Batería de la Reina

Batería de la de la Reina built between 1856 y 1861, was a colonial military defense fortress that had accommodations for a garrison of 250 men and 44 pieces of artillery. It was demolished in 1901. Its site was in the esplanade that today occupies the Antonio Maceo park, directly in front in front of the La Casa de Beneficencia y Maternidad de La Habana orphanage and the Hospital de San Lázaro, opposite Marcos Lucio's Torreón de San Lázaro and next to the Caleta de San Lazaro, [1] The fortification consisted of a semi-circular building with a 44-gun battery facing the sea. Its fires intersected with those of the Santa Clara Battery - where the Hotel Hotel Nacional de Cuba is currently located - and the “Castillo de la Punta”.[1]

Batería de la Reina
Batería de la Reina
General information
StatusDemolished
TypeDefensive structure
Architectural styleFortress
LocationNext to Caleta de San Lazaro
Town or cityHavana
CountryCuba
Coordinates23.141832°N 82.371513°W / 23.141832; -82.371513
Groundbreakingca. 1856
Estimated completion1661
Destroyedca. 1900
Dimensions
Diameter100 metres (330 ft)
Technical details
Structural systemLoad bearing
MaterialBrick
Floor count1
Known for44 pieces of artillery

EcuRed writes: "The historical richness of the territory is incalculable through the times, dates from the sixteenth century, when the French corsair Jacques de Sores, on 10 July 10, 1555, penetrated through the cove of Juan Guillen (later Caleta de San Lazaro) between the Torreón de San Lázaro and the Parque Maceo, who took, looted and burned Villa de San Cristobal de La Habana, which was defended by Mayor Juan de Lobera. The Cabildo of September 26, 1664, determined to build a fortress next to the cove, one league from the Villa. He himself served as a lookout by placing a lit torch to warn of the presence of an enemy ship. Today, this monument represents the Municipality of Centro Habana. On July 26, 1912, the Cayo Hueso part of Barrio de San Lázaro was officially recognized as a neighborhood."[2]

Demolition
Main article: Barrio de San Lázaro, Havana
Batería de La Reina.1 demolition, 1900
Showing the coral stone quarry adjacent to the Espada Cemetery in the Barrio de San Lázaro.

In 1898 this battery was the main communications center on the Sotavento seafront, for which reason it had been equipped with rangefinders, telegraphs, telephones, and numerous means of observation. At the end of the Spanish-Cuban-American war, the fortification lost its function, at the beginning of the 20th century, its dismantling and later its demolition began.[1] The dates suggest that its demolition was linked to the building of the Malecon (1901), because the presence of this fortification blocked the passage of the Malecon through this area. The rubble from this demolition was used to fill the Caleta de San Lazaro.[1]

  • Map of the Caleta de San Lazaro showing the Batería de la Reina.
  • Batería de la Reina.4 demolition.
  • Batería de la Reina
  • Batería de la Reina.2 demolition.
  • Batería de la Reina.3 demolition.

See also

References
  1. "MALECON – BATERIA DE LA REINA". Retrieved 2021-11-09.
  2. "Cayo Hueso (Centro Habana)". Retrieved 2018-11-03.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.