Fort of Leça de Palmeira

Fort of Leça da Palmeira (Forte de Leça da Palmeira)
Castle of Matosinhos, Fort of Our Lady of the Snows
Fortification (Forte)
The tiered battlements of the Forte de Leça de Palmeira
Official name: Nossa Senhora das Neves da Barra de Leça
Named for: Leça da Palmeira
Country	Portugal
Region	Norte
Subregion	Greater Porto
District	Porto
Municipality	Matosinhos
Location	Leça da Palmeira
- elevation	20 m (66 ft)
- coordinates	41°11′15.40″N 8°42′8.19″W / 41.1876111°N 8.7022750°W / 41.1876111; -8.7022750Coordinates: 41°11′15.40″N 8°42′8.19″W / 41.1876111°N 8.7022750°W / 41.1876111; -8.7022750
Length	41.54 m (136 ft), Southwest-Northeast
Width	50.89 m (167 ft), Northwest-Southeast
Landscaping	Ilídio de Araújo
Style	Baroque
Materials	Granite, Masonry, Wood, Tile
Origin	c. 1638
- Initiated	fl. 1638
- Completion	1720
Owner	Portuguese Republic
For public	Public
Easiest access	Avenida Dr. Antunes Guimarães, Rampa do Castelo, Rua de Santa Catarina
Management	Instituto Gestão do Patrimonio Arquitectónico e Arqueológico
Operator	Captaincy of the Port of Leixões; Ministério da Defesa Nacional/Marinha
Status	Property of Public Interest
Listing	Decree 44/075; DG281, 5 December 1961

The Fort of Leça da Palmeira (Portuguese: Forte de Leça da Palmeira), or alternately the Castle of Matosinhos (Portuguese: Castelo de Matosinhos) is a 17th-century fort located in civil parish of Leça da Palmeira, municipality of Matosinhos in the Greater Porto region of Portugal.

The fort was begun in 1638 in the area known as Santa Catarina by João Sá e Meneses, then Count of Penaguião, which they initially designated as the Forte de Nossa Senhora das Neves da Barra de Leça (Fort of Our Layd of the Snows of the Leça Sandbar). The objective of this fortification was to reinforce the sandbar of the mouth of the Douro, in conjunction with the Fort of São Francisco Xavier do Queijo, and the Fort of São João da Foz.

With the beginning of the Portuguese Restoration War in 1640, the conclusion of the project took on a greater importance. But, by 1642, the fort was not yet completed, such that officials of the municipal council of Porto petitioned King John IV to force the quick conclusion of the public works. The construction only continued in 1646, and two years later the first garrison of six soldiers was instituted by royal order. But, the establishment of the garrison did not mean the construction was concluded. In 1655, a new petition was sent to the King, yet the construction would drag onto the next century.

In 1701, the fort, still uncompleted, was home for a larger group of soldiers, artillery emplacements and four cannons. It was only in 1720 that the fort was finally completed.

During the Liberal Wars, around 1832, the fort had suffered some damage, and reconstruction were completed in the warehouses, the drawbridge, internal staircase and the parapets. A few years later, the fort lost its military function, with the removal of the garrison, and in 1844 the main square became the location of the customs house of Porto.