List of Portuguese colonial forts

Last updated December 17, 2025

This article will list all fortifications that were built, partially built, or ordered to be built by the Portuguese throughout the globe. All forts in this list are outside the modern territory of Portugal, and were built for the purpose of colonialism and the Portuguese Empire. Some of the forts were in Portuguese hands for a brief period - often a few years before the Portuguese were expelled, while others were held for centuries.

Portuguese explorers have discovered many lands and the sea routes in the 15th–18th centuries during the Age of Discovery. Along the way they built outposts and fortresses, many of which still exist today all over the world. These forts are often similar in design and are therefore easy to recognize.

List of forts by region

Africa

Name	Built	Condition	City/Region	Current country	Historical rulers
EN: Elmina Castle PT: Castelo de São Jorge da Mina	1482	Intact	Elmina	Ghana	Portugal (1482–1637) Netherlands (1637–1872) Britain (1872–1957)
EN: Fort Cacheu PT: Forte de Cacheu	1588	Intact	Cacheu	Guinea-Bissau	Portugal (1588–1974)
EN: Fort Duke of Braganza PT: Forte Duque de Bragança	1820	Ruins	Ilhéu de Sal Rei	Cape Verde	Portugal (1820–1975)
EN: Fort Jesus PT: Forte Jesus de Mombaça	1593–1596	Intact	Mombasa	Kenya	Portugal (1593–1698, 1728–1729) Oman (1698–1741, 1837–1895) Local rule (1741–1837) Britain (1895–1963)
EN: Fort Saint Anthony PT: Forte de Santo António	1515	Intact	Axim	Ghana	Portugal (1515–1642) Netherlands (1642–1872) Britain (1872–1957)
EN: Fort Saint Cajetan PT: Forte de São Caetano de Sofala	1505	Decimated	Sofala	Mozambique	Portugal (1505–1975)
EN: Fort Saint Sebastian PT: Forte de São Sebastião de Xama	1520–1526	Intact	Shama	Ghana	Portugal (1520–1642) Netherlands (1642–1872) Britain (1872–1957)
EN: Fort Saint Sebastian PT: Forte de São Sebastião	1558	Intact	Island of Mozambique	Mozambique	Portugal (1558–1975)
EN: Fort Saint Sebastian PT: Forte de São Sebastião	1575	Intact	São Tomé	São Tomé and Príncipe	Portugal (1575–1641, 1644–1975) Netherlands (1641–1644)
EN: Fortress of Kambambe PT: Fortaleza de Cambambe	1604	Ruins	Cambambe	Angola	Portugal (1604–1975)
EN: Fortress of Mazagan PT: Fortaleza de Mazagão	1514	Intact	El Jadida	Morocco	Portugal (1514–1769) Morocco (1769–1912) France (1912–1956)
EN: Fortress of Muxima PT: Fortaleza da Muxima	1599	Intact	Muxima	Angola	Portugal (1599–1641, 1648–1975) Netherlands (1641–1648)
EN: Fortress of Saint John the Baptist of Ouidah PT: Fortaleza de São João Batista de Ajudá	1721	Intact	Ouidah	Benin	Portugal (1721–1961)
EN: Fortress of Saint Joseph Amura PT: Fortaleza de São José da Amura	1697	Restored	Bissau	Guinea-Bissau	Portugal (1697–1974)
EN: Fortress of Saint Michael PT: Fortaleza de São Miguel	1576	Intact	Luanda	Angola	Portugal (1576–1641, 1648–1975) Netherlands (1641–1648)
EN: Royal Castle of Mogador PT: Castelo Real de Mogador	1506	Demolished	Essaouira	Morocco	Portugal (1506–1510)
EN: Royal Fort of Saint Philip PT: Forte Real de São Filipe	1587–1593	Intact	Cidade Velha	Cape Verde	Portugal (1587–1975)
EN: Royal Walls of Ceuta PT: Muralhas Reais de Ceuta	1540s	Intact	Ceuta	Spain	Portugal (1415–1668)
EN: Stronghold of Saint Lawrence PT: Fortim de São Lourenço	1695	Intact	Island of São Lourenço	Mozambique	Portugal (1695–1975)

