Fortaleza Ozama

The oldest European military fort in the Americas, at the mouth of the Ozama River, keeping its medieval-style keep.

It is part of the Colonial City of Santo Domingo, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The fort keeps its medieval-style keep, called the Tower of Homage, which in the 16th century was the tallest European-built structure in the Americas at 18 metres. The tower stands at the centre of the grounds.

A fort to guard the port

The fortress was started under Governor Nicolas de Ovando to guard the entrance to the port and defend the city from English, French and Dutch pirates and other seaborne enemies. The Spanish architect Gomez Garcia de Varela built the main tower first, then the shooting platforms, then the main fort. Builders used coral stone taken from the sea, and enslaved Black and Taino people worked on it. The tower walls are 2 metres thick, and the mortar was a mix of gypsum, clay, lime and animal blood.

Prison and pirates

The English pirate Sir Francis Drake seized the fortress in 1586. Later it was used as a prison, holding pirates, politicians and independence leaders such as Juan Pablo Duarte, founder of the Dominican Republic. Tradition also says Christopher Columbus was held here. In 1965 it stopped being a prison and a military base, and today bullet holes in the doors still remind visitors of the fighting of that year.

Changes over time

The entrance gate on Calle Damas was first built in 1608, and in 1787 it was replaced by the present Carlos III gate. In 1938 a tall grey concrete wall with parapets was added along the riverside as part of modernising the port under dictator Rafael Trujillo, to look like an old fortification. A statue of Gonzalo Fernandez de Oviedo, governor of the fortress from 1533 to 1557, stands in front. The fort is still seen as the symbol of Santo Domingo's start as the first European city in the Americas.

On the globe

The model shows the old fort with its medieval keep beside the river. Look at the tall central tower.