Fortress of São Mateus da Calheta

Fortress of São Mateus da Calheta (Forte Grande de São Mateus da Calheta)
Great Fort of São Mateus
Fort (Forte)
The main profile of the Great Fort of São Mateus da Calheta, showing many of the emplacements and deteriorated walls
Named for: São Mateus da Calheta
Country	Portugal
Region	Azores
Group	Central
Island	Terceira
Municipality	Angra do Heroísmo
Location	São Mateus da Calheta
- coordinates	38°39′24.30″N 27°15′57.69″W / 38.6567500°N 27.2660250°W / 38.6567500; -27.2660250Coordinates: 38°39′24.30″N 27°15′57.69″W / 38.6567500°N 27.2660250°W / 38.6567500; -27.2660250
Architects	Tommaso Benedetto de Pesaro
Style	Medieval
Materials	Basalt, Wood, Tile
Origin	16th century
- Initiated	c. 1581
Owner	Portuguese Republic
For public	Public
Easiest access	Prainha de São Mateus, Caminho da Vila Maria
Management	Direcção Regional da Cultura
Operator	Junta de Freguesia de São Mateus da Calheta; Centro de Estudos do Mar e Núcleo Museológico do Mar; headquarters of the folklore group Modas da Nossa Terra
Status	Unclassified
Location of the fort within the municipality of Angra do Heroísmo

Fortress of São Mateus da Calheta (Portuguese: Forte Grande de São Mateus da Calheta) is a fort in the civil parish of São Mateus da Calheta, in the municipality of Angra do Heroísmo, island of Terceira, in the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores.

Construction of the fort of São Mateus began in 1581, after the Portuguese succession crisis of 1580, under the determination of the Corregidor of the Azores, Ciprião de Figueiredo e Vasconcelos. This fort was part of a larger plan for the defense of the island drawn out by engineer Tommaso Benedetto de Pesaro, in 1567, after an attack by the French corsair Pierre Bertrand de Montluc in Funchal (October 1566), and attempt/failure by pirates to seize Angra in the same year.

It was in the shadow of the fort, that the carracks from Indian trade routes would appear, making landfall for the first time.

With the installation of the Captaincy General of the Azores, its state was described in the following terms (1767):

It was referred to as Forte da Praya de S. Matheus, in the report Revista aos fortes que defendem a costa da ilha Terceira, by adjutant Manoel Correa Branco (1776), who indicated, ...it is the best on the coast. This fort was rebuilt, and does not require reconstruction.

In 1767, in his Revista dos Fortes (Review of Forts), engineer/sergeant major João António Júdice, conducted a review and expansion under orders from the Captain-General of the Azores; in his plans he referred to the fort as the largest located to the west of the city of Angra. At that time, the fort was protected by between six and eight artillery pieces and 32 auxiliaries; it had six canons, equipped with pieces in steel, all in good condition. He concluded that the fort's artillery should be reinforced with two cannons and their respective equipment.

By the beginning of the 19th century, José Rodrigo de Almeida, developed a plan that included six cannons, each three in directed to the sea.