Americas

Name	Built	Condition	City/Region	Current country	Historical rulers
EN: Fort of Our Lady of Medicines PT: Forte de Nossa Senhora dos Remédios	1737	Ruins	Fernando de Noronha	Brazil	Portugal (1737–1822)
EN: Fort of Saint Anthony Barra PT: Forte de Santo Antônio da Barra	1596	Restored	Salvador	Brazil	Portugal (1596–1822) Netherlands (1624–1625)
EN: Fort of Saint Anthony Beyond Carmo PT: Forte de Santo Antônio Além do Carmo	1695–1703	Intact	Salvador	Brazil	Portugal (1695–1822)
EN: Fort Saint Anthony of Gurupá PT: Forte de Santo Antônio de Gurupá	1601–1619	Restored	Gurupá	Brazil	Netherlands (1601–1623) Portugal (1623–1822)
EN: Fort of Saint James PT: Forte de São Diogo	1609	Intact	Salvador	Brazil	Portugal (1609–1822) Netherlands (1624–1625)
EN: Fort of Saint Lawrence PT: Forte de São Lourenço	1631	Restored	Itaparica	Brazil	Portugal (1631–1822) Netherlands (1647)
EN: Fort of Saint Marcellus PT: Forte de São Marcelo	1608–1623	Intact	Salvador	Brazil	Portugal (1608–1822) Netherlands (1624–1625)
EN: Fort of Saint Mary PT: Forte de Santa Maria	1614	Intact	Salvador	Brazil	Portugal (1614–1822) Netherlands (1624–1625)
EN: Fort of Saint Michael PT: Forte de São Miguel	1737	Intact	Dieciocho de Julio	Uruguay	Portugal (1737–1763) Spain (1763–1816) Portugal (1816–1822) Brazil (1822–1828)
EN: Fort Santana PT: Forte de Santana	1775	Ruins	Fernando de Noronha	Brazil	Portugal (1775–1822)
EN: Fort of the Three Wise Men PT: Forte dos Reis Magos	1599	Intact	Natal	Brazil	Portugal (1599–1633, 1654–1822) Netherlands (1633–1654)
EN: Fortress of the Holy Cross of Anhatomirim PT: Fortaleza de Santa Cruz de Anhatomirim	1739–1744	Intact	Governador Celso Ramos	Brazil
EN: Fortress of the Holy Cross of Barra PT: Fortaleza de Santa Cruz da Barra	1612	Intact	Niterói	Brazil	Portugal (1612–1822)
EN: Fortress of Our Lady of the Assumption PT: Fortaleza de Nossa Senhora da Assunção	1812	Intact	Fortaleza	Brazil	Portugal (1812–1822)
EN: Fortress of Our Lady of Conception PT: Fortaleza de Nossa Senhora da Conceição	1718	Intact	Rio de Janeiro	Brazil	Portugal (1718–1822)
EN: Fortress of Our Lady of Pleasures PT: Fortaleza de Nossa Senhora dos Prazeres	1767–1769	Intact	Paranaguá	Brazil	Portugal (1767–1822)
EN: Fortress of Saint Teresa PT: Fortaleza de Santa Teresa	1762	Intact	Santa Teresa National Park	Uruguay	Portugal (1762–1763) Spain (1763–1816) Portugal (1816–1822) Brazil (1822–1828)

