Several years ago General Jose Ramon Pizarro who was many times over the great grandson of the Spanish Chronicler and Conquistador Pedro Pizarro passed away in Lima Peru his widow contacted a mutual friend to discuss an item that had descended down through the family of Pedro Pizarro.
So on my next trip to Lima my friend and I visited Mrs. Pizarro and I examined a piece of hand hammered copper wood encased heraldic item bearing the coat of arms for Pedro Pizarro and undoubtedly was made in Spain 17th century or about the time or prior to Francisco Pizarro and his cousin Pedro’s sea voyage to Peru around 1536.
I acquired this item from Mrs. Pizarro and I believe it was used as a heraldic emblem displaying the coat of arms for Pedro Pizarro that was part of a door escutcheon or another piece of furniture in Pedro Pizarro’s private chapel … she told me that her husband had received it from or I should say inherited it directly by descent from the estate of Pedro Pizarro 1515-1602…
I sent a photo to an expert on Peruvian Spanish Colonial Artifacts and his opinion was that it was definitely late 16th century or 17th century Spanish metalwork … it has the words positioned backwards “AVE MARIA” around the border which would have been possibly used as a seal ……. someone wrote with a pen many years ago.”.escudo de la familia de Pedro Pizarro”
Heraldic Coat of Arms encased in wood that belonged to Pedro Pizarro
Written by Marco Ramerini. Photos by Dirk Holtschlag.
Tangalle is a small coastal town located a few kilometers east of the city of Matara, in the extreme south of the island of Ceylon. At the time of the Dutch occupation of Ceylon, Tangalle, thanks to its natural harbor, was used by them as an important anchorage. Here, around 1775, the Dutch built a small fort whose remains are still partially visible today. In the same period the Dutch also built a small church. During the British occupation the structure of the fort was heavily modified and was used as a prison. This use has remained unchanged until recently, but now the prison has been closed. I receive from the very kind Dirk Holtschlag some photos of the fort and the nearby church that I gladly publish.
Written by Marco Ramerini. Photos by Prof. Rahul Basu.
Tangasseri or Thangassery / Kollam is a city located along the coast of the ancient Malabar, in the Indian state of Kerala in southern India. The Portuguese were the first Europeans to arrive in this port of Malabar, they landed there in 1502. In the following years Tangasseri or Thangassery / Kollam that the Portuguese called Quilon / Coulão / Coullam became an important center for the trade of pepper. The Portuguese built a feitoria in 1505. A few years later, around 1518 – to better protect their trades – the Portuguese built the Forte de São Tomé. The fort was conquered by the Dutch on 29 December 1658, but it was recaptured by the Portuguese on 14 April 1659. The fort was under Portuguese control until 1661, when on 24 December 1661 the Dutch conquered it. In the following years the fort was renovated by the Dutch. In the late eighteenth century, the fort was ceded by the Dutch to the British.
Of the current situation of the remains of Tangasseri or Thangassery Dutch/Portuguese settlement we receive the following photos and evidence by Prof. Rahul Basu:
“Please find attached some pictures of my recent trip to Kollam, Kerala and visit to Thangacherry which has an old Portuguese fort taken over by the Dutch later. It appears to be under restoration, though no one was there on the job. Some squatters have built huts and some multistorey apartments have come up near the fort, closer than the 200 m stipulated by the signboard on the entrance.”
St Thomas Fort, Tangasseri or Thangassery, Kerala, India. Author and Copyright Prof Rahul Basu,
“On enquiring from the lighthouse keeper nearby I was shown how to go to the cemetery nearby. Most of the tombs have been desecrated and only some tombstones are visible. Areas which apparently were graveyard have been cleared and one appears to be ready for some building work. There is a multistory apartment complex on one of the adjacent plots. What is visible is hidden at the back of some hutments.”
Tangasseri or Thangassery, Kerala, India. Author and Copyright Prof Rahul Basu
“One of the large tombstones was readable as that of a Dutch doctor ( Dr Jacob Van— ), who expired 1810, ( the engravings have become very faint due to weathering and use as a washing stone by the residents) so obviously was a resident at the locality beyond the ceding of the fort to the English in late 1700’s.”
“I am sure the Dutch, Portuguese and English Governments would be interested in preserving these relics. Some of the plaques appear to have been removed recently as the mortar facings behind the original name plaques appear to be un weathered.”
Written by Prof. Stefan Halikowski Smith, Dept. of History, Swansea University.
The Bengal mission was one of the most Christian successful mission-fields in the Orient in early modern times, despite relatively small numbers of active missionaries. However, the mission, despite its successes in ‘harvesting souls’, encountered bitter political vituperation between the two orders active here, the Augustinians and Jesuits, who fought it out amongst each other for the rights to this mission. While the Jesuits liked to call the otherwise controversial Guy Tachard ‘l’apôtre de Bengale’, the most successful churchman was perhaps António da Rozario, an Augustinian who pioneered bilingual catechistic dialogues such as Argument and Dispute Upon the Law between a Roman Catholic and a Braman, composed some time before 1680 in simultaneous Bengali-Portuguese translation, and which quickly became the norm for missionary endeavour elsewhere in Asia, such as Burma. He was also quick to promote usage of canticles, especially those dealing with ‘the Mysteries of the Rosary’. Rozario was the converted son of the King of Busna, a raja in Eastern Bengal, who was ordained in 1682 as an Augustinian, became known simply as Dom António and went on to bring between 27 and 30.000 people into the church. This number is corroborated from sources outside the Church: the French jeweller, Tavernier, reported that ‘in Ogouli [Hughli] alone there were no less than 8 or 9000 souls of Christians’, whilst in the rest of the kingdome ‘there were about 25 thousands’ (Travels in India, vol. II, p. 140).
While the Portuguese had frequented ports like Satgaon (known as ‘porto pequeno de Bengala’) from the 1580s, the Augustinians were the first religious order to make headway in Bengal, specifically in the ‘Kingdom of Chittagong’ where they came to administer three parishes.760 bighas of land were granted by firman by Shahjahan to the Augustinians in 1633, a year after the Hughli community’s notorious expulsion and summons to the Mughal court at Agra, of which there exists an early nineteenth-century Portuguese copy. Augustinian affairs are related in the Brevilogio de notícias das cousas e dos Sujeitos da Congregação da Índia Oriental dos Eremitas Agostinhos (Biblioteca da Ajuda, Lisbon, Cod. 49-I-51) and in Fr. Jorge da Presentação’s História dos Missões dos Padres Augustinianos na India dos princípios do 18 sécolo (see Arnulf Hartmann’s presentation of this text in Analecta Augustiniana, vol. LVII, 1994, pp. 193-341). The Augustinians had acquired a bad reputation in other missions, such as Siam, where they were described by the visiting Portuguese embassy of 1684 as ‘odd and somewhat deranged men’, and other churchmen there had written to the Viceroy that they be excommunicated and sent to a penal colony such as Solor or Timor (Halikowski Smith, Creolization and Diaspora, 2011, pp. 165-66). In Bengal, trouble erupted even within the order, with missionaries like Fray Pedro de Silveira ‘driven out of Bengal by his Superiors because of the scandals he had perpetrated’ (letter of Guy Tachard, ed. Cornelius Buckley, p. 35). Visiting missionaries with their sights set on the mission-grail of China, like Matteo Ripa, were shocked by the ignorant state of the priesthood, their ignorance of Latin and the ‘norms of the Catholic Reform’, and the persistence of heathen practices like the sun-worshipping ceremonies he described which took place in the Ganges (Memoirs of Father Ripa during Thirteen Years Residence, London: 1834, 27). But the Jesuits seem to have been no better. Guy Tachard S.J. relates at the turn of the eighteenth century how in the French stronghold (place), meaning Chandernagore, ‘there are French Jesuits, who similarly contradict the Augustinian fathers, laying claim to joint jurisdiction over the parish, and having buried a dead man, the Augustinian priests went with very many Portuguese to exhume him and take him to their residence, a matter of very great scandal to be sure, but that all things said reveals the very great liberty that is to be enjoyed there’ (Relation de Voyage aux Indes, 1690-99, p. 104). Outside observers, like John Burnell, who visited in 1712, was mugged by ‘rascally Portugueze soldiers’, who stole his sword, and was ‘credibly inform’d’ the Jesuit Superior himself had ordered so (Bombay in the Days of Queen Anne, p. 147). Unpleasant stories of such ‘insolence’ abound in the relics of Portuguese Asia.
