Chapora Fort

The Chapora Fort is located in the district of Bardez, in the far north of the state of Goa on the west coast of India. Raised in a dominant position on a hill, it had the duty of controlling the river’s mouth Chapora. This fort was originally built by the Adil Shah of Bijapur, which gave it the name “Shahpura” (city of Shah).

The current structure, however, is the work of a Portuguese military engineer in 1617. It had the dual purpose of defending the mouth of the river and the population of Bardez against the attacks of Maratas. It fell in 1648 when their Portuguese captain surrendered to Maratas forces under the command of lake level. With decreasing marathi in the region, the Portuguese reoccupied and repaired the fort in 1717, opening tunnels that connected the interior to the beach.

In 1739 they returned to face the fall of Maratas when Bardez was occupied by them. It was returned to the hands of the Portuguese in 1741, which lasted until 1895, when faced with the loss of its strategic importance before the addition of so-called “New Achievements” and consequently shifted the boundaries of Portuguese to the north and vacated.

Its remains were protected by the governments in Goa, Daman and Diu in 1983. Currently it is in a reasonable condition and is quite sought after by tourists.

It features a polygonal, with octagonal bastions at the corners, like the Fort Aguada and Fort Cabo da Rama in the region. It is accessed by a small path leading up to the gate on the east side. Inside are some Muslim tombs believed to be pre-Portuguese.