Asia-Pacific

Name	Built	Condition	City/region	Current country	Historical rulers
EN: Al Jalali Fort PT: Forte Aljalali Orig: Forte de São João	1586	Restored	Muscat	Oman	Portugal (1586–1650) Muscat (1650–1820) Muscat & Oman (1820–1892) Britain (1892–1970)
EN: Arippu Fort PT: Forte Arippu	17th century	Ruins	Mannar	Sri Lanka	Portugal (17th century-1658) Netherlands (1658–1796) Britain (1796–1948)
EN: Balibo Fort PT: Forte Balibo	1645–1665	Intact	Balibo	East Timor	Portugal (1645–1975) Indonesia (1975–1999) UNTAET (1999–2002)
EN: Batticaloa Fort PT: Forte Batticaloa	1622–1628	Intact	Batticaloa	Sri Lanka	Portugal (1622–1638) Netherlands (1638–1796) Britain (1796–1948)
EN: Cabo de Rama Fort PT: Forte do Cabo da Rama	1763	Ruins	Canacona	India	Portugal (1763–1961)
EN: Castle of the Waterpoint PT: Castella de Aguada Orig: Forte de Bandorá	1640	Intact	Mumbai	India	Portugal (1640–1661) Britain (1661–1947)
EN: Chapora Fort PT: Forte de Chaporá	1717	Ruins	Chapora	India	Portugal (1717–1961)
EN: Cranganore Fort PT: Forte de Cranganore Orig: Fortaleza da São Tomé	1523	Ruins	Kodungallur	India	Portugal (1523–1662) Netherlands (1662–1796) Britain (1796–1947)
EN: Diu Fortress PT: Fortaleza de Diu Orig: Fortaleza de São Tomé	1535	Intact	Diu	India	Portugal (1535–1961)
EN: Dongri Fort PT: Forte de Dongri^[1]	1596	Ruins	Mumbai	India	Portugal (1596-1739) Maratha (1739-1818) Britain (1818–1947)
EN: The Famous PT: A Famosa	1511	Fragments	Malacca	Malaysia	Portugal (1511–1641) Netherlands (1641–1795, 1818–1824) Britain (1795–1818, 1824–1956) Japan (1942–1945)
EN: Fort Al-Mirani PT: Forte de Almirani	16th century	Restored	Muscat	Oman	Portugal (16th century-1650) Ottoman Empire (1552, 1581–1588) Muscat (1650–1820) Muscat & Oman (1820–1892) Britain (1892–1970)
EN: Fort Anjediva PT: Forte de Angediva	1505	Demolished	Anjediva Island	India	Portugal (1505–1961)
EN: Fort Emmanuel PT: Forte de Manuel	1503	Ruins	Kochi	India	Portugal (1503–1663) Netherlands (1663–1795) Britain (1795–1947)
EN: Fort Kastela PT: Fortaleza de Ternate Orig: São João Baptista de Ternate	1522	Ruins	Ternate	Indonesia	Portugal (1522–1575) Ternate (1575–1606) Spain (1606–1663) Netherlands (1663–1942, 1945–1946) Japan (1942–1945) East Indonesia (1946–1950)
EN: Fort Victoria, Our Lady of Annunciation Fortress PT: Fortaleza Nossa Senhora de Anunciada	1575	Intact	Ambon, Maluku	Indonesia	Portugal (1575–1605) Netherlands (1605–1946) Britain (1810–1814) Japan (1942-1945) East Indonesia (1946–1950) Republic of South Maluku (1950)
EN: Fort of Our Lady of the Conception PT: Forte de Nossa Senhora da Conceição	1515	Fragments	Hormuz	Iran
EN: Fort Qeshm PT: Forte de Queixome	1621	Ruins	Qeshm	Iran	Portugal (1621–1622)
EN: Fort St. Anthony of Simbor PT: Forte de Santo António de Simbor	1722	Restored	Simbor	India	Portugal (1722–1961)
EN: Fort Tarout PT: Forte de Tarout	1515–1520	Intact	Tarout Island	Saudi Arabia	Portugal (1515–1559)
EN: Fortress of the Watering Place PT: Fortaleza da Aguada	1612	Intact	Sinquerim	India	Portugal (1612–1961)
