Elvas

Elvas is a Portuguese town near the Spanish border, about 15 km west of Badajoz, Spain.

Extensively fortified from the 17th to 19th centuries, the site represents the largest fortified dry moat system in the world. Within its city walls are barracks and other military buildings as well as churches and monasteries. The fortification of Elvas began during the Portuguese Restoration War. The fortifications played an important role in the Battle of the Lines of Elvas in 1659. The fortifications were designed by the Dutch Jesuit Padre João Piscásio Cosmander and represent the best surviving example of the Dutch fortification school anywhere.

UNESCO added the fortifications and the entire historic center of the city to the World Heritage List in 2012.