Standing Into Danger: A Mighty Fortress

Friday, May 24, 2024

A Mighty Fortress

In my March 22, 2024 post I wrote about my family's love of history

and about visiting two powerful military sites during the previous twelve months.

I saw the sites as historical bookends,

linking the beginning and end of defensive coastal fortifications and artilleries.

I didn't name the strategic sites, but indicated that I would write about them shortly.

My Dad, the History Major, at Acadia

Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada

Circa 1947

When my original post was published it was flagged

with a warning for containing sensitive material.

To say I was shocked is an understatement.

I went over and over the post, but I couldn't figure out what was objectionable.

I tried to contact Google to find out what happened,

but I hit a wall and couldn't access any help. I gave up.

My Mom, Who Encouraged my Love of Reading About Everything

Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada

1947

So, I'm going to go back to the topic, and I will see what happens.

Fingers crossed, for sure!

In both instances world powers were struggling for control of a strategic site

that was a gateway to resources, trade, commerce, and empire.

A Strategic Site Overlooking San Juan Bay

San Juan, Puerto Rico

April 15, 2023

Castillo San Felipe del Morro, or El Morro as it is commonly referred to, is the first site.

What began in 1539 as a tower and three cannons

on a promontory overlooking the entrance to San Juan Bay

became over the next 250 years a mighty six-level fortress

incorporating the highest military standards and technology of its time.

El Morro from the Air

San Juan, Puerto Rico

Wikimedia Commons

El Morro is considered the oldest Spanish fort in the New World.

Spain held El Morro for 359 years until the US gained

control of it in 1898 during the Spanish American War.

It remained an active US military installation during the first and second world wars.

The US Army retired El Morro in 1961 and turned it over to the National Park Service.

The United Nations declared the fortress and walled city of Old San Juan

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1983.

Three UNESCO sites protecting San Juan and Puerto Rico:

Fortín San Juan de la Cruz (El Cañuelo - "Small Channel")

Castillo San Felipe del Morro

Castillo de San Cristóbal

April 14, 2023

Overlooking the Entrance to San Juan Bay and Fortín San Juan de la Cruz from El Morro

Crossfire between El Morro and Fortín San Juan de la Cruz

protected San Juan Bay and the interior of Puerto Rico from invaders.

April 15, 2023

It's one thing to look at the fortress in photographs, drawings, and maps.

It's quite another to wander through the Field of Fire where so many died,

and to touch the walls and walk the floors of the fortress.

You can feel the history and emotions of centuries

emanating from the grounds and stones surrounding you.

Field of Fire, or Esplanade, at Castillo San Felipe del Morro

San Juan, Puerto, USA

April 15, 2023

Historically an esplanade was a large, open area outside a fortress.

It provided clear "fields of fire" for the fortress's guns.

Today the Esplanade is a place where locals come to relax, picnic, and fly kites.

Locals Enjoying a Beautiful Morning on the Esplanade

San Juan, Puerto, USA

April 15, 2023

The massive fortress was designed to repel attacks by sea,

and over the centuries it successfully blocked every naval assault,

including three British attacks in 1595, 1598, and 1797 and one Dutch in 1625.

During the Spanish-Cuban-American War of 1898, El Morro saw action for the last time.

After the U.S. occupied Puerto Rico in 1898,

control of all the Spanish-era fortresses passed to the U.S. Army.

To enter El Morro today, you cross over a concrete bridge above the dry moat.

In colonial times the bridge was a drawbridge protecting the eastern side of the fortress.

The dry moat had two purposes, to protect the base of the fort from enemy cannon fire

and to force enemy soldiers to descend before before trying to scale the fortress walls.

The Concrete Bridge and Dry Moat at El Morro

Google

The Entrance to El Morro

April 15, 2023

To the right of the entrance is the El Morro Lighthouse.

Puerto Rico's first lighthouse was built at El Morro in 1846.

The current lighthouse was built by the U.S. Coast Guard in 1908.

It is only 51 feet high, but it sits on the sixth level of El Morro

giving it another 140 feet in height.

The El Morro Lighthouse Located on the Ochoa Bastion

April 15, 2023

When you pass through the entrance, you enter The Plaza de Armas

or Main Plaza on the Fifth Level of El Morro.

Today the main plaza looks very much like it did when it was completed around 1780.

Here troops drilled and assembled for formal occasions.

Around the plaza are arched casements, large vaulted rooms that contained

a kitchen, chapel, storage areas, officers’ quarters, and barracks for enlisted men.

