Fortress of Sao Jose de Macapa

Construction ran from 1764 to 1782, a square with four pentagonal bastions and walls of stone brought from Portugal as ship ballast and from local quarries, set on the north bank to close the Amazon's mouth against French claims pressing down from Cayenne. The labour was indigenous and enslaved African, under conditions that killed a large number of the workers, and that record is part of what the site now presents. It is the largest colonial fortification in the Brazilian north and has never been attacked. Macapa itself straddles the equator - a marked monument, the Marco Zero, stands a few kilometres south, and the football stadium there is built with the line running through the centre of the pitch.

What to look for

• A square with four bastions - the largest colonial fort in northern Brazil.
• Ballast stone walls - material brought from Portugal in ships' holds.
• Eighteen years of forced labour - the human cost the site now documents.
• A fort never attacked - built for a threat that did not come.

When to go

July to December, the drier half. Two hours.

Good to know

Interpretation inside is limited and mostly in Portuguese. Parts are closed for restoration at times. There is no shade on the ramparts and the equatorial sun is severe by mid-morning. Macapa has few other sights.

Nearby

The Marco Zero equator monument is south; the Amazon waterfront runs alongside.

Key facts