Church structures, however, were left behind which have lasted up until the present day, although often times restored, and their scolours schemes changed. The Church of the Holy Rosary was built in 1677 around twelve ‘magnificent columns painted in a watered-down green. It was slightly grander than the church of St. Nicholas Tolentino, built in 1695 at Nagori, 35 km north-east of Dhaka, a straightforward rectangular shape with no side chapels, only one floor, a simple wooden beamed roof and a niched altar in the far wall. The nave’s floor was probably covered with Indian or Persian carpets, while niches around the main altar would have contained images of that most important and communicative icon of Christianity in the missions, the Blessed Virgin, or Virgin with Child.
These missions lasted right through until the nineteenth century as the diary of a visiting Archbishop of Goa in 1865-6, D. João Crisóstomo de Amorim Pessoa, testifies to (BGUC, Reservados, no. 1635), although with new evangelical movements in neighbouring Calcutta, many Portuguese forsook Catholicism for the Baptist church. The most substantial mission was at Bandel outside Hughli, where the fifth Bishop of Mylapore Father Francisco Laynes S.J. was buried in 1715, though Father H. Hosten, S.J. claims that the Jesuit house was never more than a small ‘collegium’ or residence, with two or three fathers and occasionally a lay brother (Bengal Past and Present, vol. VI, p. 218; vol. X, pp. 64-70; vol. XXVI, pt. I, p. 77). Other visitors of this period like the Abbate Matteo Ripa, later to found the Collegio dei Cinesi at Naples University, in 1709 also described the church as ‘very pretty’(‘Burnell’s Adventures in Bengal’ in Bombay in the days of Queen Anne, Hakluyt Society, no. LXXII, 1933, p. 145, note 3). It is reproduced here for readers, along with other churches constructed by the Augustinians in the province.
The Church of St. Nicholas Tolentino, Nagori, 1695.
The Church of St. Nicholas Tolentino, Nagori. Copyright Stefan Halikowski Smith
The Church of the Holy Rosary, Tejgaon, Dacca, completed for the Augustinians in 1677. A restoration project of 1940 did no harm to the façade, but unhappily took away the mouldings of alternating arcs and triangles over the aisle windows, which had given character to the sides. In 2000 the church was restored once again under the sponsorship of the Gulbenkian Foundation.
The Church of the Holy Rosary, Tejgaon, Dacca. Copyright Stefan Halikowski Smith
The Basilica of the Holy Rosary, Bandel, Hughli, first built in 1599 to serve diocesan functions, burned down in 1632, but was re-completed in 1660.
The Basilica of the Holy Rosary, Bandel, Hughli. Copyright Stefan Halikowski Smith
While many of the platforms which sustained Roman Catholic religiosity in the East were silenced, perhaps most significantly the suppression of the Jesuit Order in 1773 and the recall of its priests back to Europe, some settlements, which revolved around the spiritual and educational activities of the religious orders, pretty much disappeared; they were gradually incorporated into the administrative machinery of British India, as was the case with Loricul in East Bengal (The Journals of Major James Rennell first Surveyor-General of India : written for the information of the Governors of Bengal during his surveys of the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers, T.H.D. La Touche (ed.), Calcutta: Asiatic Society 1910, vol. III, 1910, n.3, n.39), or Bandel, to the north of Calcutta (G. Toynbee, Sketch of the Administration of the Hooghly District from 1795 to 1845, with some account of the early English, Portuguese, Dutch, French and Danish settlements. Calcutta, 1888, p.6). And yet, as travel guides report, the pious still made their way for the annual festival of the Novena, celebrated in November, which attracted ‘great numbers of Roman Catholics’ in 1882 (Newman and Co.’s Handbook to Calcutta: historical and descriptive with a plan of the city. 1882, Calcutta: W. Newman, 1882, 6). Today, the numbers of Christians in the area is no less significant.
Bibliography.
Alonso, Carlos. ‘Stato delle missioni agostiniane nelle Indie orientali secondo una relazione inedita del 1640’, sep. Analecta Augustiniana, Louvain, vol. 25 (1962), pp. 291-325.
‘Burnell’s Adventures in Bengal’ in Bombay in the days of Queen Anne, Hakluyt Society, no. LXXII, 1933.
Campos, Joachim Joseph. A history of the Portuguese in Bengal, London: Buttersworth& Co., 1919.
Celso Constantini, L’arte Cristiana nelle missioni (Roma: Tipografiapoliglotta Vaticana, 1940).
Hawkesworth, John. Asiaticus in two parts; Ecclesiastical, Chronological, And, Historical Sketches Respecting Bengal (1803).
Hosten, Henry. ‘The Marsden Manuscripts and Indian Mission Bibliography’, in The Bulletin of the School of Oriental Studies, vol. 3, no. 1, 1923, pp. 129-50. See also his contributions to Bengal Past and Present, vol. VI, p. 218; vol. X, pp. 64-70; vol. XXVI, pt. I, p. 77.
The Tejgaon church restoration work is detailed in Maria João Avillez, Portugal: As sete partidas para o Mundo, Lisboa: Temas e Debates, 2000, ch. 6.
‘Privilegios que o Imperador Mogol concedeo á caza do Bandel de Ugoly dos Padres Augustinianos da Congregação da India Oriental’, in O Chronista de Tissuary, no. 32, August 1868, pp. 60-2.
Rozario, António da. Argument and Dispute Upon the Law between a Roman Catholic and a Braman, c. 1680, published by the University of Calcutta, 1937.
Photos by João Sarmento. Written by Marco Ramerini.
The Cidade Velha (Old Town) of the island of Santiago in Cape Verde islands is located 15 kilometers west of the city of Praia, along the Santiago island coast. It constitutes the first city built by Europeans in the tropics and the first capital of the Cape Verde archipelago.
The settlement was originally named as Ribeira Grande, been changing name to avoid ambiguity with the homonymous village on the island of Santo Antão. Because of its history, manifested by a valuable architectural heritage, on 26 June 2009 the old town was classified by UNESCO as a World Heritage site.
