San Juan de Ulúa facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Fortaleza de San Juan de Ulúa |
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| Fortress of San Juan de Ulúa | |
| Veracruz, Veracruz, Mexico | |
View of the fortress
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| Coordinates | 19°12′33″N 96°7′53″W / 19.20917°N 96.13139°W |
| Type | Fortress |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by | Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia |
| Open to the public |
Yes |
| Condition | Deteriorated |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1535 |
| Built by | Spanish Empire |
| Materials | Stone |
| Battles/wars | Spanish attempts to reconquer Mexico Mexican–American War French intervention in Mexico |
| Garrison information | |
| Past commanders |
Francisco Luján (1568) José Coppinger (1825) Mariano Arista (1838) Juan Morales (1847) |
San Juan de Ulúa, also known as the Castle of San Juan de Ulúa, is a huge complex of fortresses, prisons, and a former palace. It sits on an island in the Gulf of Mexico, looking over the seaport of Veracruz, Mexico. The island was named by Juan de Grijalva's group in 1518. On March 30, 1519, Hernan Cortés met with important people from Moctezuma II's Aztec Empire here.
This amazing fortress was built over many years, from 1535 to 1769. Today, you can visit a local museum about the fortress, which opened in 1984.
Contents
History of the Fortress
The fort was built when Mexico was called New Spain and was ruled by Spain. Construction started in 1535 by the Spanish leaders. The fort grew bigger many times over the years. After the 1560s, it became a quiet Spanish army outpost in New Spain. In the 1580s, a designer named Battista Antonelli helped make the fortress even better.
The fortress was far from the main battles of the Mexican War of Independence, so it did not see much action during that time.
A Battle with Privateers
In 1568, Spanish soldiers at the fortress managed to trap a fleet of privateer ships in the harbor. Privateers were like pirates, but they had permission from their government to attack enemy ships. These privateer ships were led by John Hawkins. His cousin, a young man named Francis Drake, was also with him.
Even though Hawkins and Drake managed to escape on their own warships, many other sailors were killed by Spanish cannons. Several privateer ships were sunk or too damaged to fix. The sailors who survived were left behind by Hawkins, who decided to leave and find other targets.
These shipwrecked sailors had no rescue. They went inland and settled among the local people, becoming part of the Mexican population. Hawkins and Drake continued to attack Spanish ships carrying valuable cargo like gold and silver from Spanish colonies to Spain. This battle at San Juan de Ulúa is thought to be the start of Drake's strong dislike for Spain and its religion, which shaped his later life.
The Virgin of the Staircase
The fort once held a special statue called the La Virgen de La Escalera (Virgin of the Staircase). Her small chapel was under a stone staircase inside the fort. When ships arrived in the bay, this statue was raised to the top tower to welcome the passengers. Cannons were even fired to honor her! Travelers and people from nearby villages knew about the Virgin of the Staircase. This original statue has been missing for hundreds of years.
After Spanish Rule
After Mexico became independent in 1821, some Spanish troops stayed at San Juan de Ulúa until 1825. It was the last place in Mexico that Spain still controlled. Mexican General Miguel Barragán took control of it in November 1825. Later, the President of Mexico, Vicente Guerrero, ordered all Spaniards to leave Mexico. This was because Spain had tried to take Mexico back.
Since then, San Juan de Ulúa has been a symbol of Mexico's strength against foreign attacks. Many attacks happened in the 1800s:
- In 1838, the French attacked the fortress during the Pastry War. This war started because a French citizen wanted money for his damaged pastry shop.
- During the Mexican–American War, the United States attacked the fortress.
- In 1863, the French briefly took over the city when they made Maximilian I the Emperor of Mexico.
For much of the 1800s, the fort was used as a prison. Many important Mexican politicians were held here when they were not in power.
The last foreign attack happened in 1914, just before World War I. American forces captured and occupied Veracruz. This happened because of an event called the Tampico Affair and because Americans had invested a lot in the oil industry in the area. After a short but fierce fight, the Americans took the city, including San Juan de Ulúa. After seven months, the Americans left and gave the city back to Mexico. The city of Veracruz was given the title of Heroic for the fourth time because of this event.
A part of San Juan de Ulúa was also used as the presidential palace several times. Presidents like Benito Juárez and Venustiano Carranza stayed there. The fortress was also used as a prison, especially when President Porfirio Díaz was in power in the early 1900s.
Modern Times
The fortress was eventually closed because it was no longer needed to defend Mexico. It was too old to be a modern naval base. After many years of falling apart, work began in the late 1900s to fix it up. Some of these repair projects are still happening today.
San Juan de Ulúa has been saved, even though some parts are still damaged. It has been turned into a museum that is open to the public. The prison and most of the fortress are open for visitors. The old presidential palace is still being fixed because it was very damaged. The complex is a very popular place for tourists in Mexico.
The fortress has even been in Hollywood movies! San Juan de Ulúa was used to look like a fortress in Colombia for the 1984 film Romancing the Stone.
Gallery
See also
In Spanish: San Juan de Ulúa para niños
