Completed in 1695,
this
fort guarded St. Augustine until 1900 when it was taken off of
the active duty rolls. It had seen 205 years of service, under
five different flags.
It was pretty impressive and reminded me of several of
Hornblower's adventures.
The Castillo is a masonry
star fort
made of a stone called "coquina", literally "little shells".
Coquina is made of ancient shells that have
bonded together to form a type of stone, similar to limestone.
Some of the rooms have been furnished to look as they might have
when they were in use.
This group of re-enactors told us a little about the fort, its
history, and its construction, and demonstrated the precise
discipline involved in the shooting of a volley and the firing of a
cannon. We would learn more about the specifics of firing a
musket the next day while touring the Spanish Quarter.
This furnace, used for heating shells to fire at wooden ships,
reminded me of one of Hornblower's escapades in
Lieutenant Hornblower.
