Fortaleza de Santa Catarina de Ribamar - Portimão, Portugal
Posted by: 
manchanegra
N 37° 06.999 W 008° 31.784
29S E 541778 N 4107916
The Fortaleza de Santa Catarina is located in the east extremity of the beach known as Praia da Rocha.
Waymark Code: WMC4NZ
Location: Faro, Portugal
Date Posted: 07/25/2011
Views: 6
The Fortaleza de Santa Catarina is located in the east extremity of the beach known as Praia da Rocha.
On the top of the cliffs, overlooking the Arade River, this fortress, together with the Fort of São João (on the other side of the river in Ferragudo) represented the defense of the city and the port of Portimão and Silves (further up the river) since the old castles of Portimão and Ferragudo no longer served the needs of protection against a new menace, the pirates that came from the sea.
It was build originally XVII/XVIII centuries,by the order of D. João de Castro, Governor of the Algarve Kingdom and was supervised by the Enginier Alexander Massai. The construction took place during the Reign of King Filipe III in the same place where it was already a small chappel dedicated to Santa Catarina (Saint Catherine of Alexandria). The Chappel still exists, but, from the original construction, only the original Gothic portal remains.
The Fort has suffered major damages during the 1755 hearthquaque that also destroyed Lisbon.
The reconstruction took place but the fort´s interior design didn´t follow the original designs and was changed acording to new needs.
The actual configuration of the fort was made in the refurbishing that took place in the 20th century regarding turistic development. A viewpoint was added on the top of the cliff facing the river and the beach and new stairwais were added to connect the fort to the beach bellow.
Text from Wikipedia and Igespar websites
The Plaque (transcription):
"Fortaleza de Santa Catarina
Ano de Construção: 1621, Engenheiro: Alexandre Massai. Construida por ordem de D. João de Castro (Governador do Reino do Algarve) para protecção da cidade de Silves e Vila Nova de Portimão dos piratas Espanhois e Mouros.
Year of construction: 1621, Enginier: Alexandre Massai. Built by the order of D. João de Castro (Governor of the Algarve Kingdom) for the protection of the city of Silves and Vila Nova de Portimão from Spanish pirates and Moors."
Group that erected the marker: City Hall
URL of a web site with more information about the history mentioned on the sign: [Web Link]
Address of where the marker is located. Approximate if necessary:
Fortaleza de Santa Catarina
Avenida Tomás Cabreira sn Praia da Rocha
Portimão, Portugal
8500
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