Forte São João Baptista das Berlangas, or simply known as the Fort of the Berlangas, is located on the west coast of Portugal situated on the largest island of the Berlengas Archipelago

Berlengas

The Berlengas archipelago is a group of small islands 10 to 15 kilometers off the Portuguese coast, west of the town of Peniche.-History:Human occupation on Berlenga Grande dates back to antiquity: the islands are referred to in Ptolemy's Geography as Λονδοβρίς...

, Berlenga Grande Island

Berlenga Grande Island

Berlenga Grande is the largest of the islands of the Berlengas Archipelago. The archipelago includes Berlenga Grande, Estela and Farinhoes islands. The Berlengas are located off cape of Peniche, to the west of the city of Peniche , in western Portugal, Leiria district. The main isle of Berlenga has...

. The forte belongs to a group of defensive military structures meant to protect the city of Peniche, Portugal

Portugal

Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

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History

The Fort was constructed from the ruins of an existing monastery, Mosteiro da Misericórdia da Berlenga, which had been previously abandoned. Hieronymite monks, in the early 1500's, decided that the Berlangas Islands were well situated to provide aid of sea bearing folk in need of shelter. The islands isolation also provided ideal conditions for the monks to live in austerity through solitude and silence, assiduous prayer and healthy penance. The monks soon became the victims of frequent attack at the hands of Algerian, Moroccan, English, and French pirates. Violent weather often cut off communication to the mainland, which was especially distressing during pirate incursions, as result, the Monastery was abandoned.

During the Portuguese Restoration War

Portuguese Restoration War

Portuguese Restoration War was the name given by nineteenth-century 'romantic' historians to the war between Portugal and Spain that began with the Portuguese revolution of 1640 and ended with the Treaty of Lisbon . The revolution of 1640 ended the sixty-year period of dual monarchy in Portugal...

, in the reign of King John IV

John IV of Portugal

|-|John IV was the King of Portugal and the Algarves from 1640 to his death. He was the grandson of Catherine, Duchess of Braganza, who had in 1580 claimed the Portuguese crown and sparked the struggle for the throne of Portugal. John was nicknamed John the Restorer...

, the Counsel of War determined that better coastal defenses were needed, and had ordered the demolition of the monastery ruins to build the fort.