Berlengas Islands

The Berlengas are rocky islands off the Portuguese coast near Peniche. Their exposed position made them a landmark and a potential stronghold on the Atlantic approaches. On a rock beside Berlenga Grande, the fort of São João Baptista was built on the orders of John IV between 1651 and 1656. During the Portuguese Restoration War a Spanish fleet attacked it in 1666, testing the little garrison's defenses amid the isolated waters of the archipelago.