Castillo San Felipe del Morro

Castillo San Felipe del Morro
El Morro
From top, left to right: Front of El Morro from the Atlantic; inside from fourth level inner bailey onto ramp to third-level battlements; panorama from fourth-level onto San Juan Bay, Isla de Cabras, and Ocean; garita or bartizan overlooking the Atlantic; inside view from fourth-level surrounding outer bailey onto ramp to fifth-level inner bailey with sentry boxes visible; inside main courtyard or inner bailey on fifth-level; entrance from dry moat onto curtain wall, drawbridge, hornwork gate, and lighthouse; entrance from Calle del Morro esplanade onto glacis; panorama from El Morro onto Old San Juan with Santa María Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery and La Perla historic shanty town outside the northern section of the Walls of Old San Juan; profile from opening of Bay next to Paseo del Morro; entrance from middle of Bay onto western section of the Walls of Old San Juan; aerial from middle of Bay; and aerial from the Atlantic
Interactive
General information
Type	Medieval fortification, Citadel, Promontory fort
Architectural style	Classical architecture
Location	San Juan Islet, Old San Juan, Puerto Rico
Address	501 Calle Norzagaray, Old San Juan, San Juan, PR, 00901
Coordinates	18°28′15″N 66°7′27″W / 18.47083°N 66.12417°W / 18.47083; -66.12417
Construction started	1539
Completed	1787
Height	140 feet
Dimensions
Diameter	18 to 20 feet thick walls
Technical details
Material	Sandstone, Brick, Sand, Clay
Size	70 acres, including Calle del Morro esplanade
Floor count	6 levels
Design and construction
Engineer	Juan de Tejada, Juan Bautista Antonelli (1587); Alejandro O'Reilly, Thomas O’Daly (1765)
Known for	Battle of San Juan (1595) Battle of San Juan (1598) Battle of San Juan (1625) Battle of San Juan (1797) Bombardment of San Juan (1898)
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Type	Cultural
Criteria	vi
Designated	1983 (7th session)
Part of	La Fortaleza and San Juan National Historic Site in Puerto Rico
Reference no.	266
Region	The Americas
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Designated	October 15, 1966
Part of	San Juan National Historic Site
Reference no.	66000930[1]
U.S. National Historic Landmark
Official name	La Fortaleza
Designated	February 27, 2013
Reference no.	13000284[2]

Castillo San Felipe del Morro (English: Promontory Castle of Saint Philip), most commonly known as El Morro (The Promontory), is a large fortress and citadel in the historic quarter of Old San Juan in Puerto Rico. Commissioned by King Charles I of Spain in 1539, it was first built as a fortified tower in honor of King Philip II, who oversaw its expansion into a hornwork fort by 1595. Over the next 200 years, especially in the reign of King Charles III, El Morro continued to be developed to reach its current form in 1787. Rising 140 ft from the Atlantic shoreline with 18 to 25 ft thick walls, the six-leveled edifice stands on a steep, rocky headland promontory on San Juan Islet guarding the entry to San Juan Bay, the harbor of Old San Juan.^[3] El Morro, alongside La Fortaleza, San Cristóbal, El Cañuelo, and other forts part of the Walls of Old San Juan, protected strategically and militarily important Puerto Rico, or La Llave de las Indias (The Key to the Indies),^[4] from invasion by competing world powers during the Age of Sail.^[5] It was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1983.