Fort Coligny - Citizendia

Fort Coligny was a fortress founded by Nicolas Durand de Villegaignon in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1555, in what constituted the so-called France Antarctique historical episode. Nicolas Durand de Villegaignon ( Villegaignon, Seine et Marne, France, 1510 &ndash Beauvais, January 9, 1571) was a French Rio de Janeiro ("River of January" ˈhiw dʒi ʒʌˈnejɾu in Brazilian Portuguese, /ˈriːoʊ di ʒəˈnɛroʊ/ in English is the second largest city of Brazil |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld France Antarctique was the name of the failed French Colony south of the Equator, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, which existed

For protection against attacks by hostile Indians and the Portuguese, Villegaignon built the fortress with the help of the 500 colonists who travelled with him in two ships armed by the king of France, on a small island called Serigipe by the Indians of the region, near the mouth of the large Guanabara Bay. The Indigenous peoples in Brazil ( Portuguese: povos indígenas) comprise a large number of distinct Ethnic groups who inhabited the country prior to The Portuguese people (os Portugueses literally the Portuguese) are the Ethnic group or Nation native to the country of Portugal, in the west An island (ˈaɪlənd or isle (/ˈaɪl/ is any piece of land that is completely surrounded by water in two dimensions above high tide and isolated from other significant In Portuguese, Baía da Guanabara is an oceanic Bay located in southeastern Brazil in the state of Rio de Janeiro. The island was rocky and almost barren, but served Villegaignon's purpose of being near the shore, at the same time achieving a good defensive position against attacks from sea and land.

The fortress fell and was destroyed in 1560 under the siege of Portugal's navy and troops under the command of Mem de Sá, third Governor-General of Brazil. Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. Mem de Sá (c 1500 &ndash March 2, 1572) was a Governor-General of Brazil from 1557-1572 The term governor general or governor-general refers to a vice-regal representative of a Monarch in an independent realm or a major colonial circonscription Villegaignon had already returned to France, in 1558.

Naval guns in the old Fortress of Villegagnon, in 1898

The fortress was named as such in honor of Villegaignon's supporter and friend, the French Admiral and leader of the Huguenots, Gaspard de Coligny. Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks of the highest Naval officers The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France (or French Calvinists) from the sixteenth to the eighteenth Gaspard de Coligny ( February 16, 1519 &ndash August 24, 1572) Seigneur (Lord de Châtillon held the office of After the foundation of Rio de Janeiro in 1565 by Estácio de Sá and the expulsion of the French in 1567 a new fortress was built there by the Portuguese, in order to defend the mouth of the Guanabara Bay, by crossing fire with two other fortresses, Guajará and Santa Cruz. Estácio de Sá (1520-1567 was a Portuguese Soldier and officer who came to Brazil on orders of the Portuguese crown to wage War on the This fortress was almost totally destroyed by bombardment in a revolt of the Navy, in 1893. Revolta da Armada ( revolt of the Navy, in Portuguese language) was a Military armed Mutiny promoted by some naval units of the Brazilian Year 1893 ( MDCCCXCIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Today, the island, which was renamed Island of Villegaignon, is home to the Naval School since 1938, and is now permanently connected to the continent, near the Santos Dumont Airport. Villegagnon Island (former Serigipe Island -- original Portuguese Ilha de Villegagnon -- also known in English as Villegaignon Island or Island of Villegagnon or Island of Villegaignon The Brazilian Naval School (Escola Naval is a School of the Brazilian Navy, the Brazilian equivalent of the US Naval Academy located in Rio de Janeiro Santos Dumont Airport serves Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is the city's second major Airport behind the Rio de Janeiro-Galeão International Airport

See also