El Morro: The Legacy of the Colonial Period in the United States

            

Along with the Spaniards who came and conquered the Americas from 1492 onwards, came their ideals, their beliefs, and their way of living. The Spanish crown spread their culture all throughout the new colonies and dramatically changed the natural way of life in the Americas. Their sphere of influence affected every corner of this ‘new world’ from present day Chile, through the Caribbean, and all the way up to present day Florida. Without a doubt, the Spanish led an imperial conquest that proved very fructiferous for them in multiple aspects. These conquests were so large, that their legacy spreads on to this very day.

One of the clearest examples of how the Spanish legacy as an empire is represented to this very day in the United States is through the forts they built throughout the nation. Most of these forts were built around the 16^th and 17^th centuries. They remind us of the discovery that eventually shaped the new world into what it is today.

Contrary to popular belief, the oldest fort in the United States is not ‘El Castillo San Marcos’ in St. Augustine, Florida, built in 1672, but rather ‘El Castillo San Felipe del Morro’ in San Juan, Puerto Rico, built in 1539. This fort is a representation of Spanish legacy in our nation not only for its original purpose as a fort but because of the history behind it, how it was made, what it was used for, how it operated, and its secrets.  

As a proud citizen of the United States and resident of Puerto Rico, I have had the privilege of visiting the fort and the museum within its walls several times. In it, we find out all the details and facts that magnify the historical significance of the fort, for not only is it historic for its presence but rather for its purposes and uses throughout history and how it actually came to be.

From the information presented in the museum, it is clear how ‘El Morro’ epitomizes the Spanish intentions, interactions, attitude, and presence towards its American colonies. The fort was created not for the sake of the colony itself but to protect it from enemy attackers seeking the wealth the island generated to the Crown of Queen Elizabeth and King Ferdinand. Practices such as the trans-Atlantic trade that permitted Spain to use raw materials produced in the colonies such as sugar and molasses to create products at a cheaper price back in the mainland such as rum and firearms (Denver Brunsman, Lecture 1: Collision of Continents), made Puerto Rico such a booming source of wealth. As a consequence of the riches these colonies represented, Europeans were incentivized to protect them in the same way that England felt the need to protect their 13 colonies during and after the 7 years’ war (Denver Brunsman, Lecture 9: The Seven Years’ War– Rule Britannia.)

Accurate with the Spanish’ predictions, the fort served as host for the European thirst to conquer colonies in the Americas. In multiple occasions, ‘El Morro’ found itself under fire from powerful nations trying to conquer its grandiose and seemingly impenetrable walls. A few of those attacks succeeded, such as the English Attack led by George Clifford in 1598, which successfully managed to raise the British flag in the fort and maintain control the island for several months until an epidemic forced him and his men to flee (El Morro National Parks Museum.)

Other than this, its very construction depicts the composition of the labor force in New Spain, as African and Native slaves were responsible for building it with little to no compensation in return. This aspect especially represents how the Spanish abused of the natives and exploited them through labor, causing the near depletion of the Indian population by the 1700’s (Denver Brunsman, Lecture 2: New Spain, New France, and the Age of Exploration).

Finally, another aspect that makes ‘El Morro’ such an accurate representative of Spanish influence is its iconic use of ‘garitas’, as they are known in Puerto Rico or ‘bartizans’ as they are known in the English language. These are “wall-mounted turrets projecting from the walls, most frequently found at corners, that protected a warder and enabled him to see his surroundings” (Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition). These structures were famously used by the Spanish empire all throughout the 14^th, 15^th, and 16^th century and thus, epitomize the architectural legacy left by the Spaniards in the Americas, specifically in the United States.

            Since the United States army officially retired from ‘El Morro’ in 1961, it has been nationally and globally praised as one of the most priceless standing structures of the time of ‘The Conquistadores’. For example, in 1983 it was declared a World Heritage Site by the United Nations (UNESCO, World Heritage List). Also, What makes ‘El Morro’ truly a legacy is its virgin state, preserving nearly every inch of the original Spanish fort that has defended the island from countless attacks throughout history.

The accurateness of ‘El Morro’ and its unadulterated state make it a site of historical grandeur. The National Parks Service has done a successful job in maintaining the fort in its natural state to the extent that, other than flying the American and Puerto Rican flags as the law duly requires, it also flies the Spanish Cross of Burgundy, which was the flag used by Spain as their Naval Ensign from 1506-1701. ‘El Castillo San Felipe del Morro’ is definitely a representative landmark of how the legacy of the ‘conquistadores’ is still present in this not-so-new world, more than 500 years after their arrival.