The Fort of Cego is located in the municipality of

Arruda dos Vinhos Arruda dos Vinhos () is a municipality in the Lisbon District in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 13,391,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 ...

of Portugal. It is also known as the Fort of Saint Sebastian ( pt, Forte de S. Sebastião). The fort was built in 1809-10 as part of the first of the three

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, ...

, which were defensive lines to protect the Portuguese capital

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 ...

from invasion 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) or, in the event of defeat, to safely embark a retreating British Army.

Background

Despite the defeat of French forces in earlier invasions of Portugal during the Peninsular War, the threat of further invasions led the commander of the British troops in Portugal,

Arthur Wellesley, 1st 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 o ...

, to order on October 20, 1809 the construction of defensive lines to the north of the capital, between the Atlantic Ocean and 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 ...

. The Lines of Torres Vedras, consisting of 152 forts, redoubts and other military installations, were built rapidly and in great secrecy, under the overall supervision of Colonel Richard Fletcher who was commander of the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

The fort

The Fort of Cego was designated ''Military Work No. 9'' of the 152 works. At 353 metres above sea level, it was on the first, or most northerly, of the three Lines of Torres Vedras, exchanging crossfire with the nearby

Fort of Carvalha The Fort of Carvalha is located in the parish of São Tiago dos Velhos, at the highest point of the municipality of Arruda dos Vinhos, in the Lisbon District of Portugal. It was built in 1809-10 as part of the first of the three Lines of Torres V ...

, with the aim of protecting the Arruda Valley. The fort was designed with an irregular star shape and, among the forts constructed on the Lines, it was notable for having an elaborate drainage system in order to avoid accumulation of water in its interior. Its floor consisted of stones bonded with mortar, while the gun positions also used flagstones. Protection from enemy fire was provided by earth ramparts. It was originally named São Sebastião by the Portuguese Major Brandão de Sousa, but subsequently became known as the Fort of Cego. The fort had a garrison of 280 men, with three nine-pounder cannon.

Restoration

With resources from EEA and Norway Grants, the Fort of Cego was one of the military works of the Lines of Torres Vedras that was restored in 2010 to mark the 200th anniversary of the construction of the Lines. The fort, together with the nearby Fort of Carvalha, can be easily visited. There is also a Lines of Torres Vedras Information Centre in the nearby town of Arruda dos Vinhos.

References

External links

*{{Commons category-inline
Lines of Torres Vedras Information Centre at the Centro Cultural do Morgado

Arruda dos Vinhos Arruda dos Vinhos () is a municipality in the Lisbon District in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 13,391,Friends of the Lines of Torres Vedras

Cego Cego is a Tarot game for three or four players played with eponymous German Tarot playing cards. The game was probably derived from the three-player Badenese tarot game of Dreierles after soldiers returned from the Iberian Peninsula during the Na ...

Lines of Torres Vedras

Background

The fort

Restoration

See also

References

External links