Natal - Fort of the Three Kings

(Local Name: Fort dos Reis Magos) Forte dos Reis Magos

On the Praia do Forte, 4km/2.5mi north of the city center, is the Forte dos Reis Magos (Fort of the Three Kings), planned by the Spanish Jesuit Gaspar de Santeres and built between January 6th (hence its name) and June 24th 1598. Standing some 750m/820yds above the mouth of the Rio Potengi, it was designed to serve as a base against the French. A settlement grew up about 1.5km/1mi from the fort, but because of the materials used - taipa (clay tempered by plant fibers) and sand - the buildings could not stand out against the assault of the waves.

The fort was given its final form from 1614 onwards, when it was rebuilt by the well-known Portuguese