The São Sebastião Fortress at Mozambique Island a Testimony of the Variety in Sixteenth Century Military Architecture

The São Sebastião fortress at Mozambique Island A testimony of the variety in sixteenth century military architecture Daan Lavies Utrecht 2012 Supervisor: prof. dr. K.A. Ottenheym Master thesis History of Architecture & the Preservation of Monuments University of Utrecht P.D. Lavies Student number: 3017613 Contact: [email protected] Master program: History of Architecture & the Preservation of Monuments Faculty of Humanities University of Utrecht Utrecht, July 2012 v.1.2 Contents Preface …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 1 Introduction ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 3 Chapter 1: Historical context of Mozambique Island and the São Sebastião fortress ………….... 5 1.1 The arrival of the Portuguese on the East African coast ………………………………………………………………… 5 1.2 The position of Mozambique Island in the Estado da Índia ……………………………………………………………… 7 1.3 The rise of Portuguese military architecture on Mozambique Island …………………………………………….. 9 Chapter 2: Renaissance innovations in military architecture …………………………………………………… 13 2.1 The development of the bastion system …………………………………………………………………………………………. 13 2.2 Renaissance military treatises …………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 16 2.3 The spread of the system ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 22 2.4 Conclusion …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 24 Chapter 3: The São Sebastião fortress today …………………………………………………………………………. 25 3.1 The current structure ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 25 3.2 Restorations ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 30 3.3 Additional fortifications …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 32 Chapter 4: Phases of construction and modifications of the fortress …………………………………….. 35 4.1 The earliest descriptions and maps of the São Sebastião fortress ………………………………………………….. 37 4.2 The consequences of the Dutch attacks on Mozambique Island ………………………………………………….. 40 4.3 The initial outline of the São Sebastião fortress drawn by Erédia ………………………………………………….. 40 4.4 A visualisation of alterations in Erédia’s second map of Mozambique Island ………………………………….. 44 4.5 The records on renovation from the Livro das plantas de tôdas as fortalezas ……………………………….. 47 4.6 The atlas of Leonard Ferrari ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 51 4.7 The final alterations as depicted on two anonymous maps kept in Maputo ………………………………….. 54 4.8 Conclusion …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 58 Chapter 5: Interpretation of the São Sebastião architecture …………………………………………………… 61 5.1 The initial layout evaluated as an exponent of renaissance military architecture ………………………….. 61 5.2 The geographical and strategic anticipations in the initial fortification design ……………………………….. 66 5.3 The logic behind the modification plans made in the sixteenth and seventeenth century ………………. 68 5.4 A comparison between the bastioned fortification of Mazagão and Mozambique ………………………….. 79 5.5 The appearance of the ‘hybrid’ defence system in sixteenth century fortification theories ……………. 82 5.6 Conclusion …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 93 Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 95 Appendix I: The architect of the São Sebastião fortress …………………………………………………………………………………………. 99 Appendix II: The history of secondary fortifications of Santo António and São Lourenço ……………………………………….. 101 Glossary ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 105 Bibliography …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 109 Illustration sources ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 117 Preface Most people reacted surprised when I told them that a Portuguese fortress in Mozambique formed the focus of my Master thesis. Although the subject combines my passion for architecture with my love for Africa, the topic might indeed not have seemed to be the most obvious choice. If it was not for the internship that the Netherlands embassy at Maputo had offered me, this study would not have existed. In the spring of 2010 I was invited to come to Mozambique to write a report on the Dutch presence in the region during the seventeenth and eighteenth century. As will be mentioned in this thesis, also the São Sebastião fortress played a role in this history. Having seen the fortress on Ilha de Moçambique I wanted to know more about it. Why was it built here? Which parts have been built when? And above all, what logic lies behind the design? Although the entire island has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1991, the amount of studies that touched upon these questions proved to be very limited. Especially reliable non-Portuguese literature on the subject is scarce. Through this study hopefully more experts in the field of military architecture will become familiar with this fortification. This might help getting a more complete insight into the variety in renaissance military architectural theories. Furthermore, I hope that people who already know this fortress in Mozambique, will have gained a better understanding of the structure after reading this study. I would like to thank all the people who have made this study possible and who gave me advice and support during the process. In Mozambique I have experienced a very warm welcome from the staff of the Netherlands Embassy. Furthermore, I would like to thank the architects José Forjaz and Francisco Monteiro for inviting me to their offices and for the information they shared with me. Also the cooperation from the museum of Mozambique Island is very much appreciated. Back in the Netherlands Edwin Paar helped me with the interpretation of the Portuguese texts which have been essential for this research. My supervisor prof. dr. Koen Ottenheym I would like to thank for the enthusiasm with which he gave his lectures in the past years and his advice during this study. Last but not least I would like to thank my family and my girlfriend for their patience and their tremendous support. The writing of this thesis has taken more time than I could have ever imagined. Although I planned to invest some extra time in this study, I did not foresee that a traffic accident in April 2011 resulted in the fact that that during the following year no progress was made. With the completion of this thesis an end has come to my live as a student, although I hope to keep learning a lot in the future! Daan Lavies Utrecht, July 2012 1 2 Introduction At the end of the fifteenth century Portuguese voyages had reached out to all continents of the earth. Contemporaneously, within Europe, fortification architecture was in a phase of intensive development. These two very different evolvements eventually resulted in the establishment of European fortifications along many far away shores, following new insights in the field of military engineering. The most prominent invention of renaissance military architecture has undoubtedly been the angle bastion. As historian John Hale has noted: ‘the application of the angle bastion to forts and town walls led to a homogeneity of style wherever the Europeans settled overseas.’ ‘The international style par excellance of the renaissance was that of military architecture.’ 1 Indeed, such defences can be found in places as far apart as Malacca, Recife, Cape Town and Havana. The image of a homogeneous style which has been universally applied could, however, lead to oversimplification. As will be discussed within this research, this has led to studies in which absolute consensus on the principals of renaissance military architecture has been implied. Such an outlook makes it difficult to explain fortification forms which do not comply with what is considered to be the standard. The assumption made in this study is that more variation has existed within renaissance military theories, than is commonly acknowledged. This hypothesis will be tested in a case study. This research focuses on a fort where aspects of its design are not built in agreement with the principals of renaissance military architecture as these are defined in most modern day literature. Because of the unusual shape of its outline, the São Sebastião fortress at Mozambique Island forms an interesting example. Within this case study the main aim is to gain a better understanding of this fortification. It will be tried to determine what approach to military architecture has led to its initial design and the applied modifications. Before this question can be answered, the different construction phases and the logic behind this will have to become clear. From there on, it can be investigated in what theories this design is embedded and where these ideas originate from. By critically analysing this extraordinary fortification, it is hoped that insights are gained which are also more generally applicable. The focus of this study will be on fortification outlines and the logic behind these forms. The structure of this thesis is as follows. The first chapter will provide an historical context of the São Sebastião fort. Here the role Mozambique Island played in the Portuguese sphere of influence is briefly discussed. Furthermore, defence architecture built on the island before the São Sebastião fortress was built will be mentioned. The second chapter describes the improvements of military architecture during the renaissance. Mostly based on modern literature, the development and spread of the new bastioned defence system will be discussed here. In chapter three the São Sebastião fort in its current state will be described as a starting

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