The Forte Real de São Filipe also referred to as Fortaleza Real de São Filipe ou Cidadela – which dominates the city 120 meters high – was erected in 1587. This fort was the first and most important fortification of the archipelago of Cape Verde. Work began in 1587 and were completed in 1593, in charge of military engineer João Nunes and with outlines of Italian military architect and engineer Filippo Terzi.
The Fort features a trapezoidal shape, with with stone walls, two full pentagonal bastions at the west and east corners, separated by curtains, and two half-bastions at the north and south corners, with its watchtowers. The interior of the fortress is accessed by two gates: the main gate is located on the southwest wall on the side facing the city. The defensive set was still integrated by seven small fortifications.
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Portuguese Fort Santiago, Cape Verde. Author and Copyright João Sarmento
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Fortaleza Sao Filipe, Santiago, Cape Verde. Google Earth
Photos by João Sarmento. Written by Marco Ramerini.
The Portuguese Fort São Sebastião, São Tomé, São Tomé e Príncipe. The fort was built in 1575. The fort was occupied by the Dutch on 16 Oct. 1641. The Portuguese recaptured the fort on 15 December 1644.
The Fort São Sebastião is square-shaped with bastions at each corner and now houses the São Tomé and Príncipe National Museum.
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Statues outside Fort São Sebastião, São Tomé. Author and Copyright João Sarmento
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Portuguese Fort São Sebastião, São Tomé, São Tomé e Príncipe. Google Earth
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Fort São Sebastião, São Tomé. Author and Copyright João Sarmento.
Photos by João Sarmento. Written by Marco Ramerini.
Some pictures of what remains of forts built by the Portuguese in Morocco in the 15th and 16th century. Here are presented photos of Azamor (Azemmour), Safim (Safi) and Mazagão (El Jadida) taken by João Sarmento.
The fort of Azamor (Azemmour) was under Portuguese control between 3 September 1513 and October 1541.
The fort of Safim (Safi) called by the Portuguese as Castelo do Mar or Castelejo was founded by the Portuguese as a feitoria in 1488. In 1508 the Portuguese built a fortress. The fortress was abandoned by the Portuguese on October 1541.
Mazagão Fort (El Jadida) built by the Portuguese in 1541 was the last Portuguese fort to be abandoned in 1769.
The Portuguese controlled the coast of Morocco and to that end they built many fortresses including those of: Arzila (Asilah), Ceuta, Tanger, Safim (Safi), Graciosa (Graciosa Island near Larache), Santa Cruz do Cabo de Gué (Agadir-Taddert Ougadir), Mogador (Essaouira), Aguz (Souira Guedima, Castelo de Aguz: South of Safi at the mouth of Tensift River), Azamor (Azemmour), Mazagão (El Jadida).
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Azemmour, Morocco. Author and Copyright João Sarmento
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Azamor fort, Morocco. Google Earth
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Safi, Morocco. Author and Copyright João Sarmento
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Safi Fort, Morocco. Google Earth
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El Jadida, Morocco. Author and Copyright João Sarmento
The Burghers of Sri Lanka. Author and Copyright Marco Ramerini
Written by Phil Abernethy.
Enid Ursula Andree was born on the 28 Oct 1928 in KL Malaysia my father Fredrick Alexandra Abernethy (Freddy) die on the 23 May 1979 in Perth WA, they had 2 Children, myself – Philip Andrew Abernethy born 23 June 1960 in KL Malaysia and Anna Agnes Abernethy born 22 Jul 1948 in KL Malaysia, married Ronald Baggs Perth Australia, they have 2 children Kerrie-Anne and Serena.
Portuguese India/Estado da Índia Portuguesa – Goa, Daman/Damão and Diu
Until the invasion of Nehru’s troops in December 1961 Portuguese was the official language, while after the annexation English received this status. The local languages Konkani in Goa and Gujarati in Damão and Diu only play a minor role in public life. Even during the Portuguese time there were more secondary schools with English as teaching medium in Goa than those with Portuguese as language of instruction. Since the annexation the Portuguese language is only offered as a second or third language subject in some schools.
The last Portuguese-language newspaper completely switched to English at the beginning of 1984. Thus “O Heraldo” changed its title to “Herald”. The newspaper “A Vida” ceased to appear altogether. Today there are only papers in English and in Indian languages. The sole reading material in Portuguese I could acquire in a bookshop was a series of five volumes of textbooks for learning Portuguese “UM PASSO NOVO”. Additionally the opportunity to study Portuguese is offered at the University of Goa. The lecturer appointed by the Instituto Camões Dr Lume told me that he is in charge of more than 60 students.
The official Portuguese presence in Goa is nowadays limited to a Consulate-General and a newly opened branch of the Portuguese cultural institution Fundação do Oriente. Today the knowledge of the Portuguese language is mainly limited to the Christian part of the local elder generation.
Macau
The Chinese are by 97% the overwhelming part of the population, followed by 2% Portuguese. The latter are often sent from Portugal for a fixed period to serve in the public administration or in educational institutions. Until 1991 Portuguese was the only official language. Since this year Chinese has the same status. In everyday life you can make yourself understood everywhere in Chinese, whereas the chance to make use of Portuguese is possible only to a limited extent, the English language being as business language a strong competitor to the official language of European origin, simply due to the proximity of Hongkong. In the past the Portuguese administration of Macau practised a deplorable neglect in Portuguese language matters. Only in the few Portuguese or Luso-Chinese schools Portuguese is the teaching medium or a compulsary subject respectively. In the numerous Chinese schools Portuguese is just offered as an optional subject. Nevertheless all public notices and signposting – also regarding the shops – are always designed in both official languages.
Portuguese Timor – East Timor
Even the young generation, who has not witnessed the Indonesian invasion in 1975, is engaged in selfdetermination and independence of East Timor, although most young people have little or no knowledge of Portuguese. The Indonesian school system does not provide instruction in this language. Instead all pupils and students have to learn the language Bahasa Indonesia, which is based on the Malay language. The sole group of people, who wholeheartedly welcomed the integration of East Timor into the Indonesian state, are the migrants, who were sent by the Jacarta government to East Timor in the framework of the resettlement scheme “Transmigrasi”. In contrast to the Timorese of the elder and middle generation this group of people do not know a single word of Portuguese. Thus they are easy to spot as people from another country, having replaced the Chinese business community to a great extent, who had fled to Australia in 1975.
All inscriptions in the public sphere and every publication are exclusively carried out in Bahasa Indonesia. There are no publications in Portuguese accessible to the general public. Just the names of the streets were kept from the Portuguese time, while placing instead of “rua” or “avenida” the Indonesian word “jalan” in front. As only other lasting memory there are several monuments with Portuguese inscription. One of them is commemorating the fifth centenary of the death of Henry the Navigator in 1960.
As an outstanding personality I met Father Eduardo Brito of the Catholic parish of Balide in Díli. He had come from Margão/Goa to Portuguese Timor in a group of 40 priests in 1947. Only three priests are still alive and remain active in their adopted country. For his many years of great merits Father Brito was honoured by governor Abílio José Osório Soares in 1995 by installing a monument with his bust already during his lifetime. His final resting this priest will find in a crypt in front of this monument.