The Plaza de Armas or Main Plaza of El Morro

April 15, 2023

The Plaza de Armas or Main Plaza of El Morro

Information Sign

April 15, 2023

Capilla de Nuestra Señora de los Navegantes

(Chapel of Our Lady of the Navigators)

This small chapel occupies one of the casements in the main plaza of El Morro.

The arch in a casement provided strength to support gun decks above it

and protection from the concussion of exploding shells.

April 15, 2023

The Plaza de Armas or Main Plaza on the Fifth Level of El Morro

Here you can see the wellhead where soldiers drew water from three large cisterns under the plaza.

April 15, 2023

By the early 1500s, Spain had already conquered what are now Mexico and Peru.

These lands had abundant gold, other precious metals, and gems

which the Spanish plundered and mined.

They sent these treasures back to Spain on galleons.

A Spanish Galleon

fundacionnaovictoria

In order to protect these ships from the English, French and Dutch,

Spain began fortifying important ports along the sea routes.

Because San Juan was the first port encountered by ships entering the Caribbean,

the Spanish Crown recognized that it needed to be fortified.

Initially El Morro consisted of a masonry tower and a water battery with three cannons.

The gunners quickly discovered that the noise and smoke

from firing cannons inside the tower was too much to bear.

Thus began a learning process that spanned centuries.

After attacks and discoveries of weaknesses,

El Morro would expand and improve its defensives.

King Philip II ordered the addition of a hornwork and two half-bastions connected by a curtain wall to protect the landward approach to the original tower,

as well as a moat to give more height to the walls and a drawbridge.

The work was completed in 1595.

El Morro in 1891

The curtain, or defensive wall, joins two half bastions on the landward approach to the original tower.

The tower is the circle in the lower left.

Today the bastions are known as the Ochoa Bastion (upper left) and the Austria Bastion (upper right).

They form the sixth level of the fortress that rises over visitors as they approach the entrance to El Morro.

wikipedia (image modified by me ~ see site for license)

Here you can see the "horns" of the half bastions protecting the entrance to El Morro:

also the dry moat, the cement bridge spanning the moat,

and the bastions and curtain wall of the sixth level (gray)

and the main plaza of the fifth level (orange).

marinas.com

Terry Explores the Bacteria del Carmen on the Fifth Level of El Morro

April 15, 2023

The El Morro Lighthouse on Level Six of El Morro

April 15, 2023

The Three Flags Flown at El Morro Today

The Cross of Burgundy ~ The Old Spanish Military Flag Which Was Flown at El Morro from 1539-1785

The United States Flag and the Puerto Rican Flag

April 15, 2023

Terry Enjoys The View of Old San Juan

from Level Six of El Morro

April 15, 2023

Cannons on the Main Firing Battery

Level Four of El Morro

April 15, 2023

The Spanish completed El Morro in 1790.

Their latest improvements to the fortress included

3 cisterns under the main plaza that held 216,000 gallons of water

and walls strengthened to 18-40 feet thick.

The main Santa Barbara Battery had 37 cannons

backed by casement guns at higher and lower levels.

Terry Emerges from a Garita or Sentry Box

Level Four of El Morro

April 15, 2023

The Main Artillery Ramp and Stairs at El Morro

Leading to the Main Battery on Level 4

Soldiers raised and lowered 5-ton cannons on this ramp.

April 15, 2023

The Main Artillery Ramp, Guard House, and Walls

Main Battery on Level 4

April 15, 2023

Terry's and my visit to El Morro was far too short.

We scrambled to see what we could in less than an hour.

I would love to return to this formidable fortress and spend more time here.

The second strategic site lies on a different side of the Americas and in another ocean.

World War II demonstrated that the time for defensive coastal fortifications

and artilleries had passed. They were no longer effective in modern warfare.

I'm linking to Rain's Thursday Art and Dinner Date, Tom's Aloha Friday, and Nicole's Friday Face Off.

For Rain: Vincent Van Gogh ~

I know I have a photo of Vincent van Gogh's Sunflowers from the National Gallery in London, but I can't find it.

Sunflowers by Vincent van Gogh 1888

National Gallery

London, United Kingdom

Wikimedia Commons

Sunflowers

Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

September 12, 2017

Opps! These Are Coneflowers!

Sunflower and Bee

Butchart Gardens

Brentwood Bay, British Columbia, Canada

September 12, 2017

For Tom: Aloha ~ A Hawaiian Sunflower!

