Fort de Shinkakasa

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Coordinates: 5 ° 51 ′ 25 ″  S , 13 ° 1 ′ 58 ″  E

Fort Shinkakasa

Fort de Shinkakasa was a fortress built during the time of the Congo Free State in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1891. The fort is located 1.5 kilometers west of the city of Boma . Their main task was to protect the mouth of the Congo River and the capital, Boma.

The fortress was designed by the Belgian engineer Émile Wangermée, who was a student of Henri Alexis Brialmont . Especially Portugal , which controlled the area north of the Free State with the province of Cabinda , as well as Angola to the south , tried several times to gain control of the mouth of the Congo River in order to connect its two colonies. 200 soldiers of the Force Publique were stationed in the fortress , who had eight 160 mm naval guns. In the event of an emergency, they were supported by local aid troops. The troops were composed of various tribes in order to prevent threatening mutinies . Due to the guns, the fortress was also a potential risk factor for the capital, which it was supposed to protect. Nevertheless, on April 17, 1900, there was a mutiny of the troops.

literature

  • Eric Simon: Le Fort de Shinkakasa. 2009, ISSN 0771-3673.