Hill Fort

The Fortaleza del Cerro, also known as Fortaleza General Artigas, is a fortress situated in Montevideo, Uruguay overlooking the Bay of Montevideo. It belongs to the barrio of Casabó, at the west of Villa del Cerro. It holds a dominant position on the highest hill of the department of Montevideo with an altitude of 134 meters above sea level, on the opposite side of the bay. Its function was to defend the population of Montevideo and its port, on the río de la Plata. Governor Francisco Javier de Elío ordered construction in 1809 and it was completed in 1839; this was the last Spanish fort built in Uruguay. It has housed the Military Museum since 1916.