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Portuguese Colonial Architecture
Portuguese colonial architecture refers to the various styles of Portuguese architecture built across the Portuguese Empire (including Portugal). Many former colonies, especially Brazil, Macau, and India, promote their Portuguese architecture as major tourist attractions and many are UNESCO world heritage sites. Portuguese colonial architecture can be found in the plethora of former colonies throughout South America, North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, India, Oceania, and East Asia. 15th century During the 15th century, the Portuguese Empire laid its foundations across the world as the world's first modern colonial empire, and what would be the longest. The Empire came into existence in 1415, with the Capture of Ceuta, by the forces of Infante Henrique of Aviz, the "Navigator". This key victory initiated a century of Portuguese expansion and colonization of the African continent. In North Africa, the Portuguese conquered Ceuta, 1415, Alcácer Ceguer, 1458, Arzila, 1471, Ta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Asilah
Asilah () is a fortified town on the northwest tip of the Atlantic coast of Morocco, about south of Tangier. Its ramparts and gateworks remain fully intact. History The town's history dates back to 1500 B.C., when Phoenicians occupied a site called Silis, Zili, Zilis, or Zilil (, , or , ) which is being excavated at Dchar Jdid, some NE of present Asilah; that place was once considered to be the Roman stronghold Ad Mercuri, but is now accepted to be Zilil. The town of Asilah itself was originally constructed by the shia Idrisid dynasty, and Umayyad caliph Al-Hakam II rebuilt the town in 966. The Portuguese conquered the city in 1471 and built its fortifications, but it was abandoned because of an economic debt crisis in 1549. In 1578, Sebastian of Portugal used Asilah as a base for his troops during a planned crusade that resulted in Sebastian's death, which in turn caused the Portuguese succession crisis of 1580. The Portuguese kept hold of the town but in 1589 the Saa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mascarene Islands
The Mascarene Islands (, ) or Mascarenes or Mascarenhas Archipelago is a group of islands in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar consisting of islands belonging to the Republic of Mauritius as well as the French department of Réunion. Their name derives from the Portuguese navigator Pedro Mascarenhas, who first visited them in April 1512. The islands share a common geological origin beneath the Mascarene Plateau known as the Mauritia microcontinent which was a Precambrian microcontinent situated between India and Madagascar until their separation about 70 million years ago. They form a distinct ecoregion with unique biodiversity and endemism of flora and fauna. Geography The archipelago comprises three large islands, Mauritius, Réunion, and Rodrigues, plus a number of volcanic remnants in the tropics of the southwestern Indian Ocean, generally between 700 and 1,500 kilometres east of Madagascar. The terrain includes a variety of reefs, atolls, and small islands. They pres ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Portuguese Gold Coast
The Portuguese Gold Coast was a Portuguese colony on the West African Gold Coast (present-day Ghana) along the Gulf of Guinea. From their seat of power at the fortress of São Jorge da Mina (established in 1482 and located in modern Elmina), the Portuguese commanded a vast internal slave trade, creating a slave network that would expand after the end of Portuguese colonialism in the region. The primary export of the colony was gold, which was obtained through barter with the local population. Portuguese presence along the Gold Coast increased seamanship and trade in the Gulf, introduced American crops (such as maize and cassava) into the African agricultural landscape, and made Portuguese an enduring language of trade in the area. The colony was officially incorporated into Dutch territory in 1642. History Portuguese arrival on the Gold Coast In 1471, Portuguese explorers encountered fishing villages rich with ivory and gold along the Atlantic coast of modern-day Ghan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elmina
Elmina ( Fante: ''Edina'') is a town and the capital of the Komenda/Edina/Eguafo/Abirem District on the south coast of Ghana in the Central Region. It is situated on a bay on the Atlantic Ocean, west of Cape Coast.Straight line distances from: Daft Logic; Elmina was the first European settlement in West Africa and it has a population of 33,576 people, as of 2013. The current Municipality chief of Elmina is Solomon Ebo Appiah. When the Portuguese, after first coming in contact with the Gold Coast, struck an agreement with the King of Elmina to build the São Jorge da Mina Castle in the 1470s, the settlement grew to become an important centre of commerce and trade in the region. Nowadays, Elmina shows strong influences from Europe in its culture and people. Etymology Prior to the arrival of the Portuguese, the town was originally called Anomansah ("perpetual" or "inexhaustible drink") from its position on the peninsula between the Benya lagoon and the sea. It eventual ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bioko
Bioko (; ; ; historically known as Fernando Pó, ) is an island of Equatorial Guinea. It is located south of the coast of Cameroon, and northwest of the northernmost part of mainland Equatorial Guinea. Malabo, on the north coast of the island, is the capital city of Equatorial Guinea. Bioko's population was 335,048 at the 2015 census and it covers an area of . The island is part of the Cameroon line of volcanoes and is located off the Cameroon coast, in the Bight of Biafra portion of the Gulf of Guinea. Its geology is volcanic; its highest peak is Pico Basile at . Etymology Bioko's native name is ''Ëtulá a Ëri'' in the Bube language. For nearly 500 years, the island was known as ''Fernando Pó'' (; ), named for Portuguese navigator Fernão do Pó. Between 1973 and 1979 the island was named ''Macías Nguema Biyogo'' after the then-president of Equatorial Guinea. The current name, Bioko, dates from 1979 and is in honour of politician Cristino Seriche Bioko. Geogra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Annobón
