Fort Of Alqueidão
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The Fort of Alqueidão, also known as ''Forte Grande'' (Big Fort), is located about 2 kilometres south of the parish of
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 José Alberto Quintino, elected by the Unitary Democratic Coalition. Histor ...
, in the municipality of
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 José Alberto Quintino, elected by the Unitary Democratic Coalition. Histor ...
, in the
Lisbon District Lisbon District () 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 current Setúbal District. ...
of
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
. It was one of the first and one of the largest of 152 military works known as the
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, c ...
that were built in 1809-10 to defend
Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...
during the
Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1808–1814) was fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Kingdom of Portugal, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French ...
(1807–14). The fort played a major role in stopping the advance of Napoleonic troops.


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 Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they ar ...
, at the time known as Arthur Wellesley, landed in Portugal and defeated French troops at the Battles of
Roliça Bombarral () is a portuguese municipality in the Oeste region, historical province of Estremadura, and the Leiria district. The population in 2011 was 13,193, in an area of . It includes four civil parishes () that provide local services. Histo ...
and
Vimeiro Vimeiro () is a freguesia (civil parish) in the municipality of Lourinhã in west-central Portugal. It is in the Lisboa (district), 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 sig ...
, which led to the evacuation of the French army from Portugal. However, the threat of further invasions by the French led Wellington, on October 20, 1809, to order the construction of defensive lines in order to protect Lisbon from Napoléon Bonaparte's troops and also to provide a route for his own evacuation should it be necessary. Work on the Fort of Alqueidão, as part of the first Line of defence, began on November 8, 1809, at more or less the same time as improvements to the
Fort of São Julião da Barra The Fort of São Julião da Barra is the largest and most complete military defence complex in the Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban, Vauban style remaining in Portugal. It is located in São Julião da Barra, on the point of São Gião, in the par ...
, close to Lisbon, and construction of the new
Fort of São Vicente The Fort of São Vicente (St. Vincent) is in the town and municipality of Torres Vedras, in the Lisbon District of Portugal. In 1809 it was the first of 152 forts, redoubts and other defences to be developed as part of three defensive lines betwee ...
at
Torres Vedras Torres Vedras () is a concelho, municipality in the Portugal, Portuguese district of Lisbon (district), Lisbon, approximately north of the capital Lisbon. It is a strong agricultural region thanks to its vineyards, and has an intense commercial ...
, 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 the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...
. By October of the following year 126 forts, redoubts and other defences forming three lines of defence had been constructed over 80 kilometres, reinforcing the natural obstacles that the land offered and making maximum use of the existing topography. A new French invasion was headed by Marechal Masséna. He was defeated in September 1810 by the Anglo-Portuguese army commanded by Wellington at the
Battle of Buçaco The Battle of Buçaco () or Bussaco was fought on 27 September 1810 during the Peninsular War in the Portuguese mountain range of Serra do Buçaco, resulting in the defeat of French forces by Lord Wellington's Anglo-Portuguese Army. Having ...
. Despite this he forced the allies to retreat to the Lines of Torres Vedras, where a stalemate ensued for several months. Masséna’s troops were gathered around Sobral de Monte Agraço but he found the line of defences, centered on the Fort of Alqueidão, to be impregnable. He eventually had to retreat due to lack of food and supplies, withdrawing to the Spanish border. However, works on the Lines continued after the French withdrawal, with 152 works eventually being completed. The fort is at 439 meters above sea level, on top of the Monte Agraço mountain range, and occupies an area of 3.5 hectares. It was part of a group of seven forts and
redoubt A redoubt (historically redout) is a Fortification, fort or fort system usually consisting of an enclosed defensive emplacement outside a larger fort, usually relying on Earthworks (engineering), earthworks, although some are constructed of ston ...
s in the 2nd section or district of the first of the Lines of Torres Vedras and designated No. 14 in the numbering system used for all of the works carried out on the lines. Work on Alqueidão began on 4 November 1809. Wellington’s headquarters were close by in the village of Pêro Negro, and, because of its commanding position, the fort served as the command post for the Lines. Using an
optical telegraph An optical telegraph is a line of stations, typically towers, for the purpose of conveying textual information by means of visual signals (a form of optical communication). There are two main types of such systems; the semaphore telegraph whic ...
signalling system, the fort could communicate with the Fort of Archeira to the south of
Torres Vedras Torres Vedras () is a concelho, municipality in the Portugal, Portuguese district of Lisbon (district), Lisbon, approximately north of the capital Lisbon. It is a strong agricultural region thanks to its vineyards, and has an intense commercial ...
and from there to both the
Fort of São Vicente The Fort of São Vicente (St. Vincent) is in the town and municipality of Torres Vedras, in the Lisbon District of Portugal. In 1809 it was the first of 152 forts, redoubts and other defences to be developed as part of three defensive lines betwee ...
to the north of the same town and the Atlantic coast. The Fort of Alqueidão had a garrison of 1,590 men, and was equipped with 24 cannon, believed to be 14 12-pounder artillery, six 9-pouders, and four 6-pounders. The troops were Portuguese, under the command of the British Brigadier-General Denis Pack, together with two artillery companies from Sobral formed and trained by William Beresford who was both a general in the British army and a marshal of the Portuguese army.


The present day

As part of a programme of restoration to celebrate the bicentennial of the Lines, archaeological exploration was carried out between 2008 and 2011, using
EEA and Norway Grants The EEA Grants and Norway Grants represent the contributions of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway to reducing social and economic disparities in the European Economic Area (EEA) and strengthening bilateral relations with 15 EU countries in Centr ...
. This resulted in the identification of the sites of the Governor’s Barracks, a warehouse, a cistern, and armories. The archaeological studies not only added to the understanding of the construction techniques used but also discovered that the site had been first occupied during the
Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...
. Restoration work at the same time included removing trees so that the commanding position of the fort could better be appreciated. In addition a concrete viewing platform was added, highlighting locations of other forts in the Lines.


Neighbouring forts

In the immediate vicinity of the Fort of Alqueidão are three other forts, Machado, Novo, and Simplício, which exchanged crossfire with the Fort of Alqueidão and were connected by a military road that allowed the circulation of people and goods.


Fort of Simplício

The Fort of Simplício (Number 16) was the closest of the three forts to Alqueidão, a short distance to its south. It had a garrison of 300 men, with seven cannon and one howitzer. It was particularly well-sited to bombard the French troops from their rear should they break through and start to march in the direction of Lisbon.


Fort of Machado

Southwest of the Fort of Alqueidão, the Fort of Machado (Number 17) had room for 460 soldiers and was equipped with three 12-pounder cannon, three 9-pounders and one 6-pounder.


Forte Novo

Slightly to the north of Alqueidão, the ''Forte Novo'' (New Fort: Number 152) served as an advanced defence for Alqueidão. It had a garrison of 250 men with four 12-pounder cannon and two 6-pounders.


See also

*
List of forts of the Lines of Torres Vedras The Lines of Torres Vedras were lines of Fortification, forts and other military defences built in secrecy to defend Lisbon, capital of Portugal, from the French during the Peninsular War. Named after the town of Torres Vedras, their construction ...


References


External links

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

View of the fort from a drone
Alqueidão Lines of Torres Vedras