Fortaleza de Cacela
The Fortaleza de Cacela is a fortress above Cacela in southeastern Portugal . Cacela, which lies in the district of Vila Nova de Cacela , received a fortification for rural areas (hisn) under the Umayyads in the 10th century. The current fortress dates from the 16th and 17th centuries.
It was part of a chain of fortresses that were supposed to protect the coast, but above all the lagoon, the Ria Formosa and thus the access to Tavira . In Muslim times the building was called Cacetalate Darrague after the Berber family Darrag Alcacetali who lived there. Abu Omar ibn Darrag was born in the castle in 958 († 1030). He became Chancellor of the Caliphate of Cordoba and a famous poet at the court of al-Mansur .
After the collapse of the Caliphate of Cordoba (until 1031), numerous kingdoms emerged in the Muslim part of the Iberian Peninsula, among them Faro . However, the south of the peninsula was soon ruled by Seville . Also Almoravids and Almohad used the chain of fortresses to protect their claims. When the Almohads conquered the region in 1168, the troops of Sidi Abu Yakub, the son of Abd al-Mu'min , attacked Tavira from here .
After the region was conquered by Portugal in 1240, the fortress was given to the Santiagoorden . It served mainly to secure the border against the Muslim Granada and later against Castile .
Paio Peres Correia , General of the Order of Santiago, supported the king in the conquest of Tavira, Silves and Aljezur , and Dom Fernando de Castela in the conquest of Murcia , Jaén and Seville.
The fortress was badly damaged by the 1755 earthquake, but was rebuilt between 1770 and 1794. In the 19th and 20th centuries it was severely neglected and threatened with decay, so that the buildings in the castle were also at risk. The CASTRUM Foundation took care of a restoration with old techniques, such as the Taipa technique, in which the bricks and mortar were processed. Today it is the seat of the Brigada Fiscal, which is responsible for coastal protection. Cultural events, such as readings, also take place in the fortress.
Remarks
- ↑ João Martins da Silva Marques, Alberto Iria : Descobrimentos portugueses , Vol. II, 1, Instituto Nacional de Investigação Científica, 1988, p. 126.
- ↑ Jean Gérard Gorges, Manuel Salinas de Frías (ed.): Les Campagnes de Lusitanie romaine , Madrid, Salamanca 1994, p. 233.
Coordinates: 37 ° 8 ′ 20.5 " N , 7 ° 35 ′ 38.4" W.