The Fort of Zambujal, also referred to as the Fort of Casas Velhas, is located near the town of Zambujal-Casas Velhas, in the parish of Carvoeira, municipality of

Mafra Mafra is a Czech media group that publishes printed and internet media, headquartered in Prague, Czech Republic. It is a subsidiary of Agrofert holding conglomerate owned by trust of Andrej Babiš, the former Prime Minister of the Czech Repu ...

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 ...

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 ...

. Constructed in 1809–10, at 102 metres above sea level, it was one of the forts and other military works built by British and Portuguese troops to protect Lisbon from French forces, forming part of the Second Line of defence of the so-called

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, ...

. Each work was given a number and Zambujal was No. 95. FortZambujalMoat

History

The threat of invasion of Portugal by the French 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 ...

(1807–14) led to the construction of the Lines of Torres Vedras, to protect Lisbon from Napoléon Bonaparte's troops. The defences were ordered by the British commander, the

Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister of ...

after two French invasions had already been repelled. By so doing he was also seeking to protect his own retreat and possible evacuation if overwhelmed by French forces. The fort was built on a hill, allowing it to defend the surrounding gorge and valley and the road from

Ericeira Ericeira () is a civil parish and seaside community on the western coast of Portugal (in Mafra municipality, about 45km northwest of Lisbon) considered the surfing capital of Europe for being the only European spot among the World Surfing Reserves ...

Sintra Sintra (, ) is a town and municipality in the Greater Lisbon region of Portugal, located on the Portuguese Riviera. The population of the municipality in 2011 was 377,835, in an area of . Sintra is one of the most urbanized and densely populated ...

. A third French invasion, headed by Marshal André Masséna, advanced to the Lines of Torres Vedras but could not pass them and after five months the French troops were forced to retreat. At its peak the fort was garrisoned by 250 soldiers and equipped with two cannon. Built into rock the stronghold of the fort has a hexagonal design and is surrounded by a moat. It was built with a pronounced

bastion A bastion or bulwark is a structure projecting outward from the curtain wall of a fortification, most commonly angular in shape and positioned at the corners of the fort. The fully developed bastion consists of two faces and two flanks, with fi ...

for the cannon, connected to the stronghold by a tunnel through the rock. In 2009 archaeological excavations were carried out to analyze the construction techniques used. In the same year conservation and restoration works to control erosion and restore the fort were also carried out using funds from the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism allocated to restoration of the Lines of Torres Vedras. FortZambujalBastion

References

{{stack, {{Portal, Portugal Zambujal National monuments in Lisbon District Lines of Torres Vedras

External links

Friends of the Lines of Torres Vedras

History

See also

References

External links