Caribbean Travels: El Morro Fortress, San Juan, Puerto Rico

El Morro Fortress, which is also known as Castillo de San Felipe del Morro is a 16th century fortress situated at the entrance of San Juan harbor in Puerto Rico. It was originally named in honor of King Philip II of Spain and was built to defend the City of San Juan from sea invaders. Puerto Rico was originally discovered by Christopher Columbus who claimed it for Spain. He called the island San Juan to honor St. John the Baptist but later this name was given to the city itself. Puerto Rico means "rich port" and because of San Juan's strategic location and natural harbor, different countries and even pirates wanted to claim it for their own. In the 16th century it became necessary to build a fortress to defend the Spanish territory from these invaders which included the likes of Sir Francis Drake and the Earl of Cumberland, both representing England. The Dutch did manage to successfully penetrate the fortress from the land side which required that walls be added to the city in 1634. Work continued well into the 1700's to ensure that the fortress be able to withstand future invasion. The Spaniards enlarged El Morro as well as San Cristobal fort and what you see today is the culmination of 150 years of construction on six levels and at 145 feet above sea level! The last active battle occurred during the 1898 Spanish-American War and was a naval bombardment by the US Navy. The fortress could not match modern weaponry and the war finally ended with the signing of the Treaty ...

 

Tags: Travel, San Juan, Puerto Rico, cruise, El Morro Fortress, vacations, old San Juan, history, culture, travel experiences, Verstraete Travel

 

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