Visiting the National Museum of Military History.

Описание: The fort of Saint Michael, also called in Portuguese as Fortaleza de São Miguel, is one of the most symbolic cultural heritage of Angola.
The fort is located on a hill top called Morro da Fortaleza, right in the heart of Luanda city.

The fortress was built as a defense structure during the Portugueses occupation, by the grandson of a Portugueses explorer – Bartolomeu Dias, who had arrived in Angola on the 11th of February in 1575. He was Paulo Dias de Novais, and he was the first Captain-Governor of the Portuguese colony - Angola.

One year later, on the 25th January of 1576, he founded Luanda as São Paulo da Assunção de Luanda, and in the same year, he order the construction of the fort and named it Saint Paul Fort, which in Portuguese stands for Fortaleza de São Paulo.

The Fort different Names:
During the colonial rule, the fort had changed names three times.
1. In 1576 – 1641 it was called Fort of Saint Paul
2. From 24 of August 1641 – 15 of August 1648, under the dutch invasion, it was renamed Fort Aadenburg.
3. In 1648, the governor Salvador Correia de Sá e Benevides, reconquered Angola from the Dutch, and renamed the fortress after his favorite Saint of devotion – Saint Michael, in Portugueses stands for Fortaleza de São Miguel. Until present day the name hasn’t changed.

Since the Fort was named after two catholic Saints, I think that’s the reason there is a chapel inside the fort, which is very cute.

The constructions fases of the fort:
During the 18th century to 20th century, the fort underwent several constructions and rehabilitation work.

1. The fort was initially built in clay in 1576
2. From 1638 – 1689, under the order of João Lencastre, the material was replaced to taipa and adobe.
3. In 1705, the Portugueses started building in masonry and the walls were consolidated in stones.
4. In 1846 – the engineer Francisco Xavier Lopes, who was commissioned by the governor Pedro Alexandrinho, to inspect the fortress, had found several defects, that could compromise the defense in the event of a combat.
5. In 1881 – adaptation work were carried out again, and a two more floors where built, including a bunker.

The background history of the museum:

1. In 1938 – the fort was classified as a National Monument.
2. 1939 – it was renamed Museum of Angola until 1958.
3. In 1961 – the museum collection were completely removed and the fortress resumed its military functions again, and the Portuguese military force command was based.
4. 1978 – three years after Angola independence, it became Museum of Armed Forces.
5. In 1998 – reconstruction work were carried out again, and an underground space of 1.200 sqm was built and its where the recent history of Angola fight for independence is kept.
6. On the 4th of April of 2013, Angola was celebrating its 11th anniversary of National Peace Day, and the National Museum of Military History was inaugurated in the fortress of Saint Michael.

The founder of Luanda and the man responsible to erect this magnificent structure, Paulo Dias de Novais died on the 9th of May of 1589, and he was buried at Massangano church, in a small village in the province of Cuanza Norte, the village the he also founded in 1583 as Lady of Victory of Massangano, and its where the Fort of Massangano was erected by his orders.
In 1609 his ashes were transferred to the Jesuit church in Luanda, by the order of the Governor Bento Banha Cardoso.
It was in Massangano that the Portuguese forces resisted the Dutch forces and regained control of Angola in 1648, by the the command of Governor Salvador Correia de Sá and Benevides.


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