Prepare for Battle!!!

Yesterday we had the opportunity to visit the Forte dos Reis Magos, which means the fort of the wise men. I love ancient battlements, weapons, armour, etc. So any time that I get the opportunity to visit places that have them, I love it! We had to go down this long walkway that was about half a mile long until we got to the single entrance. The walls were 9m high and 9m thick. They did this specifically to prevent anything from getting through the walls, including cannonballs. This fort was built in the early 1600s and the majority of the fort is the same. The only differences that have really happened would be the stores that they built inside of the prisons there.

The location that they chose for this fort is perfect. They are in a spot where they can see the entire ocean laid out before them, they are surrounded by reef to prevent boat docking, and they have a moat to prevent anyone from coming up on them unawares. It was really clever and for these reasons it was a very valuable and remained in tact over the years.

My favorite location was on top of the battlements where they had all of the canons and you could see the city in the distance. If only I could light a canon and blast something! It would have been a dream come true! I got to act the part, but unfortunately the ability to light the fuse ended a couple hundred years ago.. too bad.. Anyways, it was a fun chance to see some important and impressive history. Loved it!

Yep, that's my cannon!

 The fort

 This was a secret cavern that was used by the leaders of the fort so that, if necessary, they were able to get out of the fort to safety. The bad thing? They left all of their men to die without a leader.

 Chillin at the top of the battlements. There is no way anyone could get away with standing at the top of a wall that has no safety precautions in the USA. A foot behind me was a 30 foot drop onto hard reef lol.