Fort of Monserrate, Military fortification in Salvador, Brazil

The Fort of Monserrate is a military fortification on the Itapagipe Peninsula in Salvador, built in an irregular polygon layout with four round turrets capped by domed roofs. The outer walls face the sea on multiple sides, enclosing an interior courtyard sheltered by the surrounding stone structure.

The fort was built between 1583 and 1587 under Governor Manoel Teles Barreto, when it was called Fort of Saint Philip. Reforms carried out in the 18th century changed the layout, reducing the number of turrets from six to four and giving the structure its current form.

The fort's name comes from the Church and Monastery of Our Lady of Monserrate, one of Brazil's oldest church structures, situated directly below it. The site is also linked to the Dutch general Johan van Dorth, killed there on 17 July 1624 during the Dutch occupation of Salvador; a commemorative plaque to the left of the Arms Gate records the event.

The fort stands above the Church and Monastery of Our Lady of Monserrate on the Itapagipe Peninsula, at the end of Rua da Boa Viagem in Salvador. It is open to the public and may be visited; the site is administered by the Brazilian Army's 6th Military Region. Visitors enter through the old gate area, where the drawbridge once linked the ramp to the terrace.

The fort was originally named after King Philip II of Spain, because Brazil at that time was under Spanish rule following the Iberian Union of 1580. The name Monserrate came later, once Portuguese control was restored and the nearby sanctuary grew in local importance.