the Portuguese capital L ...

, in the

Lisbon District Lisbon District ( pt, Distrito de Lisboa, ) is a district located along the western coast of Portugal. The district capital is the city of Lisbon, which is also the national capital. From its creation until 1926, it included the area of the cur ...

History

Following the Treaty of Fontainebleau signed between France and Spain in October 1807, which provided for the invasion and subsequent division of Portuguese territory into three kingdoms, French troops under the command of General Junot entered Portugal, which requested support from the British. In July 1808 troops commanded by the Duke of Wellington, at the time known as Arthur Wellesley, landed in Portugal and defeated French troops at the Battles of

Roliça Bombarral () is a municipality in the District of Leiria in Central Portugal. The population in 2011 was 13,193, in an area of . It includes four civil parishes ( pt, freguesia) that provide local services. History It is known that the area of ...

and

Vimeiro Vimeiro () is a freguesia (civil parish) in the municipality of Lourinhã in west-central Portugal. It is in the District of Lisboa. The population in 2011 was 1,470,Convention of Cintra The Convention of Cintra (or Sintra) was an agreement signed on 30 August 1808, during the Peninsular War. By the agreement, the defeated French were allowed to evacuate their troops from Portugal without further conflict. The Convention was sign ...

, which led to the evacuation of the French army from Portugal. In March 1809,

Marshal Soult Marshal General Jean-de-Dieu Soult, 1st Duke of Dalmatia, (; 29 March 1769 – 26 November 1851) was a French general and statesman, named Marshal of the Empire in 1804 and often called Marshal Soult. Soult was one of only six officers in Fren ...

led a new French expedition that advanced south to the city of

Porto Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...

before being repulsed by Portuguese-British troops and forced to withdraw. The threat of a further invasion by the French led Wellington, on October 20, 1809, to order the secret construction of defensive lines in order to protect Lisbon from Napoléon Bonaparte's troops led by Marechal Masséna. A total of 152 military installations were constructed and they were each given a number. The Fort of Casa was Number 38 and it was originally named “Da Caza” by the Portuguese Major Brandão de Sousa. It had a star-shaped layout and, like most other forts of the Lines, it was built with a dry

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive ...

and equipped with a

magazine A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...

. In 1810 it was garrisoned by around 340 soldiers, with five cannon. At an altitude of just 41 metres and close to the River

Tagus The Tagus ( ; es, Tajo ; pt, Tejo ; see #Name, below) is the longest river in the Iberian Peninsula. The river rises in the Montes Universales near Teruel, in mid-eastern Spain, flows , generally west with two main south-westward sections ...

it was given the task, together with the higher forts of Portela Grande and Portela Pequena, of potentially impeding the progress of the French army along two main roads. However, Masséna’s troops were repulsed by the first line of defence at

Sobral de Monte Agraço Sobral de Monte Agraço () is a municipality in the District of Lisbon in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 10,156, in an area of 52.10 km². The present Mayor is António Lopes Bogalho, elected by the Unitary Democratic Coalition. Histo ...

and the Fort of Casa never saw action.

The present day

The fort was excavated in 2008 and 2010 and the ruins are now incorporated into a small urban park. The site also contains a Lines of Torres Vedras “Interpretation Centre”, one of several in the region. The Centre informs visitors about the construction of the two northerly lines of Torres Vedras, the relation of the fort with other military works, and on the impact of the French invasion and construction of the forts on the people of the area.

References

External links

* {{Commons category-inline
Friends of the Lines of Torres Vedras
Casa Lines of Torres Vedras

History

The present day

See also

References

External links