Peapix

  • Bing Gallery
  • Extension
Peapix
Bing Gallery
Extension
  • United Kingdom
    All
    Australia Canada China Germany France India Japan Spain United Kingdom United States Italy Brazil

Bing Gallery

Australia Canada China Germany France India Japan Spain United Kingdom United States Italy Brazil
  1. Bing Gallery
  2. United Kingdom
  3. 2021
  4. June 09
  5. Nossa Senhora da Graça Fort near Elvas, Portugal
arrow_back_ios arrow_forward_ios Nossa Senhora da Graça Fort near Elvas, Portugal

June 09, 2021

Nossa Senhora da Graça Fort near Elvas, Portugal

© Luis Pina Photography/Shutterstoc

A fort takes a star turn

Perched on a hillside high above the hot, dry plains of eastern Portugal, the Nossa Senhora da Graça Fort has been called a masterpiece of 18th-century military architecture. The thick walls surrounding it are shaped in a star pattern, with pentagonal bastions jutting out from the curtain wall at the corners. We're looking at one of those bastions in the centre of our image.

A stone's throw from the Spanish border, the Nossa Senhora da Graça Fort was built to defend the garrison border town of Elvas. It's a region shaped by war. The Spanish laid siege to the area during the Portuguese Restoration War (1640-1668), but after the Nossa Senhora da Graça Fort was built a century later, the town was never defeated. With its 144 cannons, the fort resisted an attack by another wave of Spanish forces during the 1801 War of the Oranges and, 10 years later, drove back an invading French army during the Peninsular War.

Eventually the fort became a political prison, which it remained until 1974 when it was abandoned and fell into ruin. But it was restored after 2012, when Unesco recognised the entire historical centre of Elvas - including the Nossa Senhora da Graça Fort and the 16th-century Amoreira Aqueduct - as a World Heritage Site.

grass sky outdoor city cloud landscape building house castle railroad stone

Related Images

Venice Beach Skatepark at sunset, Los Angeles, CaliforniaVenice Beach Skatepark at sunset, Los Angeles, California
Castell y Gwynt, Glyder Fach, Snowdonia National Park, North Wales, UKCastell y Gwynt, Glyder Fach, Snowdonia National Park, North Wales, UK
Roman-inspired aqueduct, Arkadia Park, PolandRoman-inspired aqueduct, Arkadia Park, Poland
Splügen Pass, Graubunden, SwitzerlandSplügen Pass, Graubunden, Switzerland
Milky Way over Southwest Alentejo and Vicentine Coast Natural Park, PortugalMilky Way over Southwest Alentejo and Vicentine Coast Natural Park, Portugal
A beer tent at Oktoberfest in Theresienwiese, Munich, GermanyA beer tent at Oktoberfest in Theresienwiese, Munich, Germany
Przewalski's horses, Hustai National Park, MongoliaPrzewalski's horses, Hustai National Park, Mongolia
Temples on Hemakuta Hill, Hampi, Karnataka, IndiaTemples on Hemakuta Hill, Hampi, Karnataka, India

Today on Bing

Hot air balloons in Cappadocia, Türkiye

Hot air balloons in Cappadocia, Türkiye

Jun 09, 2023
Sweetheart Abbey, Dumfries and Galloway

Sweetheart Abbey, Dumfries and Galloway

Jun 09, 2022
Sunrise at the chalk pinnacles of Old Harry Rocks, near Studland, Dorset

Sunrise at the chalk pinnacles of Old Harry Rocks, near Studland, Dorset

Jun 09, 2020
Crown Fountain, by Catalan artist Jaume Plensa, in Millennium Park, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Crown Fountain, by Catalan artist Jaume Plensa, in Millennium Park, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Jun 09, 2019
Yarn bombing in the village of Gurnard on the Isle of Wight

Yarn bombing in the village of Gurnard on the Isle of Wight

Jun 09, 2018
Mountaineers on the Balmhorn in the Bernese Alps of Switzerland

Mountaineers on the Balmhorn in the Bernese Alps of Switzerland

Jun 09, 2017

Related Tags

sky outdoor landscape cloud nature tree mountain grass beach park rock water lake lush palm tree ground arecales empty palm road
Share photo
Share
Pin
Tweet
Line
Download 4K Ultra HD
Download 1920x1080
  • © 2023 Peapix.com
  • API
  • App
  • Privacy
The images are provided for wallpaper use only.