EN: Galle Fort PT: Forte de Galle	1584	Intact	Galle	Sri Lanka	Portugal (1584–1640) Netherlands (1640–1796) Britain (1796–1948)
EN: Ghodbunder Fort PT: Forte de Ghodbunder	1550–1730	Ruins	Thane	India	Portugal (1550–1737) Maratha (1737–1818) Britain (1818–1947)
EN: Guia Fortress PT: Fortaleza da Guia	1622–1638	Intact	Macau	China	Portugal (1622–1999)
EN: Khasab Fort PT: Forte de Caçapo	17th century	Restored	Khasab	Oman
EN: Korlai Fort PT: Forte de Korlai Orig: Fortaleza do Morro de Chaul	1521	Ruins	Korlai	India	Ahmadnagar (1521–1594) Portugal (1594–1739) Maratha (1739–1818) Britain (1818–1947)
EN: Madh Fort PT: Forte de Madh	17th century	Intact	Mumbai	India	Portugal (17th century) Britain (1661–1947)
EN: Malé Fort PT: Forte de Malé	17th century	Demolished	Maldives	Maldives	Portugal (1558–1650) Netherlands (1650–1796) Britain (1796–1953)
EN: Mormugão fort PT: Forte de Mormugão	1624	Ruins	Mormugao	India	Portugal (1624–1961)
EN: Mount Fortress PT: Fortaleza do Monte	1617–1626	Intact	Macau	China	Portugal (1617–1999)
EN: Mutrah Fort PT: Forte de Matara	1580s	Intact	Muscat	Oman	Portugal (1580s–1650) Muscat (1650–1820) Muscat & Oman (1820–1892) Britain (1892–1970)
EN: Negombo Fort PT: Forte de Negombo	17th century	Fragments	Negombo	Sri Lanka	Portugal (17th century–1640) Netherlands (1640–1796) Britain (1796–1948)
EN: Pallipuram Fort PT: Forte de Paliporto	1503	Intact	Kochi	India	Portugal (1503–1663) Netherlands (1663–1795) Britain (1795–1947)
EN: Pooneryn Fort PT: Forte de Pooneryn	17th century	Ruins	Pooneryn	Sri Lanka	Portugal (17th century-1658) Netherlands (1658–1796) Britain (1796–1948)
EN: Portuguese Fort PT: Forte Português	17th century	Intact	Jepara Regency	Indonesia	Mataram (17th century-1743) Netherlands (1743–1811, 1814–1942) Britain (1811–1814) Japan (1942–1945)
EN: Qal'at al-Bahrain PT: Forte de Barém	16th century	Intact	Capital Governorate	Bahrain	Portugal (16th century)
EN: Redoubt of Counselor Jacinto Cândido PT: Reduto do Conselheiro Jacinto Candido	1655	Intact	Batugade	East Timor	Portugal (1655–1975) Indonesia (1975–1999) UNTAET (1999–2002)
EN: Revdanda Fort PT: Forte de Revdanda Orig: Fortaleza de Chaul	1524	Ruins	Revdanda	India	Portugal (1524–1806) Maratha (1806–1818) Britain (1818–1947)
EN: St. Angelo Fort PT: Forte de Santo Ângelo	1505	Intact	Kannur	India
EN: St. Thomas Fort PT: Forte de São Tomé	1518	Ruins	Kollam	India	Portugal (1518–1661) Netherlands (1661–1795) Britain (1795–1947)

References

↑ Burnell, John (2007). Bombay in the Days of Queen Anne – Being an Account of the Settlement Also: Burnell's Narrative of his Adventures in Bengal. Read Books. ISBN 9781406755473 . Retrieved 22 August 2014.

Notes

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[1] Burnell, John (2007). Bombay in the Days of Queen Anne – Being an Account of the Settlement Also: Burnell's Narrative of his Adventures in Bengal. Read Books. ISBN 9781406755473 . Retrieved 22 August 2014.

[1]