Publication Date
2009
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Alcácer Ceguer (al-ksar al-saghir, «small castle» in Arabic) is a Moroccan city located in the Strait of Gibraltar, between Tangier and Ceuta.
It was captured by Dom Afonso V on the 23rd of October, 1458. The Infante Dom Henrique (at the command of the fleet of Algarve), the Marquis of Valença (at the command of the fleet of Oporto), the Infante Dom Fernando, and the Marquis of Vila Viçosa were some of the members participating in the expedition. The King had second thoughts about which city to capture when his ship changed course, under strong wings, and approached Tangier, but Dom Henrique, who had taken part in the Tangier disastrous campaign of 1437, persuaded him to stick to the original plan of attacking Alcácer Ceguer. The capture was possible thanks to the superior heavy artillery weapons of the Portuguese and to the decision of the King of Fez, Abd al-Hakk, of protecting his city. The Moroccan king was preparing an attack to Tlemcen when he was informed that Dom Afonso V's fleet had been sighted near Tangier. Unable to understand which city was the Portuguese's target, he decided to protect Fez.
The city of Alcácer Ceguer was built in the beginning of the Muslim occupation of Magreb, about the year 708 AD. During the Almohad period, it was an important port for the embarkation of troops heading towards the Iberian Peninsula. However, by the time it was conquered by the Portuguese, Alcácer was just a corsairs' seaport.
After its capture, one of the main concerns of the Portuguese monarch was to reinforce its fortification and he therefore ordered the building of a defensive wall with a view to protect the disembarkation of men and supplies. The wall was repaired and bettered during Dom Manule I's reign.
The local mosque was turned into a Christian temple, the church of Santa Maria da Misericórdia, and awarded to the Order of Christ, by Dom Henrique's initiative.
Shortly after it was conquered, the King of Fez tried to recapture it. The first siege lasted 53 days and was raised on the 2nd January, 1459. The garrison of the city, under the command of Dom Duarte de Meneses (son of the first captain of Ceuta, Dom Pedro de Meneses) managed to successfully oppose the attacking forces. Abd al-Hakk attempted a second attack against Alcácer, on the 2nd of July and on the 24th of August, 1459. During this siege, Dom Duarte de Meneses sent for his wife and children who were in Portugal. Though with difficulty, they managed to get inside the besieged city. The captain's attitude encouraged a renewed defensive spirit among the members of the garrison.
The population inside the stronghold ascended to 800 persons, who were totally dependent on the Kingdom for their survival. When Asilah and Tangier were captured in 1471, Portuguese presence in Northern Morocco was strengthened, and Alcácer Ceguer lost its strategic importance both for the Portuguese and for the Moors.
In Dom João III's reign, a broad consensus emerged over the disadvantages of keeping the stronghold which, in addition to all its shortcomings, was an easy target for the enemy's artillery. After almost two decades of debate, Alcácer Ceguer was abandoned in 1550.
The fact that it remained abandoned testifies to its limited strategic importance. Today it is an archaeological site of great import, and a unique case study given the fact that, besides the natural effects of time consuming erosion, it practically remained unchanged since the days of the Portuguese presence.
Archaeological excavations run by the American archaeologists Charles Redman and James Boone, between 1974 and 1978, showed that the Portuguese used the existing Moroccan cities, adjusting them to their needs, and adding to them some architectonic elements. The reports of the excavations demonstrate the supremacy of the Portuguese town over the Islamic element. Such was the case of the hamman (the Islamic baths) transformed into a prison-house, of the mosque turned into a church, and of the castle changed into the captain's palace to which adjustments had to be made in order to allow the use of artillery weapons. After its capture, the city began a new cycle in its history. It started to occupy hostile territory and developed a privileged bond with the sea, through which it maintained contact with the Kingdom. This maritime bond led to the building of the wall - a distinctive mark in the landscape up to the present.
Bibliography:
BRAGA, Paulo Drumond, «A Expansão no Norte de África», in Nova História da Expansão Portuguesa, dir. de Joel Serrão e A. H. de Oliveira Marques, Vol. II, A Expansão Quatrocentista, Editorial Estampa, 1998, pp. 237-360. DUARTE, Luís Miguel, «África», in Nova História Militar de Portugal, dir. de Themudo Barata e Nuno Severiano Teixeira, vol. I, Lisboa, Circulo de Leitores, 2003, pp. 392-441. REDMAN, Charles L., Qsar es-Seghir: an archaelogical view of medieval life, London, Academic Press, 1986.
