Fort of Monte Brasil
by Kelly Hazel
Title
Fort of Monte Brasil
Artist
Kelly Hazel
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
This photograph was taken just outside of the Monte Brasil Fort on Terceira Island, Azores, Portugal.
The fort was built in the 1500's to protect the island of Terceira and the city of Angra do Heroismo from pirates and privateers, and today, it remains an active military base. I always find it sort of strange and surreal to see the stone architecture, so old and historic, spotted with the modern anti-aircraft guns scattered throughout the fort.
Terceira is the 3rd largest, and was also the 3rd discovered of the 9 islands that make up the Azores region of Portugal; thus the name "Terceira" derived from the word Terceiro (which means Third in English).
The location of the Azores Islands, Angra do Heroismo Harbor on Terceira quickly became an important port for ships in transit across the Atlantic Ocean, but the small islands, so isolated and far from the mainland were also vulnerable to attack from pirates and privateers, so a military base was essential.
The walls of the fortress ripple all the way around Monte Brasil, encompassing over 2kmsq. You can walk much of the perimeter of the walls, and there is a road to an overlook with a play area, some caged birds, monuments, and reindeer, but because the fortress is still in use as an active Portuguese military base, access to the inside is very limited. At specific times, soldiers who work on the base conduct tours that are open to the public, but you need to know at least a little Portuguese to enjoy, as many of the soldiers do not speak very much English or Spanish.
The walls of the fortress were build mainly by local stone masons, prisoners, and soldiers who were being punished. The stones are also from the island--there is no lack of stone on Terceira do to its volcanic past! You will notice that even the pasture fences on Terceira are made with volcanic rocks.
Uploaded
February 24th, 2017
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