Oman's Indian Ocean Fortresses: The Forgotten Siege of Mombasa

In 1696, a small Omani force laid siege to Fort Jesus in Mombasa, a massive Portuguese stronghold built to control the East African gold trade. The siege would last nearly three years, involving Portuguese reinforcements from Goa, disease, starvation, and a final desperate assault that marked the end of Portuguese dominance in East Africa. This episode tells the story of the Siege of Mombasa—the tactics, the key figures like the Omani Imam Saif bin Sultan and Portuguese captain João de Sousa, and how this victory set the stage for the Omani Empire's rise as a maritime power. We also explore the architecture of Fort Jesus itself, a UNESCO World Heritage site designed by Italian architect Giovanni Battista Cairati. Drawing on Portuguese chronicles and Omani oral traditions, we uncover a battle that reshaped the Indian Ocean world but is largely forgotten in Western history. #SiegeOfMombasa #FortJesus #OmaniEmpire #SaifBinSultan #PortugueseEmpire #EastAfrica #IndianOceanHistory #GiovanniBattistaCairati #Mombasa #SwahiliCoast #GoldTrade #NavalHistory #17thCentury #Ya'aruba #UNESCO #History #FexingoHistory #MilitaryHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo