Fort Jesus Kenya’s historical Landmark : The original purpose of Fort Jesus in Kenya is known. However, the fort is believed to have been built by the Omani Arabs in the late 16th century. The fort was later taken over by the British and used as a military base. It was later abandoned and left to deteriorate. In 2012, the Kenyan Government began a restoration project in an effort to open the fort to public tours. The Fort was built by the Omani Arabs, who left it standing as a sentinel over their trade route from Mombasa to Lake Victoria. It was originally used as a military base and defense post by the British during their occupation of Kenya.
Today, it is open for public tours and visitors can tour its 12th century tower, which has been restored and offers panoramic views of Nairobi city. The fort is also home to an archaeological museum with artifacts recovered from nearby settlements and other parts of the country.
The fort is typical of those built during this time period, with external walls about five feet thick and an internal wall about three feet thick that has crenellations every four feet. It had windows with one inch glass from floor to ceiling and was designed to have a view of all sides. The fort was first built, but the west gate only dates back to 1854. The fort is red brick painted white and is about 12 feet by 12 feet square inside.
What was the reason for building Fort Jesus? /A brief history of the remarkable Fort Jesus and why it should be on your bucket list.
Fort Jesus was built by the Portuguese in 1593-1596, to the designs of the Giovanni Battista Cairati to protect the port of Mombasa, this is one of the most outstanding and well preserved examples of the 16th Portuguese military fortification and a landmark in the history of this type of construction. The Fort Jesus is physically laid and it forms a reflected Renaissance ideal that perfects proportions and geometric harmony are to be found in the human body, as the proportion covers an area of 2.36 hectares and includes the fort’s moat and immediate surroundings.
Fort Jesus is such an attractive safari destination in Kenya as also it’s a symbol of the historical town of Mombasa and it’s one of the most visited tourist attraction site on a Kenya safari, as this is one of the best preserved evidence of the outstanding military fortification during the 16th century.
As Mombasa used to be a town and a trade Centre and gateway to India during that time, so fort Jesus was built to protect the town from any outside influencers. As of currently Fort Jesus is one of the majorly visited safari destination in Kenya.
In the end, I hope this article has given you a better understanding of the Fort and why it should be on your bucket list.
The Fort is an amazing piece of history that deserves to be on your bucket list. It is a historical landmark that has seen many changes in its lifetime and still remains relevant today. Explore Kenya on your safari you will enjoy and feel the presence of the period of history of Portuguese thus makes your Kenya safari the stunning one with the endless safari memories.
