Fortaleza de Santo António da Ponta da Mina

Fortaleza de Santo António da Ponta da Mina or Forte de Ponta da Mina was a fort located northeast of the island capital Santo António in the island of Príncipe in São Tomé and Príncipe. It was located at Ponta da Mina, the hamlet of Fortaleza is named after the abandoned fortress.

History
The island's fort was first built in 1695 where the fort started building.

According to Father Cunha Matos, on the same date, an Infantry company came to garrison the fortress.

In 1706 and in 1709, the city of Santo António was invaded by the French during the Spanish War of Succession and its fortress was set on fire ruining its artillery.

In 1719, the city was burned to the ground by the English pirate Bartholomew Roberts along with John Roberts and Black Bart in revenge of the death of a captain Howell Davis.

According to Father Cunha Matos, the Royal Battery "Bateria Real" had a semicircular shape, it had 16 pieces of bronze artillery and 3 to 14 caliber guns. The Royal Battery shaped in a zig-zag with the Battery of Príncipe. Its location of the Royal Battery was 500 feet (150 meters) above sea level, the Príncipe Battery was 200 feet (65 meters) above sea level.

Later history
Repair works were made between 1885 and 1886, in 1890, it became abandoned.

Further repairs were made in 1905, 1907 and 1910 and were insufficient, it became entirely abandoned.

The five last bronze pieces of the fort were founded in the city in the first half of the 20th century, having fire when General António Óscar de Fragoso Carmona visited the island in 1938.

Today, the fortress lay in ruins, overgrown with trees, with an old iron cannon, it was survived by the foot of an old gunpowder house.