English
Saint Jeronimo's Fort
Daman [Damão/Damaun], Guzerate, India
Military Architecture
Saint Jeronimo’s Fort is located on the north bank of the Damanganga River opposite the walls of Daman. It is an exemplary work of military architecture, and remains well preserved. The initiative to build a fortification in Nani Daman seems associated to the Mughal army’s invasion in 1611, in retaliation for the capture of a Mecca ship in Surat by Luís de Brito e Mello. Although the Daman stronghold was able to resist, the surrounding territory was ravaged by the invading forces. The settlement of Nani Daman grew in importance and began to concentrate most of the trade and population at the mouth of the Damanganga. One of the main backers of the Saint Jeronimo’s project was the rector of Daman’s Jesuit college, António Albertino; the Jesuits were administrators of the fortification works in Daman and several other sites in the Província do Norte. The fort’s plan is nevertheless attributed to the chief engineer of the Estado da Índia, Júlio Simão. The work began in 1615 during the rule of Viceroy Jerónimo de Azevedo, and was largely completed in 1627. The fortification presents an erudite design in line with the latest treatises. The structure was conceived as a sort of autonomous hornwork of the Daman stronghold, with its three bastions facing north, northeast and east, i.e., towards the land and not the city – flanks where the wall is weak and narrow. This did not only prevent it from being used against the city, it was also easy to make it unusable if taken by the enemy. The three bastions have a pronounced triangular profile and features enabling them to function autonomously as the very last bastions of resistance. Each bastion had a moat. Inside the fort were various buildings used as barracks and munitions stores. The south-facing main gate of the fortification deserves special attention. Besides extensive reports about the structure’s foundation, it presents two surprising decorative motifs flanking the opening – two giants, each holding a millstone and a parchment. The written message in the parchments reads as follows: “Whosoever wants to enter must pay with this millstone – for I and my companion we stand watch for no money”. This message perhaps refers to the supposed or desired incorruptibility of the fort’s defenders, at a time when bribery was common among the various military forces on the Indian subcontinent. Above the archway is a niche with the image of Saint Jeronimo crowned by the Portuguese coat-of-arms and a cross. The Church of Our Lady of the Sea inside the fort precinct was built in 1774, according to an inscription that existed on the main door. It is situated close to the bastion of Saint Francis Xavier and probably on the site of an earlier chapel which already existed in 1730. The church’s main façade was redone in 1899. The chancel’s existing retable pertained to the Augustinian convent’s Chapel of Saint Rita of Cássia.