GERMAN EAST AFRICA, takeover in 1884/85
Tanganyika Territory
1920 to the United Kingdom –
1961 Independent State of Tanganyika/1962 Republic of Tanganyika –
April 1964 part of the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar/
November 1964 United Republic of Tanzania
Ruanda-Urundi
1920 to Belgium –
1962 Republic of Rwanda (northern part) and
1962 Kingdom of Burundi/1966 Republic of Burundi (southern part)
respectively
Kionga Triangle
1920 reassigned to Portugal (Portuguese East Africa) –
1975 part of the People’s Republic of Mozambique/1990 Republic of Mozambique
GERMAN SOUTH WEST AFRICA, takeover in 1884
1920 Union of South Africa/1961 Republic of South Africa –
1990 Republic of Namibia
CAMEROON, takeover in 1884
Western Cameroon
1920 to the United Kingdom –
1960 part of the Independent State of Nigeria/1963 part of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (northern part) and
1960 part of the Independent State of Nigeria –
1961 part of the Federal Republic of Cameroon/1972 part of the United Republic of Cameroon, 1984 part of the Republic of Cameroon (southern part) respectively
Eastern Cameroon
1920 to France –
1960 Republic of Cameroon – 1961 part of the Federal Republic of Cameroun/1972 part of the United Republic of Cameroon, 1984 part of the Republic of Cameroon
Neukamerun (New Cameroon) was attached to Cameroon in 1911.
1920 Neukamerun was reintegrated as part of the neighbouring colonies of French Equatorial Africa (AEF): Chad (1960 Republic of Chad), Ubangi-Shari (1960 Central African Republic/1976 Central African Empire/1979 Central African Republic), Middle Congo (1960 Republic of the Congo/1970 People’s Republic of the Congo/1992 Republic of the Congo) and Gabon (1960 Gabonese Republic) respectively
TOGO, takeover in 1884
Western part of Togo
1920 – to the United Kingdom
1957 part of the Independent State of Ghana, 1960 of the Republic of Ghana
Eastern part of Togo
1920 to France –
1960 Togolese Republic
COLONIES IN THE PACIFIC AREA
GERMAN NEW GUINEA
a) Emperor William Land, Bismarck Archipelago, German Solomon Islands, takeover in 1884-1886
1920 to Australia –
1975 part of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea (PNG)
b) Marshall Islands (part of German Micronesia north of the equator), takeover in 1885
1920 to Japan –
1947 under United States administration as part of the United Nations Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI) –
1990 Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI)
c) Nauru (German-Micronesia south of the equator), takeover in 1888
1920 to Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom/exercise of the administration by Australia –
1968 Republic of Nauru
d) German-Micronesia north of the equator without the Marshall Islands, takeover in 1899
1920 to Japan –
1947 under United States administration as part of the United Nations Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI)
aa) 1990 United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
bb) 1994 Republic of Palau (Belau/Palau Islands)
cc) 1990 Federated States of Micronesia (FSM/Caroline Islands)
GERMAN KIAOCHOW TERRITORY, takeover in 1897/98
1920 to Japan –
1922 back to China –
since 1949 part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC)
GERMAN-SAMOA, takeover in 1899/1900
1920 to New Zealand –
1962 Independent State of Western Samoa/1997 Independent State of Samoa
NOTES: German-Micronesia includes the Mariana Islands except Guam, the Palau Islands, the Caroline Islands, the Marshall Islands and Nauru. With the exception of the German Kiaochow Territory and the Kionga Triangle all German overseas possessions became mandates of the League of Nations in 1920. Togo and Cameroon became Class B mandates with France and the United Kingdom as mandate holder respectively. Tanganyika and Ruanda-Urundi became Class B mandates with the United Kingdom and Belgium as mandate power respectively. German South West Africa, German-Micronesia north of the equator and German Samoa were placed as Class C mandates under the authority of the Union of South Africa, Japan and New Zealand respectively. Nauru as Micronesia south of the equator became a Class C mandate of Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom as joint mandate powers. The rest of German New Guinea (Emperor William Land, Bismarck Archipelago and the German Solomon Islands) was converted into a Class C mandate administered by Australia. In 1947 these mandates became United Nations Trust Territories until attainment of independence. In the same year solely Japan’s mandate was replaced by a United States administered United Nations Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI). No provision is made for an independence of the Northern Mariana Islands. Since 1990 these islands are linked in Political Union with the United States as the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The transfer of the German overseas possessions was established under the terms of the Treaty of Versailles of 28 June 1919, which went into effect on 10 January 1920.
Copyright March 2004 by Dietrich Köster, D-53115 Bonn
The Banda Islands, reached via Ambon, contain some of the most historic and evocative forts of the old Dutch East Indies. Most impressive is Dutch-built Fort Belgica (constructed 1611) towering over the tiny township of Bandaneira. Following refurbishment in the 1990’s it remains the best preserved of all forts scattered across the Spice Islands. Its unusual layout – five low angled outer bastions surrounding a higher inner pentagonal curtain wall with five tall, round almost medieval towers represents a unique design for the Spice Islands. It is comparatively well maintained, regularly used for civic functions and can be fully explored upon payment of a small entry fee. You can wander through the vaulted casemates and walk the crenelated ramparts. The views in all directions from the high towers are superb.
Fort Belgica, Bandaneira, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
Just a few hundred metres away from Belgica lies the older, larger and much less maintained Fort Nassau. Built by the Dutch in 1609 on uncompleted Portuguese foundations from 1529, this extensive fort was the VOC headquarters for the Banda isles. Today it is forgotten and forlorn. A road has destroyed two of its bastions, goats graze where soldiers once paraded and some ramparts are now vegetable gardens. There is no trace of the internal buildings, but what can still be seen is the main and side entrance gates and tunnels, the two south facing angled bastions, large sections of the 5m high south and east walls, and remnants of the moat. Despite being a short stroll from Belgica, it is seldom visited.
Fort Nassau, Bandaneira, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
Visible from the waterfront near Fort Nassau, across the Sonegat on Banda Besar sits our next fort, Fort Hollandia. Again Dutch-built and dating from 1624, this small four bastioned fort commands part of the strait separating Bandaneira from Banda Besar. Smashed by an earthquake in 1748, it was abandoned soon after. Reached by a steep climb up from Lonthor village – which was commanded by its cannon – the fort today has lost its south-east bastion and eastern wall (to village houses) and the remaining wall structure shows clearly the earthquake damage. A vaulted powder room and the entrance tunnel are also still standing. Incredibly, a house has been built just metres in front of the sea-facing entrance. Tragic.
Fort Hollandia, Banda Besar, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
Directly across the water from Hollandia, stands what is left of the 1664 Fort Colombo (or Fort Kick-in-the-pot). Lying right under the 666m active volcano Gunung Api, we can only imagine this was no dream posting, despite being sited on a stunning coral-fringed cove. The ruins here are both earthquake-smashed and overgrown, but a vague semi-circular layout of crenelated walls can be discerned, along with traces of internal building foundations. Remains of a small graveyard lie adjacent to the ruins. Sadly, it is the most dilapidated of the Banda forts.
Fort Colombo, Gunung Api, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
Back across to Banda Besar, the next fort to visit is Fort Concordia, dating from 1630. Fairly difficult to reach, getting there involves a boat trip from Bandaneira and then a long, dusty motorcycle ride over the hills to the southern side of the island. Located in Wajer village, Concordia once guarded the plantations on this remote stretch of coast. While surrounded by village houses, at least they appear to have more respect for this historic monument than those at Lonthor, and have kept clear of the perimeter. Nevertheless, the walls show evidence of earthquakes and the general battle with time. Some remedial works were proceeding at a leisurely pass when I visited. Huge buttress-rooted trees grow on some sections of the ramparts. Still visible are the full perimeter walls, the land and sea arched entry gates, and some internal foundations. A few 9 pounders lie rusting in the sun on the bastions.
