Fort Emmanuel

Fort Emmanuel also known as Immanuel Fort is a ruined fort located at the Fort Kochi beach of Fort Kochi on the shores of the Arabian Sea in Kochi city, Kerala, India.

History
In 1503 AD the Rajah of Kochi granted permission to the Portuguese to build Fort Emmanuel near the waterfront of the Arabian Sea to protect their commercial interests. The first part of the name Fort Kochi comes from this fort. Fort Kochi is a region in the city of Kochi in the state of Kerala, India, known as Old Kochi or West Kochi, adjacented to Mattancherry. The Fort was built at the water-bound region towards the south-west of the Kochi mainland. The fortifications were reinforced in 1538. The Portuguese built their settlement behind the fort, including the St Francis Church. Fort Kochi remained in Portuguese possession until 1683, when the Dutch colonial troops captured the territory and destroyed the Portuguese institutions. The Dutch held the fort in their possession until 1795, when the British took control by defeating the Dutch. By 1806 the Dutch, and later the British, had destroyed most of the fort walls and its bastions. Foreign control of Fort Kochi ended in 1947 with the Indian independence.

In Old Kochi and alongside the Fort Kochi beach, there is a partially restored gun battery and other remains of ramparts and fortifications, which are now tourist destinations.