Castillo de San Marcos
- katellashisadventure
- Apr 20
- 2 min read
Castillo de San Marcos is a beautifully preserved Spanish Fort in St. Augustine, Florida. This fort was built by the Spanish between 1672 and 1695, when it was finally completed. Before 1672, several wooden forts had been on the site, and the area had been attacked repeatedly until the Spanish government decided it needed a stronger fort. The fort originally protected the sea route for treasure ships as well as guarding the St. Augustine settlement.
Don Manuel de Cendoya, the Spanish governor, began the project with an estimated budget of 70,000 pesos, but by the time it was finished, it cost 138, 375 pesos. He only lived for five months after the project began, but he put a tremendous amount of his own money into the project. So much so that it took 10 years for his widow to collect what was owed to him, and during that time she had to live on charity with their two children.
The fort itself is made of coquina, which is a light and porous shell stone. It is so amazing to just run your fingers across the stone and feel the shells in the walls. It is shaped like a square with four spear-like structures coming out, forming a star-shaped design. The walls are incredibly thick - so much so that a cannonball fired at the fort would be buried in the walls rather than shatter them.
The best part about visiting this fort is the view and the ability to roam the fort and read about each room and what it was used for during the time it was an active fort. There are plenty of park rangers or museum volunteers around the area to answer your questions, and best of all, they are dressed in period clothes. You can also see a historic weapons demonstration at various times during the day.
The views are amazing, as you can see by the pictures, and the day I visited the park with friends, there was a wonderful breeze with a bright sun overhead. Be prepared to have at least some sunscreen or a hat when visiting, along with an appetite for learning.
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