Fort Concordia, Banda Besar, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
West from Bandaneira, Ai Island takes an hour by boat. Here we find Fort Revenge, a substantial though largely ruined pentagonal fort built in 1616 to keep the rebellious islanders under her guns. The remains include large sections of rampart up to 10m in height, a vaulted powder store under each of the five crumbling bastions, the long arched entry tunnel and two masonry wells. The structure is clearly earthquake shattered, and appears to never have had any restoration work. The inner side of the ramparts are generally crumbling into the interior, which is adorned by the usual vegetable gardens. Village houses surround the perimeter in every direction, the forts walls forming a convenient rear border to many houses.
Fort Revenge, Ai, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
Four hundred years ago, English traders built small forts on Run (Fort Swan) and Nailaka (Fort Defence) islands, an hour further from Bandaneira than Ai. Destroyed by the Dutch when they took over Run after swapping it for Manhattan in 1667, sadly, no trace could be found of these forts.
Forts of the Ambon area
Commanding the extensive harbour between Ambon’s two peninsulas, Fort Victoria was built by the Portuguese in 1576. It saw off attacks by Ternate, Java and the VOC, before surrendering to another Dutch attack in 1605. Modified and dramatically enlarged throughout the seventeenth century, it also required frequent rebuilding due to earthquakes. Today the extensive fort is a major base of the Indonesian Army (TNI) and not available for inspection. However, large sections of the perimeter walls can be seen, as well as parts of the bastions of Hollandia, Geldrin and Zeelandia. Surviving walls sections bear witness to the battle with time, and a series of conflicts including the Spice wars, WWII and battles during the RSM uprising in the 1950’s.
Fort Victoria, Ambon, Indonesia. Google Earth
A half-day trip from Ambon takes one to the north coast of the island, and Fort Amsterdam at Hila, originally built in 1637, but like nearly all Spice Islands forts regularly rebuilt following earthquake damage. A small two bastioned work, its main feature is a central stronghold tower with 1.5m thick loopholed walls and massive timber beams. Reroofed and refurbished in the early 2000’s, it is reasonably maintained and has fine outlooks towards Ceram.
Fort Amsterdam, Ambon, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
A full day trip from Ambon, including a few hours crossing emerald seas brings one to Fort Duurstede on Saparua. Built late in the Spice wars in 1690, its unusual elongated oval shape has stunning views from the peninsular where it is sited. With extensive battlements, a number of internal structures still insitu, refurbished cannons and even the footprint of the garrison washhouse – including thunderboxes – it is fascinating, picturesque and well maintained. Local hero Pattimura, who stormed Duurstede and held off the Dutch for six months here in 1817 is the reason that considerable effort goes into its upkeep.
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Forts of the Moluccas
Oldest of all Spice Islands forts is Kastella on Ternate. Commenced in 1522 by the Portuguese, it was subsequently modified by the local Sultan who captured it in 1575, and by the Spanish who stormed it in 1606, before it was partially demolished when the Spanish left the Spice Islands to the Dutch in 1663. Once it formed the main centre of Ternate; location of the Sultan’s court, the Iberian garrison, the clove warehouses and much of the population. Now it lies overgrown and forgotten between coconut groves and the black volcanic sands of the beach. Unfortunately, the island circuit road runs right through the fortress, and a village and mosque crowd the ruins. Still, a number of features from the inner Portuguese fort are still clearly evident, including the north wall of the fort, remains of the two storey tower and foundations of the jetty and sea tower – both now on dry land. Further out, Bastions San Juan, Lorenzo and Cachil Tulo’s remains can be seen, and in 2012 together with archaeologists from the Heritage Monuments Department, we were able to locate the scattered remains of Fort Nova (1606), on a low rise above the main fortress, a fort that had been lost for a hundred years.
Fort Kastella, Ternate, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
The other large fortress on Ternate is the Dutch Fort Orange, built in 1607 over an earlier Ternatean fort. Gradually enlarged over time, it evolved into an extensive four bastioned fortress mounting 90 guns and had a full wet moat. Today it stands some distance from the coast which used to lap its walls, and contains the local Tourist office as well as army barracks. Many quintessentially Dutch historic buildings grace the grounds, and three of the four 170m long rampart sections can still be walked. The two northern bastions are largely crumbled and their intervening curtain wall is missing. Dozens of cannon are scattered around the battlements. There are hopes that the army will vacate the internal buildings soon, and that the remaining structures can be refurbished.
Fort Orange, Ternate, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
In the 10km that separated the Dutch Fort Orange and the Spanish Kastella complexes, there were as many as four smaller ‘frontier’ star forts, however, now only two remain. The first, known today as Kota Janji was built by the Sultan between 1575 and 1606 to guard the access from the harbour at Talangame and the approach to Kastella. It was taken by the Spanish in 1606 and abandoned by them in 1663. Today, the island road has trimmed the two southern bastions, but the footprint of the fort and sections of an outer defence wall can still be clearly seen. Two recessed stone-lined structures, which may have formed the powder store and a well can also be seen. Views to the line of volcanos to the south are impressive from its elevation.
Fort Kota Janji, Ternate, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
The other ‘frontier’ fort that remains in this area is locally known as Fort Kalomatta, located east of Kota Janji on the waterfront at Kayu Merah. Built in 1642 by the Dutch, probably over an earlier work, this small but impressive star-shaped structure has great views towards Tidore 2.5km away. The walls and bastions have been refurbished, though the only internal structure to be found is a stone lined well. Some external landscaping has also been undertaken, making the grounds a pleasant escape from the bustle of nearby Ternate city.
Fort Kayu Merah, Ternate, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
The last fort on Ternate is the quaint Fort Tolukko, sited close to the islands airport. Spanish built in 1611, it was abandoned to the Dutch very soon after, and then provided by them to the Sultan who modified it as his royal residence. Its unusual phallic form is dictated by the small bluff on which it is located, and it is probably the best surviving example of local fortress design. During the 1990’s it was (not very authentically) refurbished, and the grounds landscaped. It is quite often visited, and, like all the Spice forts, can be inspected for a small fee. Views to Tidore and Halmahera are stunning from the battlements.
Fort Tolukko, Ternate, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
The forts on neighbouring Tidore have not fared as well as those of Ternate. The old battle-scarred Portuguese fort known as Reis Magos from 1578 appears to have been lost in the sprawl of Soa Siu city, on the east coast. Ruins of the two Spanish-built forts guarding northern Tidore, Rum, from 1618, and Chobo from 1648 are indistinct piles of rubble, destroyed by road construction and pillaged by locals. The ruins of waterfront Fort Marieco (pictured), Spanish-built in 1611, stormed by the Dutch in 1613, subsequently enlarged by them, and then abandoned to the Spanish in 1621, are also indistinct and hard to locate. With considerable difficulty, one can also find some scattered remains of Spanish-built Fort Tomarina, on a steep hill inland and to the south of Marieco.
