Puerto Rico as a Key to the Antilles

Christopher Columbus, an Italian explorer, landed in Puerto Rico on November 19, 1493. There he found the “taínos,” peaceful and generous Indians that inhabited Puerto Rico. They called the island “Borikén,” however, after Columbus took over the island, he named it San Juan Bautista in honor of Saint John the Baptist, and forced the “taínos” into slavery. Meanwhile, the Spanish reign over Puerto Rico, King Charles V of Spain, authorized the construction of Castillo San Felipe del El Morro, which was named in honor of King Phillip II. They needed to control the entry to the harbor and protect the port of San Juan; therefore, the Spanish built this fort in the entrance of the San Juan Bay to protect the Old San Juan City from enemies (Los Fuertes del Viejo San Juan).

When El Morro was built, it was just a simple tower. In 1587, the engineers Juan Tejada and Juan Bautista Antonelli designed El Morro’s actual appearance. They designed this fort similarly to the Spanish military fortifications in that time period. In order to effectively reach El Morro, one would need to cross the Field of Fire, which is a large open piece of ground. El Morro has six extraordinary levels. One in particular is the main entrance of El Morro that requires crossing a dry moat on the drawbridge. “These moats were designed to defend the lower section of the fortress' walls” and takes you to the main plaza, which is the fifth level of the fort (El Morro- A UNESCO World Heritage Site in San Juan).

Through a ramp in the main plaza, the upper level could be reach, where the “garitas” are placed all over the upper wall.  The “garitas” became a unique aspect of the Puerto Rican fortresses. They are small, circular sentry posts where guards would stand to watch. The “garitas” provided protection for the city, and protection for the guards as well; their small openings made it difficult for enemy to hit the soldiers inside. The short and compact size of the “garitas” usually required soldiers no higher than five feet (Puerto Rico- At a Glance).

Soldiers would assemble for daily inspection in the Main Plaza of El Morro. The rooms around the sides of the Main Plaza were used as living quarters, storerooms, powder magazine storage, prison cells and canon firing positions. Since the Spanish were very religious people, most of the soldiers in El Morro adopted Catholicism, and they established a chapel in the main plaza where they would worship (Coqui).

Every morning the soldiers would wake up hearing the drums playing the song “La Diana,” and through the day the soldiers spend most of their time learning how to load and fire their guns. Soldiers also boiled beef, pumpkin, corn, plantain, “yucca”, “malanga” and “batata” seasoned with garlic, onions and peppers. This meal, known as “el sancocho,” was very common in these days. After dinner, soldiers usually smoke cigars and played cards or dominoes until late in the night. Then, soldiers would stand in the “garitas” and patrol around the lighthouse to guard the fort (Los Fuertes del Viejo San Juan).

Puerto Rico’s first lighthouse was built in El Morro, which is located in the upper level. This lighthouse was destroyed during the Spanish-American War in May of 1898, “when Admiral Sampson arrived with a fleet of twelve ships and bombarded the city of San Juan.” After the Americans gained control of Puerto Rico, Ensign W.R. Gherardi took control over Puerto Rico’s first lighthouse. He immediately began working on an octagonal tower, built of reinforced concrete. After a few years, the concrete tower developed a serious crack and was replaced with the now existing three-story tower (Puerto San Juan (El Morro), P.R.).

Puerto Rico’s geographic position in the Caribbean makes the port of San Juan one of the most important ports in the Spanish domain. San Juan served as an important port-of-call for ships of all European nations for purposes of taking on water, food and other commercial provisions and mercantile exchange. King Phillip IV named Puerto Rico the most coveted port by their enemies. Various forts were built to protect the strategic port of San Juan from numerous invasion attempts; however, El Morro received several attacks from foreign powers on various occasions. In 1595, Sir Francis Drake tried to take over Puerto Rico. He attacked San Juan with his fleet, but the Spanish defense was too good and Sir Francis Drake failed his attempt to gain control. In 1598, George Clifford attacked Puerto Rico, but he used a different strategy. Clifford succeeded because he entered San Juan through land instead of entering right through the San Juan Bay, although he captured Puerto Rico for just a couple of months. In that time, there was an epidemic of a disease called dysentery, which caused him to leave the island. In 1625, Boudewijn Hendricksz also attacked Puerto Rico following George Clifford’s idea of invading through land. Although he failed, they burned and destroyed the city before leaving. Last attack Puerto Rico survived was the Bombardment of San Juan on May 12,1898, in which the Spanish American War was between the United States Naval warships and the Spanish fortifications.  El Morro was attacked at least three times by American naval forces, but the Spanish arms weren’t able to damage United States modern vessels (Los Fuertes del Viejo San Juan).

Commissioners from the United States and Spain met in Paris on October 1, 1898 to create a treaty of peace. On December 10, 1898, United States and Spain signed a Treaty of Paris that would bring an end to the war. The second article of the 1898 Treaty of Peace Between the United States and Spain states that “Spain will cede to the United States the island of Porto Rico and other islands now under Spanish sovereignty in the West Indies, and also an island in the Ladrones to be selected by the United States.”  They negotiated on terms favorable to the U.S., which allowed temporary American control of Cuba and indefinite colonial authority over Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines. Since then, Puerto Rico has been part of United States, and in 1961, the United States Army officially retired from El Morro. The fort became a part of the National Park Service to be preserved as a museum. In 1983, the Castillo and the city walls were declared a World Heritage by the United Nations. People all around the world come to Puerto Rico to visit the impressive fort El Morro. The admission fee costs three dollars per person for ages sixteen and older, kids under fifteen are free. The fort opens to the public seven days a week from nine in the morning until six in the afternoon (Fort San Felipe del Morro).