Cabo de Sao Vicente (Cape St. Vincent)

The strategic importance of Cabo de Sao Vicente (Cape St. Vincent) and the need to protect the local population from marauding pirates led to the construction of powerful fortifications all along the coast. In addition to the forts at Sagres and Cabo de Sao Vicente (Cape St. Vincent), which were key to the defence of the area, many others were built, all offering magnificent views to anyone who travels along the coastline.

The fortress was built in the 16th century and rebuilt in the 17th and 18th centuries. The arms of King Joao III are visible on the main gate. Inside is to be found the fonner monastery of Hieronymite friars, founded in the 16th century, and a chapel, dating back to the I4di cenairy, built on what is traditionally said to be the site of Sao Vicente's (St. Vincent) grave. The curious lighthouse at the extremity of the Cape is an updated version of the beacon that the Bishop of the Algarve Fernando Coutinlio had built for the safety' of shipping in 1515.

There are deep fissures in the Cape, and when the sea is rough the pounding waves transform these into vast natural organ-pipes.

Its status as a sacred spot since Neolithic times is confirmed by the presence of important groups of menhirs and by an account written by Greek authors in the 4th century B.C. describing religious ceremonies involving libations and stating that it was forbidden for humans to go there after dark, because at night it was inhabited by gods. In the period when the Phoenicians had factories in the Algarve, it is thought certain that there was a sanctuary dedicated to the solar divinities Hercules-Melcart. while in Sagres there was another under the invocation of Cronos-Saturn-Baal. For the Romans the whole area was part of the Promontorium Sacmm (from which the name Sagres is derived), the most westerly point of the world, where the setting sun made the waters of the ocean boil. The transportation, after the Arab invasion, of Sao Vicente's (St. Vincent) body to the cape that was named after him turned it into a place of pilgrimage for centuries. In 1173 the first king of Portugal. Afonso Henriques. gave orders for the holy remains to be brought to Lisbon.

An obligatory landmark for any ship travelling to the Mediterranean, Cabo de Sao Vicente (Cape St. Vincent) has been the scene of many major sea battles. In 1693 the French admiral Tourvie defeated an Anglo-Dutch squadron. A Spanish fleet suffered a similar fate in 1780 at the hands of the English admiral Rodney. Xelson and Jams defeated another Spanish fleet in 1797. The squadron in the service of the absolutist King Miguel was captured here in 1833 by the liberal squadron flying the flag of his niece, Queen Maria II.