Fort Marieco, Tidore, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
A short distance inland from Soa Siu, you can find Fort Torre. I have been unable to find any previous mention of this fort, which perhaps formed part of the old Spanish defences of Tidore’s main town. It is currently being refurbished, though what the new form is based on is anyone’s guess.
The last and best surviving fort on Tidore is Fort Tohula. Unlike the mysterious Fort Torre, we know a lot about Tohula. Commenced in 1610 and completed in 1615 it was the most powerful Spanish fort on Tidore, until being abandoned with the others in 1663. Sited atop a steep hill very close to the coast it was an intimidating and superbly positioned work. Today, after a brisk climb, you can wander the jumbled walls, vaulted powder stores, foundations of the inner buildings, two entry bastions and the sea-facing gun platform. The location of the land-facing entry gate, sited between the two high triangular-shaped bastions is clear to see. At their highest, these bastions soar up 12m from their base, with steep cliffs falling away from the southern of the two. Tohula’s remains have been stabilised rather than renovated, and this adds to the allure of the place. Views towards volcano studded Halmahera to the east and the towering bulk of Tidore’s 1750m volcano just 4000m to the west are spectacular. In all, it’s one of the very best Spice Islands forts to see; crumbled but tidy, evocative and impressive.
Fort Tohula, Tidore, Indonesia. Author and Copyright Simon Pratt
There are many other fort ruins scattered about the Moluccas, apart from those already mentioned. Fort Barneveldt at Labua on Bacan (Batjan) is fairly complete but unspectacular and difficult to get to. South of Tidore, ruins can be found of the old Dutch Fort Nassau on Motir, and of Fort Mauritius on Makian, but reaching these islands is not easy. Some scattered evidence also exists of old Iberian and Dutch forts and trading lodges on Halmahera itself, but access here is also difficult even for the intrepid explorer. And of course, there are many more crumbled relics of the Spice wars on other remote, forgotten, far-flung islands throughout the Moluccas, Ambon and the Banda’s, fighting without hope against time, neglect and monsoons; now sad and silent witnesses to a wide and brutal conflict when the spices from these isles opened up the world for the very first time.
– Manuel Lobato; Researcher at Instituto de Investigação Científica Tropical, Lisbon. “Identification of Portuguese & Spanish forts on Ternate & Tidore Islands” 2012
– Dr Florentino Rodao Garcia, University Complutense Madrid. “Restos de la Presencia Iberica en las Islas Molucas” 1989
– De Clercq, F.S.A. Ternate: The Residency & Its Sultanate. 1890
Written by Marco Ramerini. Photos by João Sarmento. English text revision by Dietrich Köster.
The Portuguese Fort of Qal’ at Arad, Bahrain.
The fort of Arad is located on the island of Muharraq – the northernmost island of the archipelago of Bahrain – the fort rises in front of the beach in a cove along the southern coast of the island. The fort is located about 1,5 km as the crow flies from the other fort on the island: the fort of Halat Bu Maher.
Qal’at Arad (16th century) is a beautifully restored Fort. It takes the shape of a square fort, and in each corner there is a control tower. The fort is surrounded by a fortification which is a trench fed with water through a well dug in the middle of the trench.
In the Portuguese maps of the 17th century the fort of Arad appears in its present form with a square plan with round towers at the sides. The entrance to the fort is characterized by a long staircase shaped bridge with two arches which served to overcome the moat surrounding the fort.
Fort Arad, Bahrain. Author and Copyright João Sarmento.
The fort of Halat Bu Maher (also know as Qal’at Abu Mahir) is located on Muharraq island – the northernmost island of the archipelago – and was strategically situated to control both the straits between Bahrain and Muharraq, and the bay between Muharraq Town and Arad Fort.
In 1630s. the Portuguese maps (“Livro das Plantas de todas as fortalezas, cidades e povoaçoens do Estado da Índia Oriental” da Biblioteca Pública e Arquivo Distrital de Évora de António Bocarro e Pedro Barreto de Resende) show a tower in the place where now is Fort of Halat Bu Maher (also know as Qal’at Abu Mahir).
Excavations in the fort were performed in 2010 by the Oxford Brookes Archaeology, whose results were published in 2011. These investigations have not led to the discovery of any architectural or artefactual remains could be associated with the Portuguese occupation. However, it is possible that the foundations remains of the Portuguese tower can be hidden within the large southwestern tower of the 19th century fort. The current fort dates back to the 19th century.
Written by Marco Ramerini. Photos by João Sarmento. English text revision by Dietrich Köster.
The Portuguese Fort of Qala’at al-Bahrain (Bahrain Fort), Bahrain.
Remains of Qal’ At Al-Bahrain (16th century) or Portuguese Fort. The fort consists of three huge strongholds and the remnants of two towers in the middle and full walls linking the three strongholds together. It is surrounded by a trench. It lies on the northern coast of the island on the westernmost point of an open gulf close to the city of Manama.
The islands of Bahrain were under Portuguese control from the middle of the 16th century. At that time the Portuguese – who had their main base in the fortress of Hormuz – dominated the trade in the Persian Gulf. The Portuguese control over the islands of Bahrain lasted until the early 17th century.
The fort was probably occupied by the Portuguese in 1559 under the command of D. Antao de Noronha. After the conquest the Portuguese enlarged and fortified the Arab fort who had occupied, it seems that to the design work of the fortifications have participated the Portuguese architect Inofre de Carvalho. A plant of the fortress of Bahrain is presented in the book “Livro das Plantas de todas as fortalezas, Cidades and povoaçoens do Estado da Índia Oriental” written by Pedro Barreto de Resende. The Portuguese were expelled from the islands of Bahrain in 1602 by the forces of Shah Abbas.
Fort Qal’at al-Bahrain, Bahrain. Author and Copyright João Sarmento,
The Portuguese Fort of Qala’at al-Bahrain (Bahrain Fort) is on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 2005. Inscription criteria: Qal’at al–Bahrain is a typical tell – an artificial mound created by many successive layers of human occupation. The strata of the 300×600-metre tell testify to continuous human presence from about 2300 B.C. to the 16th century A.D. About 25% of the site have been excavated revealing structures of different types: residential, public, commercial, religious and military. They testify to the importance of the site, a trading port, over the centuries. On the top of the 12m high mound there is the impressive Portuguese fort, which gave the whole site its name, qal’a, meaning fort. The site was the capital of the Dilmun, one of most important ancient civilizations of the region. It contains the richest remains inventoried of this civilization, which was hitherto only known from written Sumerian references.
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Qala’at al-Bahrain (Bahrain Fort), Bahrain
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BIBLIOGRAPHY:
– Monique Kervran, Fredrik Hiebert e Axelle Rougeulle “Qal’at Al-bahrain: A Trading and Military Outpost: 3rd Millenium B.cc.-17th Century A.d.”
Written by Chris Dunbar. All pictures are copyright by Chris Dunbar.
Maramuca, 2010:
The trip to Maramuca was via the town of Chegutu and then another 30 odd kilometres on an old strip road to the gold mining town of Chakari. From Chakari we had to travel on a dirt road which later turned into a dirt track.
The location of this site is on an old bend on the Suri Suri River, it is possible but not likely that this section of the river formed part of an ox bow during the years that the Portuguese settled this feira.
