St. John Fort

Founded in 1571 by the Portuguese conquerors, the hilltop has been recognised as a UNESCO world heritage site.  St. John’s Fort is also known by the local as Senjuang Hill or St. John Hill. A private Portuguese chapel dedicated to St. John the Baptist was once built on this heritage site. Even today the feast of St. John the Baptist is celebrated annually by the Catholics on June 23rd with thousands of candles lit in homes throughout the city.

You can walk or drive to the foot of the hill. However, there are limited parking spaces available.

Built from laterite stones and bricks during the Dutch regime,had only one entrance and its outer walls were between 10 to 12 feet high. This historical landmark has now been listed as a heritage site under the Melaka City World Heritage declaration.

In 1628, the Acehnese forces from Sumatera occupied the St. John Hill and used it as a base to attack the Portuguese who were fortified at the Porta de Santiago (A’ Famosa Fort). Later, the Dutch applied a similar strategy and managed to defeat the Portuguese and conquer Melaka.

St John’s Fort was only rebuilt by the Dutch in the 18th century, after more than hundred years of colonial in Malacca, to guard against landward attack. You will see most of the cannons in St. John’s Fort face inland as, during that time, attacks on Malacca came mainly from the hinterland instead of from the sea. The Dutch feared inland threats from Acehnese and Bugis invaders more than they did on a maritime invasion. However, some of the cannons did point towards the sea.

St. John Hill also once housed the remains of Roman Catholic missionary St. Francis Xavier, who was buried here in 1553 before his body was moved to Goa, India.

Besides its rich greenery (where a small forested area is still left untouched), one can savour the beautiful and scenic view after they ascend the St. John Hill. From the top of the hill where St. John’s Fort stands, you have the opportunity to view the fantastic tropical sunsets and an unobstructed view of the changing skyline of Melaka. You can also appreciate the development progress the State has gone through, one of the major tourist development being the artificial island reclamation project — the RM2 billion Pulau Melaka project — which was previously the small island of Pulau Jawa.

Location

Address: Jalan Bukit Senjuang, 75050 Melaka
GPS Coordinate: N 2.189343, E 102.264623

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Operation Hour

St. John’s Fort is open daily to the member of public.

Admission Fee

Admission to St. John Hill is free.

Contact Details

Perbadanan Muzium Melaka (PERZIM)
Kompleks Warisan Melaka
Jalan Kota, 75000
Melaka
Tel: 06-2826526/2811289
Fax: 06-2826745
Email: admin@perzim.gov.my
@amazingmelaka.com