- Type
- Fortress
- Origins
- 1515 · 16th century per Wikidata: founding, first mention or construction
- Style
- Manueline
- Architect
- Francisco de Arruda
- Heritage
- part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site (an old town or a valley, for example)
- Visiting
- probably – Wikidata lists it as a museum or gives tickets, opening hours or visitor numbers; check before you go
- Coordinates
- 38.6914°, -9.2158°
History
The tower was built for King Manuel I between 1514 and 1519 to a design by Francisco de Arruda, as part of the defences guarding the entrance to the port of Lisbon. At the time it stood on a rock in the river, close to the place from which expeditions set sail for India. The shoreline of the Tagus has since shifted, and today the tower stands almost on the waterfront. Over the centuries it served as a prison, a customs post and a signal station. In 1983 it was inscribed on the UNESCO list together with the nearby Jerónimos Monastery as a monument to Portugal's golden age.
What to see
The bastion at its base contains casemates with gun ports and the old dungeons where prisoners were held. Above are the King's Room, the Audience Room and a chapel, and a narrow spiral staircase climbs to a terrace overlooking the Tagus, the 25 April Bridge and the Monument to the Discoveries. The façades are decorated with Manueline motifs: ropes, armillary spheres, crosses of the Order of Christ and minaret-like watchtowers.
Wikipedia article Official website Wikidata Q215003
Popularity: articles about this site in 57 Wikimedia projects (Wikipedia language editions and others).