Maputo Fortress, Portuguese fort in Maputo, Mozambique

Maputo Fortress is a military stronghold positioned on the bay with thick stone walls, bastions, and watchtowers that command views over the water and city. The compound includes museum spaces displaying military artifacts and architectural details that reflect different periods of construction and use.

The first fort on the site was a pentagonal wooden trading post built by Dutchmen from Cape Town in 1721 under Klaas Nieuhof; malaria killed about half of the 113 men, and English pirates under George Taylor destroyed it in 1722. Austrian forces under William Bolts raised the Forte São José in 1777, and a Portuguese expedition from Goa under Joaquim Godinho de Mira dislodged them in March 1781. A Portuguese presídio under Joaquim de Araújo began the present fort in faxina and earth in 1782, dedicated to Nossa Senhora da Conceição; it repelled an attack by Tembe warriors in 1785 and was rebuilt in stone by Captain António José Teixeira Tigre, as an inscription of 1791 records.

The fort's courtyard holds the equestrian statue of Mouzinho de Albuquerque, moved here from in front of Lourenço Marques' municipal council building before independence. The remains of Gungunhana, the Gaza ruler deported to the Azores, were transferred from Terceira Island in 1985 and lie here. Nearby stands the Casa Amarela, now the National Currency Museum.

The fortress stands at Praça 25 de Junho beside the fishing port, a short walk from the Baixa. Entry is through the single gate onto the square courtyard, where the rooms open off the sides. The courtyard is open to the sky, so bring sun protection and water for the midday heat.

The remains of Gungunhana, the last emperor of Gaza, were moved here from Terceira Island in the Azores in 1985, not 1983. His tomb lies inside the fort, and the equestrian statue of Mouzinho de Albuquerque, who captured him in 1895, stands in the same courtyard.