View source for Fort Jesus

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{{Infobox World Heritage Site
|WHS         = Fort Jesus, Mombasa, Kenya
|Image       = [[File:Fort JesusMombasa.jpg|right|250px|Fort Jesus]]
|State Party = [[Kenya]]
|Type        = Cultural
|Criteria    = ii, v
|ID          = 1295
|Region      = [[List of World Heritage Sites in Africa|Africa]]
|Year        = [[List of World Heritage Sites by year of inscription#2011 (35th session)|2011]]
|Session     = 35th
|Link        = http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1295
}}

[[File:Fort Jesus.jpg|thumb|Fort Jesus, seen from the inside]]
'''Fort Jesus''' '''(Forte Jesus de Mombaça)''' is a Portuguese fort built in 1591 by order of King [[Philip I of Portugal]] (King Philip II of Spain), then ruler of the joint [[Portuguese Empire|Portuguese]] and [[Spanish Empire|Spanish]] Kingdoms, located on [[Mombasa Island]] to guard the Old Port of [[Mombasa]], Kenya. It was built in the shape of a man (viewed from the air), and was given the name of Jesus. In 2011, the fort was declared a [[World Heritage Site]] by [[UNESCO]], highlighted as one of the most outstanding and well preserved examples of 16th-century Portuguese military fortifications.<ref name=imf2>http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1295</ref>

==Overview==
Between 1631 and 1875 the fort was won and lost nine times by the nations contesting control of Kenya. The Omanis took the fort in 1698 after a [[Siege of Fort Jesus|notable siege]] of almost three years. It was declared a historical monument in 1958. Today it houses a museum.

The fort was designed by a [[Duchy of Milan|Milanese]] architect, Giovanni Battista Cairati, who was the Chief Architect for Portuguese possessions in the East. It was the first European-style fort constructed outside of Europe designed to resist cannon fire.<ref>Gilbert, Erik, and Jonathan T. Reynolds. ''Africa in World History: From Prehistory to Present.'' New Jersey: Pearson Education, 2008, p. 225</ref> Today, it is one of the finest examples of 16th-century Portuguese military architecture, which has been influenced and changed by both the [[Omani]] Arabs and the British.<ref name="autogenerated1974">Kirkman, J. 1974. ''Fort Jesus: A Portuguese Fortress on the East African Coast'' Clarendon Press: Oxford</ref>
The fort quickly became a vital possession for anyone with the intention of controlling [[Mombasa]] Island or the surrounding areas of trade. When the British colonised Kenya, they used it as a prison, until 1958, when they converted it into a historical monument. James Kirkman was then assigned to excavate the monument, which he did (with a large use of external historical documents) from 1958 to 1971.<ref name="autogenerated1974"/>

The architecture of the fort represents the rough outline of a person lying on their back, with the head towards the sea. The height of the walls is 18 meters. The original Portuguese fort had a height of 15 meters, but the much taller Oman Arabs added 3 metres upon capturing the fort.

The fort combines Portuguese, Arab, and British elements; these being the major powers that held it at different times in history. The Portuguese and British presence is preserved in the presence of their respective cannons. The Portuguese cannons had a range of 200 meters and are longer than the British cannons which had a range of 300 meters. Oman Arabs marked their occupancy with numerous Koran inscriptions into the wooden door posts and ceiling beams. The Muslim tradition of 5 pillars is also portrayed throughout the fort, with a former meeting hall supported by five stone pillars to the ceiling.

Some of the historical structures still standing in the fort include Oman House, which was the house for Sultan who governed the East African coast. Others are an open water cistern by the Portuguese for harvesting rain water, and a 76-foot deep well sunk by the Arabs, but whose water was too salty to be used for anything but washing.

The fort was declared a World Heritage site by [[UNESCO]] in 2011.

==Fort Jesus today==
Fort Jesus is now a popular destination for foreign and local tourists. As well as a tourist destination the Fort is important as a host for numerous research programs, a Conservation Lab, and Education Department and an Old Town Conservation Office.

<center><gallery>
Image:Building in Fort Jesus.jpg|Building inside the fort
Image:Fort_Jesus,_Mombasa1.jpg|Windows of the inner buildings
Image:Fort_Jesus,_Mombasa2.JPG|Juxtaposition of decayed and survived
Image:Fort_Jesus,_Mombasa3.jpg|Obvious influence of Portuguese architecture
</gallery></center>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [http://www.museums.or.ke/content/blogcategory/48/76/ Fort Jesus Museum]
* [http://website.lineone.net/~yamaguchi/tourism/fortj.html Brief History of Fort Jesus]

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[[Category:Infrastructure completed in 1595]]
[[Category:World Heritage Sites in Kenya]]
[[Category:Forts in Kenya|Jesus]]
[[Category:History of Kenya]]
[[Category:Mombasa]]
[[Category:Museums in Kenya]]
[[Category:Portuguese forts]]
[[Category:Mombasa County]]