Once we were in the vicinity of the Suri Suri River gold panning by illegal miners became very evident, holes dug by the miners became an increasing worry for me as I did not want to over turn the Land Cruiser that I was driving.
We parked the vehicle and decided to walk to the site of Maramuca, the bush was extremely thick with grass and very wooded, which was strange as I would have thought that the miners would have removed the trees for fire wood.
At each active illegal gold mine I was offered gold dust, us$2.00 per point and a point was about one gram. A fantastic price but as it is illegal I would not purchase the gold dust.
We walked for close to five kilometres to locate the site in extremely hot temperatures. The amount of gold dust offered to me brought back the fact that the Portuguese traders at the feira must have has access to a considerable amount of gold.
The feira itself once found was in a very sorry state and the walls which were hardly visible in the 1960’s were completely gone, the illegal miners had completely destroyed the site. Without the use of a GPS I would have not found this site.
We know that a Portuguese trader Goncalvo Joao had secured the rights to trade in this area and that he probably built the walls and the feira. In the 1930’s an ivory statuette depicting Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception was found in the ancient gold workings, modern day Bay Horse Mine, it is I am told at the Bulawayo Museum.
I was able to collect some Blue on White Chinese Ceramic shards and number of arrow and spear heads all were collected, position located via the GPS and returned to the National Museums and Monuments inspector that accompanied me.
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Maramuca, 2012:
These pictures are taken about 300 metres south of where I found the porcelain in 2010. We still did not positively identify the site but can be sure of the ancient workings that Garlake mentioned “and a similar kopje 100 yards (91 m’s) to the north is pitted with shallow ancient workings.”
So I have attached two pictures one of these shallow ancient workings and one from these workings looking towards the feira site. The other is of an ant hill which we think is the ant hill that has consumed the brick buildings in the site, see the site plan which is also attached.
No positive identification, however. The damage from the gold panners is great but no pottery etc was found as positive identification.
Written by Marco Ramerini. Photos copyright by Chris Dunbar.
Great Zimbabwe was the capital of the Kingdom of Zimbabwe where was the royal palace and the seat of the political power. The city was surrounded by massive walls that reach 5 meters in height which were constructed without mortar.
The area where is Great Zimbabwe was occupied from the fourth century AD but the real city, whose ruins you can see today was built between 1.100 to 1.450 AD, in times of greatest glory, Great Zimbabwe, was to be inhabited by about 18,000 inhabitants and covers an area of 722 hectares.
Starting in 1300 due to the decline of trade and probably also for climate change that led to water shortages, the city was gradually abandoned, and fell into ruin. The first Europeans who visited the town were Portuguese merchants and soldiers in the early sixteenth century. In 1511 the site of Great Zimbabwe was visited by the Portuguese explorer António Fernandes.
Several Portuguese testimonials described the city, among them that of Vicente Pegado, captain of the fortress of Sofala, reported by João de Barros. This testimony shows the first description of the city as seen from the eyes of Europeans. The Portuguese who had settled at Sofala from the beginning of the 16th century frequented the area of Great Zimbabwe where were numerous gold mines.
Great Zimbabwe has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1986.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY:
– Various Authors, “A Guide to the Great Zimbabwe Ruins” National Museums, 1976.
– Bessire, Mark “Great Zimbabwe” Franklin Watts, 1999
– Garlake, Peter “Great Zimbabwe (New Aspects of Archaeology)” Stein & Day Pub, 1973.
– Garlake, P. S. ” Seventeenth century Portuguese earthworks in Rhodesia” In: “South African Arch. Bull.” n° 84, 1966, pp. 157-170
– Garlake, Peter “Great Zimbabwe Described and Explained” Zimbabwe Publishing House, Harare, 1985.
– Mallows, Wilfrid “Mystery of the Great Zimbabwe The Key to a Major Archaeological Enigma” Robert Hale Ltd, London, 1985.
– Newitt, M.D.D. “Portuguese settlement on the Zambese: Exploration, Land Tenure & Colonial Rule in East Africa” 434 pp. Maps, illus.& plates. Longmans, 1973, London, UK.
– Rea Francis, W. “The economics of the Zambezi missions, 1580-1759” 189 pp. Institutum Historicum S. I., 1976, Roma, Italia.
The following is a list of sites that were investigated by the Rhodesian / Zimbabwean Government, no suspected Portuguese sites have been restored (unfortunately) and no more have been added since the first cataloguing was done in the early 1970’s. A number of the historical trading centres and forts have still not been located and further investigation is required in this area. So as follows the site name and the Departments internal National Monuments identification.
PIRINGANI (The Lemon Forest)(Piringani: 16°59′ 48.63″S 30°11′ 27.97″E): Pirigani 1630 CC 5
MASSAPA: (Massapa covers about 4 square km’s and is centred at 16°48′ 08.35″S 31°39′ 01.80″E) Chesa Farm 1631 DC 34 Guzha Farm 1631 DC 38 Guzha Farm 1631 DC 39 Murewa farm 1631 DC 40 Chemapere 1631 DC 41 Bhasikiti 1631 DC 42 Kapfira 1631 DC 43 Mandishora Farm 1631 DC 46
ANGWA (ONGOE): Angwa Fort 3 1729 BB 1 Angwa Fort 1 1729 BB 2 Angwa Fort 4 1729 BB 3 Angwa Fort 5 1729 BB 4 Angwa Fort 2 1729 BB 5 Two Tree Hill Estate 1729 BB 19
Bocuto un-located suspected to be in the Umfurudzi Wilderness Area
Vumba this site has not been located
Matafuna suspected to be in the Shamva region
Matuka suspected to be in the Odzi region
Urupanda this site has not been located
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
– Various Authors “Documentos sobre os portugueses em Moçambique e na Africa central, 1497-1840. Documents on the Portuguese in Mozambique and Central Africa, 1497-1840” National Archives of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, Centro de Estudos Históricos Ultramarinos, 1962-(1989), Lisboa. Includes indexes. “The sources have been drawn from archives and libraries in Portugal, Italy, France and other countries … Published in the original with an English translation. Contents: v. 1. 1497-1506.–v. 2. 1507-1510.–v. 3. 1511-1514.–v. 4. 1515-1516.–v. 5. 1517-1518.–v. 6. 1519-1537.–v. 7. 1540-1560.–v. 8. 1561-1588.–v. 9. 1589-1615.
– Axelson, Eric “Portuguese settlement in the interior of South-East Africa in the seventeenth century” 17, [1] p. ; Sep. Actas Congresso Internacional História dos Descobrimentos, 5, 1961, Lisboa.
– Axelson, Eric “Portuguese in South-East Africa, 1488-1600” 276 pp. Struik, 1973, Cape Town, S.A.
– Axelson, Eric “Portuguese in South-East Africa, 1600-1700” x + 226 pp. Witwatersrand University Press, 1969, Johannesburg, S.A.
– Ferreira, A. Rita “African kingdoms and alien settlements in Central Mozambique (c. 15th-17th Cent.)” 172 pp. Departamento de antropologia, Universidade de Coimbra, 1999, Coimbra, Portugal.
– Garlake, P. S. ” Seventeenth century Portuguese earthworks in Rhodesia” In: “South African Arch. Bull.” n° 84, 1966, pp. 157-170
– Newitt, M.D.D. “Portuguese settlement on the Zambese: Exploration, Land Tenure & Colonial Rule in East Africa” 434 pp. Maps, illus.& plates. Longmans, 1973, London, UK.