Translated by: Leonor Sampaio da Silva
It was captured by Dom Afonso V on the 23rd of October, 1458. The Infante Dom Henrique (at the command of the fleet of Algarve), the Marquis of Valença (at the command of the fleet of Oporto), the Infante Dom Fernando, and the Marquis of Vila Viçosa were some of the members participating in the expedition. The King had second thoughts about which city to capture when his ship changed course, under strong wings, and approached Tangier, but Dom Henrique, who had taken part in the Tangier disastrous campaign of 1437, persuaded him to stick to the original plan of attacking Alcácer Ceguer. The capture was possible thanks to the superior heavy artillery weapons of the Portuguese and to the decision of the King of Fez, Abd al-Hakk, of protecting his city. The Moroccan king was preparing an attack to Tlemcen when he was informed that Dom Afonso V's fleet had been sighted near Tangier. Unable to understand which city was the Portuguese's target, he decided to protect Fez.
The city of Alcácer Ceguer was built in the beginning of the Muslim occupation of Magreb, about the year 708 AD. During the Almohad period, it was an important port for the embarkation of troops heading towards the Iberian Peninsula. However, by the time it was conquered by the Portuguese, Alcácer was just a corsairs' seaport.
After its capture, one of the main concerns of the Portuguese monarch was to reinforce its fortification and he therefore ordered the building of a defensive wall with a view to protect the disembarkation of men and supplies. The wall was repaired and bettered during Dom Manule I's reign.
The local mosque was turned into a Christian temple, the church of Santa Maria da Misericórdia, and awarded to the Order of Christ, by Dom Henrique's initiative.
Shortly after it was conquered, the King of Fez tried to recapture it. The first siege lasted 53 days and was raised on the 2nd January, 1459. The garrison of the city, under the command of Dom Duarte de Meneses (son of the first captain of Ceuta, Dom Pedro de Meneses) managed to successfully oppose the attacking forces. Abd al-Hakk attempted a second attack against Alcácer, on the 2nd of July and on the 24th of August, 1459. During this siege, Dom Duarte de Meneses sent for his wife and children who were in Portugal. Though with difficulty, they managed to get inside the besieged city. The captain's attitude encouraged a renewed defensive spirit among the members of the garrison.
The population inside the stronghold ascended to 800 persons, who were totally dependent on the Kingdom for their survival. When Asilah and Tangier were captured in 1471, Portuguese presence in Northern Morocco was strengthened, and Alcácer Ceguer lost its strategic importance both for the Portuguese and for the Moors.
In Dom João III's reign, a broad consensus emerged over the disadvantages of keeping the stronghold which, in addition to all its shortcomings, was an easy target for the enemy's artillery. After almost two decades of debate, Alcácer Ceguer was abandoned in 1550.
The fact that it remained abandoned testifies to its limited strategic importance. Today it is an archaeological site of great import, and a unique case study given the fact that, besides the natural effects of time consuming erosion, it practically remained unchanged since the days of the Portuguese presence.
Archaeological excavations run by the American archaeologists Charles Redman and James Boone, between 1974 and 1978, showed that the Portuguese used the existing Moroccan cities, adjusting them to their needs, and adding to them some architectonic elements. The reports of the excavations demonstrate the supremacy of the Portuguese town over the Islamic element. Such was the case of the hamman (the Islamic baths) transformed into a prison-house, of the mosque turned into a church, and of the castle changed into the captain's palace to which adjustments had to be made in order to allow the use of artillery weapons. After its capture, the city began a new cycle in its history. It started to occupy hostile territory and developed a privileged bond with the sea, through which it maintained contact with the Kingdom. This maritime bond led to the building of the wall - a distinctive mark in the landscape up to the present.
Bibliography:
BRAGA, Paulo Drumond, «A Expansão no Norte de África», in Nova História da Expansão Portuguesa, dir. de Joel Serrão e A. H. de Oliveira Marques, Vol. II, A Expansão Quatrocentista, Editorial Estampa, 1998, pp. 237-360. DUARTE, Luís Miguel, «África», in Nova História Militar de Portugal, dir. de Themudo Barata e Nuno Severiano Teixeira, vol. I, Lisboa, Circulo de Leitores, 2003, pp. 392-441. REDMAN, Charles L., Qsar es-Seghir: an archaelogical view of medieval life, London, Academic Press, 1986.
Translated by: Leonor Sampaio da Silva
Image credit
André Teixeira
Image Legend
View of the walls of the fortress of Alcácer Ceguer