Annobón (; ) is a province of Equatorial Guinea. The province consists of the island of Annobón and its associated islets in the Gulf of Guinea. Annobón is the smallest province of Equatorial Guinea in both area and population. According to the 2015 census, Annobón had 5,323 inhabitants, a small population increase from the 5,008 registered by the 2001 census. The official language is Spanish but most of the inhabitants speak a creole form of Portuguese. The island's main industries are fishing and forestry. Annobón is the only island of the country located in the Southern Hemisphere of the Atlantic Ocean. The provincial capital is San Antonio de Palé on the north side of the island; the other town is Mabana, formerly known as San Pedro. The roadstead is relatively safe, and some passing vessels take advantage of it in order to obtain water and fresh provisions, of which Annobón has offered an abundant supply. However, there is no regular shipping service to the res ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Portuguese São Tomé And Príncipe
Portuguese São Tomé and Príncipe or Portuguese Central Africa was a colony of the Portuguese Empire from the discovery of the islands in 1470 until 1975, when independence was granted by Portugal. History The Portuguese explorers João de Santarém and Pêro Escobar discovered the islands around 1470,Francisco, Agostinho, p.24 which they found uninhabited.Grivetti, Shapiro, p. 1849 São Tomé Island was named by the Portuguese in honor of Saint Thomas, as they discovered the island on his feast day, while the island of Príncipe (Prince's island) was named in honor of Afonso, Prince of Portugal, his father's favorite. The first attempt to settle the islands began in 1485, when the Portuguese Crown granted João de Paiva the island of São Tomé. However, this attempt was not successful because the settlers were unable to produce food in the specific conditions and climate that the islands offered, and because of the tropical diseases that affected the settlers. It was only ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Portuguese Cape Verde
Cape Verde was a colony of the Portuguese Empire from the initial settlement of the Cape Verde Islands in 1462 until the independence of Cape Verde in 1975. History 15th century The islands of Cape Verde were discovered in 1460-62 by Prince Henry the Navigator (Son of King John I) and Antonio Noli, in the service of Henry's relative King Afonso V. The southeastern islands, including the largest island Santiago, were discovered in 1460 by António de Noli and Diogo Gomes. The remaining northwestern islands São Nicolau, São Vicente and Santo Antão were discovered in 1461 or 1462 by Diogo Afonso.Valor simbólico do centro histórico da Praia Lourenço Conceição Gomes, Universidade Portucalense, 2008 There is no evidence of human settlement on Cape Verde prior to the arrival of the Portuguese. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arguin
Arguin ( : ''Arghīn''; ) is an island off the western coast of Mauritania in the Bay of Arguin. It is approximately in size, with extensive and dangerous reefs around it. The island is now part of the Banc d'Arguin National Park. History The island changed hands frequently during the colonial era. The first European to visit the island was the Portuguese explorer Nuno Tristão, in 1443. In 1445, Prince Henry the Navigator set up a trading post on the island, which acquired gum arabic and enslaved people for Portugal. By 1455, 800 enslaved people were shipped from Arguin to Portugal every year.''Slave Routes - Europe Portugal'' . New raw archival-sourced data regarding Arguin slave trade in the early sixteenth century have been released in Ivana Elbl, "San ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Graciosa Fortress
The Graciosa fortress was established on the coast of Morocco by the Portuguese in 1489. It was established on a small river island, about three leagues from the sea, at the junction of river Lucus ( Wadi Lukkus) and river el-Mekhazen (Oued Makhazine), a few kilometers inland from modern Larache. The island had been yielded to the Portuguese by Abu Zakariya Muhammad al-Saih al-Mahdi through a treaty following the Portuguese capture of Arzila. The fortress was built in February 1489 by Gaspar Jusarte. In May, a second fleet led by D. Pedro de Castelo Branco reached the island, and Diogo Fernandes de Almeida was named governor. Abu Zakariya Muhammad al-Saih al-Mahdi attacked the island to dislodge the Portuguese. After the Moroccan had blocked the river with trees, the Portuguese in Graciosa fortress had to capitulate. By the Treaty of Xamez, signed on August 27, 1489, they evacuated the island. The Portuguese thus did not resist long in Graciosa, and the Moroccans soon founded Lar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Safi, Morocco
Safi () is a city in western Morocco on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of Asfi Province. It recorded a population of 308,508 in the 2014 Moroccan census. The city was occupied by the Portuguese Empire from 1488 to 1541, was the center of Morocco's weaving industry, and became a ''fortaleza'' of the Portuguese Crown in 1508. Safi is the main fishing port for the country's sardine industry, and also exports phosphates, textiles and ceramics. During the Second World War, Safi was the site of Operation Blackstone, one of the landing sites for Operation Torch. Etymology 11th-century geographer Muhammad al-Idrisi gave an explanation to the origin the name "Asafi" as he linked it to the Arabic word "Asaf" (regret); Asafi (my regret). He based this claim on a strange story about some sailors from al-Andalus who sailed to discover the other end of the Atlantic Ocean but got lost and landed on some island where the natives captured them and sent them back on their ships blindfolded. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