Yellow Hibiscus

Honolulu, O'ahu, Hawai'i

January 27, 2024

For Nicole: Curiosity ~

I could find Terry in the National Gallery, but not Vincent.

Terry Views a Lion-Headed Dagger

India, Mughal Dynasty 1650-1700

The National Gallery, London, United Kingdom

September 3, 2015

Have a great weekend!

Till next time ~
Fundy Blue

My next post will be

Wednesday, May 31st. 🤞

27 comments:

TomMay 24, 2024 at 8:00 AM
...first off, trying to contact Blogger when you have a problem is IMPOSSIBLE! Thanks for taking me along on your history journey, I don't get around like you. Your Hawaiian sunflower is spectacular. Louise, I wish you a wonderful weekend.
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ChristineMay 24, 2024 at 9:13 AM
Wonderful photos, I used that Van Gogh as my own art inspiration.
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Pat HattMay 24, 2024 at 11:00 AM
Lol never expect any answer from blogger. Kinda weird you got flagged though.

That sure looks like quite the place to explore indeed. A strategic spot that sure withstood many years.
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AnonymousMay 24, 2024 at 11:50 AM
Wonderful photos and thanks for the history.
The yellow flowers are beautiful and uplifting.
Speaking of Google, it sometimes reverts to an anonymous comment, so..
Dixie @ Arranged Words.
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carol l mckennaMay 24, 2024 at 5:24 PM
Amazing history post and photos ~ you do travel to great places ~ hugs,

Wishing you good health, laughter and love in your days,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)
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Gillena CoxMay 24, 2024 at 7:58 PM
OMG these are gorgeous.
Thanks gor linking to Art For Fun Friday

Much♡love

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DVArtistMay 25, 2024 at 1:57 PM
On little word and people are flagged. AI, does most of the flagging so that tells you everything. I personally love this post. Your mom and day looks so cool for the day. LOL Thank you for sharing this history and the faces with FFO. Have a great weekend.
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ViolettaMay 26, 2024 at 3:46 AM
Very interesting, dear Fundy. I think it is always dangerous to be engaged in things that have a relation to US army or US interests as the current history (Mr.Assange) shows. And I like Van Gogh too. Have a good time and thanks for visiting my blog
Violetta
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My name is Erika.May 26, 2024 at 5:39 AM
This is a really interesting post. I wonder why it was flagged originally as sensitive material. I'm glad this time it didn't get flagged. You'e inspired me (more than once) to visit Puerto Rico. It looks really interesting, and I can see why you say this fort is like bookends on either side of its story. Have a great rest of your weekend. hugs-Erika
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bailiMay 26, 2024 at 7:08 AM
dear Louise no doubt you had amazing parents who taught you to love learning about life and everything about it :)
i feel happy each time you mention your parents because i know the importance of good upbringing and how it can brighten the soul of child if he or she has instinct for learning .
it seems upsetting to know that your post has been tagged for "sensitive material" even there seems nothing bothering on any level .you have shared the simple and beautiful journey of this splendid place and so nicely that even a simple minded person like me can get things right.
this has been making me and hubby both sad for decades that whenever read history specially hubby who has been reading lot about history specially history of subcontinent more and history of world less often points out that man seems to have strong nature for dominance and no civilization has changed it . people keep fighting each other on the name of place ,religion or gold so on .it does not make difference whether they live in small tribes or in big countries . only strategy is changed but fight is on and will specially for those who value these things more than life of others who are weaker and vulnerable .
i lack words how much appreciate this post and the photos particularly are taken awesomely and add strength to knowledge you shared .
i think i will reread the post hopefully
sending you lots and lots of love hugs and best wishes!
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Soma @ InkTorrents.comMay 28, 2024 at 7:31 PM
I am glad you go to share this. Sunflower was a great choice for Van Gogh. Lovely photos!!
Have a wonderful week!

-Soma
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AnonymousMay 29, 2024 at 2:38 PM
Now I’m wanting to visit Puerto Rico. Thanks for sharing.
www.rsrue.blogspot.com
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RostroseMay 30, 2024 at 7:59 AM
Dear Louise, this time the post made it through without any warnings. Very strange indeed, but perhaps an oversensitive computer program reacted to some keywords that had to do with acts of war?
The trip you took us on was interesting and worth seeing!
When were your parents born? Mine got married in 1947, the year your photos are from, and were born in 1924 and 1926.
All the best from Austria, Traude
https://rostrose.blogspot.com/2024/05/weltreise-2024-immer-noch-tasmanien.html
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