San Juan National

Historic Site
By: Jordan Crayton and Alejandra Hernandez

San Juan National Historic Site in the Old San Juan section of San
Juan, Puerto Rico, is a National Park Service-managed historic site
which protects and interprets colonial-era forts such as Castillo San
Felipe del Morro, bastions, powder houses, and three fourths of the
old city wall.

Historical Importance
The history of San Juan begins a long time before its official foundation, in 1493,
during his second voyage, Christopher Columbus landed in Puerto Rico. He
named the island "San Juan Bautista", in honor of John the Baptist. But was not
until 1508, that the Spanish government appointed Juan Ponce de Len as the
first governor of the island. He founded the original settlement in Caparra, now
known as Pueblo Viejo, behind the almost land-locked harbor just to the west of
the present metropolitan area and the city quickly became Spain's most
important military outpost in the Caribbean.

The main elements of the massive fortification of San Juan are La Fortaleza, the three
forts of San Felipe del Morro, San Cristbal and San Juan de la Cruz (El Cauelo), and
a large portion of the City Wall, built between the 16th and 19th centuries to protect
the city and the Bay of San Juan. They are characteristic examples of the historic
methods of construction used in military architecture over this period, which adapted
European designs and techniques to the special conditions of the Caribbean port
cities.

San Juan National Historic Site preserves stories of great ambition and aspirations.
Countries fought for control of this tiny yet strategic island for centuries. For
example, in 1797, a formidable British military force with more than ten thousand
troops launched its third and final attack on Puerto Rico. British forces, led by Sir
Ralph Abercrombie, again tried to take control of one of the most strategic locations
in the New World, Puerto Rico. Against odds, the attackers were repelled by a
determine force of defenders. Spanish soldiers, members of the Puerto Rican Fixed
Regiment, Puerto Rican Disciplined Militias and citizens valiantly defended San Juan
with the fortifications behind them.

Economical Importance
San Juan is the largest processing center of the island, the metropolitan area has
facilities for petroleum and sugar refining, brewing and distilling and produces
cement, pharmaceuticals, metal products clothing, and tobacco. The port is one
of the busiest in the Caribbean. San Juan is the country's financial capital, and
many U.S. banks and corporations maintain offices or distributing centers there.
San Juan is center of Caribbean shipping and is the 2nd largest sea port in the
area (after New York City).

In the past, Puerto Ricos geographic position at the edge of the Caribbean made
San Juan one of the key frontier outposts of Spains West Indies dominions. The
forts here and those in Cartagena, Portobelo, Havana, Veracruz, and St.
Augustine formed a chain of defenses that guarded Spains New World trade
routes and helped to protect the treasure ships that vitalized her empire. King
Phillip IV called Puerto Rico the front and vanguard of all my West Indies the
most important of them all and the most coveted by my enemies

Historical Context
Since the arrival of Ponce de Len in 1508, to 1511, the Spaniards and the Tanos lived in
a relative peace. After Ageybans death in 1510, however, the relationship
deteriorated progressively until the Tano decided to attack the Spaniards. The Tano
revolted against the attempts of the Spaniards to use them as forced labor and also
against their forced conversion to Christianity. The Spanish established in the colony the
repartimientos and the encomienda forced labor system. These systems were, with
some variances, implemented later in the rest of the empire.

Why We Should Care

The fortifications of San Juan,
Puerto Rico, have dominated
the Caribbean landscape for
over four centuries. They stand
as a formidable testimony to
the people and issues of the
day bearing symbolic witness
to changing uses and values
over time. Designated by the
United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural
Organization as a World
Heritage Site in 1983, today
these awe-inspiring structures
are protected by San Juan
National Historic Site, a unit of
the National Park Service,
United States Department of
Interior.

Why We Should Care

Also this place receives

more than one million of
visitors each year, who can
enjoy and learn more about
this historical setting, which
reflects developments in
military architecture during
its service over the
centuries as a fortress, an
arsenal, a prison, and
residence of the GovernorGeneral and today the
Governor of Puerto Rico.