– Newitt, Malyn D.D. “A History of Mozambique” 679 pp. maps Hurst and Company, 1995, London, UK.
– Newitt, M.D.D. “The Portuguese on the Zambesi from the Seventeenth to the Nineteenth Centuries” In: “An expanding world” vol. n° 25 “Settlement patterns in early modern colonization, 16th-18th centuries” pp. 279-300 Ashgate Variorum, 1998 In: Race IX, n° 4, pp. 477-498 Institute of Race Relations, 1968, London,
– Newitt, M.D.D. “The Portuguese on the Zambesi: an historical interpretation of the Prazo system” In: “An Expanding World” Vol. n° 4; Disney, A. “Historiorgraphy of Europeans in Africa and Asia 1450-1800” Ashgate Variorum, vol. n° 4, 1995; pp. 155-173 Also in: “Journal of African History” vol.10, n°1, 1969, Cambridge, pp. 67-85
– Rea Francis, W. “The economics of the Zambezi missions, 1580-1759” 189 pp. Institutum Historicum S. I., 1976, Roma, Italia.
– Strandes, J. “The Portuguese period in East Africa” xii, 325 pp., 5 plates, folding map, Edited by J. S. Kirkman, 1968, Nairobi, Kenya.
Written by Chris Dunbar. All pictures are copyright by Chris Dunbar.
Massapa was described in 1573 as being close to the wooded mountain Fura (Mt Darwin) had a Dominican Church dedicated to the Lady of the Rosary and was deserted in 1693 when the Rozvi went on the rampage that ended the Portuguese control on the whole Northern Zimbabwe plateau and is now simply the ploughed lands know as Baranda farm and Chesa farm 4.
The modern owners of these small communial farms were very helpful and assisted us with searching for the remains of the settlements. The owner of Baranda Farm confirmed that the well that his family still uses was there when his father arrived in the area and we know that prior to that it was an uninhabited land so the well could very well date back to the more fruitful times of Massapa.
Here a number of pictures, nothing really to see as the plough has leveled the forts over the many years but the hot, harsh environment is evident. Under these fields lay the remains of many great adventurers awaiting the time when their stories can be told in full.
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Here are some pictures of the “native” dry stone walled fort. This National Monument has been severly destroyed by illegal gold panners and a great lose to history.
This dry stone walled fort is our best guess as to where the Captain of the Gates resided. He would have been a Portuguese soldier and a man of great influence and would have been appointed to this position by the Viceroy in India. He would have had control over all Portuguese traders who traveled through this area. It has direct line of sight to Mount Fura (Mt Darwin) where the historical Monomotapa Gatsi Rusere is buried. This grave is now a shrine to many people in this area. I was allowed access but ran out of time to undertake the climb to this grave site.
Nyambo Kapararidze the new Paramount Chief killed Pereira’s ambassador Jeronimo de Barros on the 17th November 1628. The Captain of the Gates, who was at Zimbabwe at the time, having presumably escorted the ambassador there, defended himself until nightfall. He escaped in a heavy rainstorm in the darkness, and reached Massapa (the distance from this stone walled fort to Massapa, now Barranda Farm, was about thre km’s straight line). This incident either took place in the fort pictured or from the dry stone walled on Mt Fura itself.
Written by Chris Dunbar. All pictures are copyright by Chris Dunbar.
So to Piringani (Piringani: 16°59′ 48.63″S 30°11′ 27.97″E), in the north west of Zimbabwe, in the farm lands of Doma, I went. Rumour had it that there was a Lemon forest and that it was marked and known by the local farmers and the Department of National Monuments.
I could not find any rock / stone or mud ruins at this site but did find the lemon forest. The trees have self propagated from the original stock, which is believed to have been planted by the Portuguese Friars. The Lemons were planted to assist with the health and well being of the settlers at this settlement.
I am told by the locals along the Angwa River (which is about twenty Km’s from Piringani) that the forts at Angwa are down to the foundations and no walls are left standing, but that the Lemon Forests along the Angwa are very spectacular and hold many more trees then at the Piringani Site.
I was at the Angwa (Angoe) but was not able to get to the sites, the lemon forest at Piringani / Ditchwe site is a little south east of those forts.
At last a picture of Wild date Palms, germinated from seeds probably spat out by Portuguese explorers. GPS 17 2.001’s and 30 4.576’e this is located half way between the Piringani Lemon forst and the Angwa river forts.
Written by Chris Dunbar. All pictures are copyright by Chris Dunbar.
Ruanga, 2012:
Some pictures from Ruanga a settlement that was excavated in the 1960’s and it was found to have been inhabited in the 1500’s to the end of the 1650’s.
Native black africans, but what is interesting is that perhaps, according to Hugh Tracey assumption, Antonio Fernades visited this settlement in May/June of 1514. *1)
It is found in the Umfurudzi Park in Northern Zimbabwe, it has been very much overgrown but we hope one day that it will be cleaned up and preserved.
*1) In 1968 (Hugh Tracey “Antonio Fernades: Rhodesia’s first pioneer” pages 1-26 Rhodesiana n°19 December 1968) the historian Hugh Tracey tried to retrace on paper the routes or routes taken by Antonio Fernades (AF) when he penetrated into the now Zimbabwe Plateau.
We know that he made the two trips, the first trip can be dated pretty accurately as the Second Viceroy of India wrote to the King of Portugal from Goa on the 25th of October 1514 writing about the degredado who was sent to discover the lands of Monomutapa. It would have taken two months for a ship to have gone from Sofala to Goa, so news would have left Sofala perhaps late July 1514. Gasper Veloso the Sofala fort clerk, wrote down the Antonio Fernades account of this journey into the lands of the Monomutapa.
One part of the article discusses Antonio Fernades going to Embire, which is a fortress of the King of Monomutapa which “he is now making of stone without mortar” which is called Camanhaya. It is a journey of five days.
Hugh Tracey argues that this relates to: Antonio Fernades proceeded from Tafuna / Matafuna to the court of Embiri / Mbiri this village of Monomutapa was a fortress called Gamahaya (Kamangaia, or Kwa Manyaia) “which he is now building of stone without mortar”. We know of a few stone fortresses in the district. Fura or Mt Darwin is only two or three days journey from the Mazowe River to Tafuna / Matafuna. On Tungagore between the Mutua and Ruiana Streams is a fortress this is about five days from Tafuna / Matafuna but is fifteen miles east of where the site of Monomutapa’s kraal was believed to be.
Tracey goes on to state “should there prove to be a stone fortress upon the hill Runga (his spelling) it would entirely agree with Antonio Fernades’s five day journey from the Mazowe and place the site of Monomutapa with some accuracy.
The ruins were found on Ruanga (what the locals call it now) and excavated by Garlake, habitation found from the early 1500’s to the mid 1600’s. The other loopholed forts in the area and one is close by are from the refuge period and dated to the late 1600’s. The visit of Antonio Fernades would be dated to about May / June 1514 due to the approximate time it took Antonio Fernades to get back to Sofala and for the ship to leave in July for Goa.
The distance from Tafuna Hill 17 .21.442’S and 31 .30.905’E and Ruanga Ruins 17 .1.307’S and 31 .45.579’E is about 47km’s.
