Morro Castle (Havana)

모로 요새 (아바나)

The Castillo de los Tres Reyes del Morro, or Morro Castle, is a fortress guarding the entrance to the harbour of Havana, Cuba. It sits on a rocky headland on the opposite side of the harbour from Old Havana, so it can be seen from miles away. The Spanish word 'morro' means a rock that sailors can see from the sea.

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At a glance

Country: Cuba
Location: Havana, Cuba
Built: 1630
Type: Fort

Quick answers

Where is Morro Castle (Havana)?

Morro Castle (Havana) is in Havana, Cuba.

When was Morro Castle (Havana) built?

Morro Castle (Havana) was built in 1630.

A fortress on the rocky headland guarding the entrance to Havana harbour, with an 1846 lighthouse still sweeping the sea.

The Italian engineer Battista Antonelli designed it, and it was built from 1589 in response to raids by pirates and enemy ships. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site 'Old Havana and its Fortifications', listed in 1982. A lighthouse was added to it in the 1840s and still shines today.

A chain across the harbour

In the early days the Morro protected the harbour mouth with a chain strung across the water to a fort on the other side, at La Punta. This kind of barrier is called a boom. Colonial Cuba was a frequent target of buccaneers seeking Spain's riches in the New World. Pirates, French corsairs and English privateers, including Francis Drake, all threatened it. In 1628 a Dutch fleet plundered Spanish ships in the harbour.

Captured by the British

In 1762 a British expedition captured Havana, and the Morro fell. The British held it for about a year, then gave it back to Spain under the Treaty of Paris in 1763. Until another fortress, La Cabaña, was completed in 1774, the Morro Castle was the main defence of the harbour. There had been a watchtower on the spot, which the British blew up in their siege.