El Morro Castle

El Morro Castle, locally known as Castillo del Morro, is situated on a promontory at the entrance to the bay of Santiago de Cuba in Cuba. Its full name is Castillo de San Pedro de la Roca del Morro. It should not be confused with the El Morro Castle in Havana.

An earlier fort at this site was built between 1590 and 1610. El Morro Castle was designed in 1637 by Italian military engineer Giovanni Battista Antonelli, who also constructed El Morro Castle and La Punta Castle in Havana for the town's governor, Pedro de la Roca de Borja. Its primary purpose was to defend the city against pirates. Construction started in 1638 and continued intermittently for 42 years.

Antonelli designed a fort adapted to its location on a 60-meter-high promontory with steep sides, built on a series of terraces; there were four main levels and three large bulwarks to house artillery. Parts of the earlier fort were incorporated into the new structure.

In 1662, while El Morro Castle was being built, a fleet of buccaneers led by English admiral Christopher Myngs attacked and sacked Santiago de Cuba. They held the city for two weeks, during which the fort was partly destroyed and its artillery taken. After they departed, the Spanish government restored the fort and garrisoned it with 300 men.

In 1675, El Morro Castle was damaged by an earthquake and subsequently restored. In 1678 and 1680, the still-unfinished El Morro Castle repelled two attacks by French pirates. Another earthquake struck in 1692, damaging the fort again. By 1700, construction was finally complete.

Between 1738 and 1740, the fort was enlarged. Final modifications were made after damage from earthquakes in 1757 and 1766. By 1775, the threat of pirate attacks had lessened, and parts of El Morro Castle were repurposed as a political prison.

The fort returned to military use in 1898 when the U.S. fleet attacked Santiago de Cuba during the Spanish-American War.

Today, El Morro Castle is a rather simple museum and can be visited for a small fee. A great fortress set in a beautiful location, really a must-see.

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