Moinhos Castle, Azores, Portugal

Moinhos Castle or Castle of St. Kitts, also referred to as Fort of St. Louis is a castle in Angra, Terceira Island in Azores. "Moinhos" means "Mills" in Portuguese, testimony to the mill that gave it its common name.

History

The first fort in the archipelago was built between the 1460s and 1470s, by the founder of Angra, Álvaro Martins Homem. It would constitute a fortification of modest proportions, the current top of the memorial, in a dominant position on the valley, a river port and the town, still following the late-medieval conceptions castrenses: rather high, inside the earth, away the in March. The slope of that elevation, has run an artificial river for, with the power of its waters, move the wheels of mills that did erect in its place, and that was the sole operator. This fact has made it the place popularly known as Moinhos Castle meaning "Mills" castle.

Although expected to receive the donation of these areas in 1474 he was donated to Captaincy Beach. The first master of the donee of Captaincy of Angra, João Vaz Corte-Real found no reason to continue the work defensively.

Years later, the island was attacked by Spanish sailors which initially landed in Angra and then on the beach. For this reason, in 1482, the Infante D. Beatrix, who ruled the islands on behalf of the donee, his son D. Diogo, in a letter to Human Rights Alvaro Martins, warned that Spanish vessels began to haunt the seas of the Azores, sending the island Pedro Anes Rebelo, as a provider of fortifications, to guide you as captain of the donee's Beach In amuralhamento of his village. Anes Rebelo came to wed on the island, a niece of the wife of John Vaz Corte-Real, captain of the donee of Angra, having completed the construction of the Castle of St. Kitts in 1493, that it was the first governor.

In 1495, the Alcaidaria-mor of the castle was given to the donee's own master of Angra, who have lived for a while, then putting him person of respect, with salary and title of Lieutenant, and with it the obligation to live. The annexation of Alcaidaria-mor of the castle to the captaincy, could explain the name of St. Kitts, where the construction of Castle of St. Philip of Mount Brazil, being captain of the donee Spanish marquis Christopher de Moura.

In the context of Restoration of Independence from Portugal, the artillery of the Castle of St. Sebastian shot with success the Castle of St. Philip, surrounded by the forces terceirenses. Lost its strategic role, its dependencies were used as the Gunpowder House of Angra, that there was transferred to the Old Square, for security reasons.

The property was donated to the City of Angra in 1839 to give rise to a promenade. Thus, in May 20 of 1844, work began on the demolition of the old walls, for the construction of amemorial in memory of D. Pedro IV, whose foundation stone was settled in March 3 of 1845, reportedly the same rock in which the monarch first stepped on equal days and months in 1832, the land on the platform of Angra.

(c) Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moinhos_Castle