Sinquerim Fort

Overlooking a beautiful beach is the Sinquerim Fort. It is located in a hill area. It was built in the 16th century and its purpose was to help guard Goa against invaders like the Dutch and the Marathas. It was a reference point for European vessels.

Even today the fort is in relatively good condition and has different sections and fortified walls. The lower portion of the fort was a dock for Portuguese ships. The Portuguese abandoned it in the 19th century. 

The Fort divides the shore into two. It is an extension of the Aguada Fort. It’s a great place to watch sunsets, go for a leisurely stroll, feel the cool gentle breeze and watch the waves splashing about.

The Sinquerim Fort is located at a distance of 18 kms. from Panaji. The fort stands overlooking the Sinquerim beach and bisects the shoreline into two. This fort was constructed in the year 1612. The is an extension of the larger upper Aguada fort. The lower fort consists of a bastion and a section of fortified wall on both sides. During the 16th and 17th Century ships used to anchor next to the fort.

The main intention of building the fort was to guard Goa against the Dutch and the Marathas. The fort served as a reference point for vessels coming from Europe. On the right hand side of the fort lies the Taj Holiday Village resort, which is well known amongst tourists. In the distance one can see the Candolim beach and the river princess stranded amongst the waves. Between the Taj holiday resort and the lower fort lies the Sinquerim beach. One can find many tour operators here who conduct waters port activities such as jet ski rides, paragliding and dolphin tours. On the left hand side of the bastion is a fortified wall and rocky outcroppings.

Sinquerim Fort is one of the biggest and inspiring forts conserved and is one of the famous landmarks of Goa’s history. The fort is situated within a distance of 18 kilometre from Panaji. Created in the year 1613, Sinquerim Fort is an extension of Aguada Fort. The fame of the fort has augmented from the fact that its cliff on which it was created provides a delightful sight of military architects.

Architectural Importance

The dimension of Sinquerim Fort is huge. It envelops the whole headland and is situated in the entrance of MandoviRiver.The fort is surrounded by a dense forest since it is located in hill area. The wall of Sinquerim Fort is about 5 meter tall and 4 feet dense. The fort has an extensive dry moat, running around it. The fort is divided into two portions, the upper portion and the lower portion. The lower portion of the fort act as a safe dock for Portuguese ships where the upper portion has settlements along the walls of about 79 mortars. There is an underground water storingcompartment and a gunpowder room in Sinquerim Fort. In the inner walls of the fort, there are iron gratings within regular intervals which advocate existence of certain secret passageway in the fort. A special attractiveness of the fort is the marks in the stones of the ramparts, which are a toll taken by saltedhumidity weather and long wet season of the location.

One interesting architectural feature of Sinquerim Fort is a 13 meter tall lighthouse which was created in the year 1864. The lighthouse was primarily used as an oil lamp, but in the year 1976, it was refurbished and modernised. There was also a gigantic bell in the lighthouse, but it has been transferred to a church in Panaji. Although at present, many of the structures of the fort is damaged, several constructions are still in good condition. At later phase, the fort was transformed into a prison.

Historical Importance

Sinquerim Fort was created by Portuguese in 1613 in order to protect against the invasion from Dutch and Maratha. On that time, it was used as a reference centre for the ships which arrived from Europe. The fort was primarily tasked with the safety of the shipping. The other name of the Fort is ‘Aguada Fort’ which signify water because there was a stream in the fort which provided water supply to the vessels. Squads of passing vessels frequently visits this fort in order to refill the stream. The lighthouse that was created in Sinquerim Fort was regarded as one of the oldest lighthouses in entire Asia. To begin with, the lighthouse was used to release light once in 7 minutes. In the year 1834, the lighthouse was updated to release light and to make eclipse for every 30 seconds. In the course of thegovernment of Salazar, a Portuguese professor, Sinquerim Fort was reframed for the utilisation of prison. According to historical record, Sinquerim Fort prison was used for punishing Salazar’s political enemies. Furthermore, number of convicts in the prison were found to be Western travellers who served for drug based misconducts. Though, in the year 1976, the fort was abandoned by Portuguese.

Tourism Importance

Sinquerim Fort is an eye catching fort for the fans of history and for photography fanatic people. Standing tall on Sinquerimbeach, Sinquerim Fort can provide travellers with spectacular view of the location. Furthermore, travellers who love to enjoy architecture can also spend significant amount of time by exploring this place. Although the place was not maintained properly, still the residue structures are regarded as great place for tourism.