Anchorage of Cala Teulera, near city of Mahon, Minorca; Spain---Our anchorage is overlooked by the ruins of a Spanish Fortress. From our vantage point, it looks like a couple of watch towers behind high walls…nothing special. We decide to dinghy to the beach and walk there anyway to check it out. What is hidden behind these high walls surprises and delights everyone. It is the best Fort I have ever visited with well preserved buildings and an elaborate tunnel system.
The brochure we picked up at the entrance has this description: “Fortress of Isabel II. In 1848, the Spanish Government made the decision to build the Fortress of Isabell II on La Mola near Mahon. At the time, France and Great Britain were disputing control of the Mediterranean, as both countries’ interest could be strategically represented, by the crossing of their shipping routes both calling in Port Mahon, where their squadrons took on board water and provisions. The Spanish Government, who then decided to appropriately defend Mahon harbor, whose former fortifications had been destroyed. The construction of the fortress took 25 years to complete, just at a time when technical revolutions would considerably affect the artillery systems of the age, leaving the fortress out-dated before completion.
Reminding me of scenes from Lord of the Rings, the Fortress was well preserved that your imagination needed little help to “see” the soldiers of the past running through the tunnels and gathering in courtyards for drills and assemblies.
Our walk thru history:
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