Fort Emmanuel:
Steps to conserve the laterite-brick remnants of Fort Emmanuel, that was built along the beachfront by the Portuguese in 1503.
- Fort Emmanuel is a ruined fort located at Fort Kochi Beach in Kochi, Kerala.
- It was originally built in 1503 and reinforced in 1538.
- It was a symbol of the strategic alliance between the Maharajah of Kochi and the Monarch of Portugal, after whom it was named.
- It was a massive structure, and the entire township was within its confines.
- It greatly helped in strengthening the Portuguese occupation of the area.
- Fort Kochi remained in Portuguese possession until 1683, when the Dutch colonial troops captured the territory and destroyed the Portuguese institutions.
- The Dutch held the fort in their possession until 1795, when the British took control by defeating the Dutch.
- By 1806, the Dutch, and later the British, had destroyed most of the fort walls and its bastions.
- Foreign control of Fort Kochi ended in 1947 with Indian independence.
- Now only the remains of this fort exist, reminding us of its historic significance.
