FAQ's
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What is the White flag with the jagged red cross? Where are the nearest bathrooms? Why were the forts of Old San Juan built? When were these forts built? What does the name "El Morro" mean? Where is San Juan Hill? Where these forts ever in a battle? Has El Morro ever been captured by an enemy? How much time did it take to construct the forts? Which fort is older, El Morro or San Cristóbal? Which fort is larger, El Morro or San Cristóbal? Is there a dungeon? Are there secret tunnels that connect the forts with each other, La Fortaleza, the Capitol, the City Hall, or other famous buildings in Old San Juan? Were the moats of El Morro and San Cristóbal full of water? How far is El Morro from San Cristóbal? How big are the walls of the forts and the city walls? Who was Santa Bárbara? How many cannons were there in the forts? How far could the cannons at El Morro shoot? How many soldiers were there living inside the forts? Who built the forts? Were they slaves? What caused the Spanish-American War in 1898? Is it safe to drink the water in Puerto Rico? Is it safe to go down into the Cemetery and La Perla? Is El Morro closed to the public? What is the White flag with the jagged red cross?  At
El Morro and San Cristobal alongside the U.S. and Puerto Rican Flags flies
the "Cross of Burgundy," a Spanish military flag used from the 16th to
the 18th century to identify warships, forts, and regiments of troops
loyal to the king of Spain. When the great forts were built, this was
the flag flown. Top
Where are the nearest bathrooms? There are bathrooms in both forts on the same levels as the main entrances. At El Morro go into the plaza, turn slightly left and look for the water fountain. At San Cristóbal, enter the main gate, turn right; pass the two round structures which protect the wells, and the restrooms are on the right hand side.Top Why were the forts of Old San Juan built? San Juan Bay was a sheltered harbor that had high political and military value in the days of sailing ships. The easiest course to cross the Atlantic from Europe to the Americas was to go south to the coast of Africa; place your ship in the dependable trade winds and sail due west to the Caribbean. The trade winds, and wealth of the Caribbean islands in colonial times, made this harbor a target. El Morro was built to defend against sea attackers; later San Cristóbal was built to protect against attack on San Juan by land.Top When were these forts built? Spanish troops built forts in San Juan beginning in 1539 with a tower at El Morro and La Fortaleza. Most of the walls we see in the forts today were added later, in a period of tremendous construction from the 1760's-1780's.Top What does the name "El Morro" mean? This term means promontory or headland. It can also mean the forehead.Top Where is San Juan Hill? The famous hill which Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders charged up during the Spanish American War is not in Puerto Rico. It is in eastern Cuba, 500 miles away.Top Where these forts ever in a battle? There is a history of 5 battles: the attack on El Morro in 1595 by Sir Francis Drake; a second attack on El Morro and the city by Sir George Clifford, another Englishman, in 1598; a siege of El Morro by the Dutch in 1625; an invasion by 7,000 British troops and 64 warships under the command of General Ralph Abercromby in 1797; and the bombardment of San Juan by the United States Navy on May 12, 1898 during the Spanish-American War.Top Has El Morro ever been captured by an enemy? English troops captured El Morro in the 1598 battle. After occupying the fort and city for six weeks, an epidemic of dysentery killed so many men that they withdrew.Top How much time did it take to construct the forts? This is difficult to answer. There was constant modification for centuries (El Morro 248 years, San Cristóbal 150 years), however most work on El Morro occured over a 50 year span and most work on San Cristobal occured over a 25 year period.Top Which fort is older, El Morro or San Cristóbal? El Morro has a turret encased in the Santa Bárbara Bastion which was constructed in 1539. The oldest segment of San Cristóbal was built in 1634. However, the majority of the outside walls we see today in both forts are the same age - dating from the mid-18th century.Top Which fort is larger, El Morro or San Cristóbal? Although El Morro is more famous, it is such smaller than San Cristóbal. San Cristóbal covers 27 acres of ground (110,000 square meters) and is the largest fortification built by the Spanish in the New World.Top Is there a dungeon? Unlike the classic Hollywood movie scene, there was no dungeon specifically built for keeping prisoners. There are many underground chambers and vaulted rooms in both forts. Several rooms above and some below ground levels were used to lock up prisoners at one time or another. In San Cristóbal there is a room branching off a tunnel which led from the main plaza to the outworks which has for many years been labeled a dungeon. In it ships are drawn on a wall, which are the subject of a legend about the mutineers who seized control of the cannon of the fort in 1855 and held San Juan for ransom.Top Are there secret tunnels that connect the forts with each other, La Fortaleza, the Capitol, the City Hall, or other famous buildings in Old San Juan? This is one of the most persistent myths Park Staff hear daily. There are many tunnels in both El Morro and San Cristóbal, but none were "secret" and none went into the city. There is no tunnel connecting the two forts.Top Were the moats of El Morro and San Cristóbal full of water? The moats of both forts were designed to be dry. These barriers helped to protect the bottom of the fortress walls from enemy cannon fire by lessening the amount of wall open to fire. If an enemy did charge the forts (which never happened), the moats were a difficult obstacle at the end of the charge to climb down and then climb up the fort walls themselves.Top How far is El Morro from San Cristóbal? Just a little under a mile. To walk from one fort to the other will take 15 to 20 minutes.Top How big are the walls of the forts and the city walls? El Morro rises over 140 feet above the sea and has walls from 18 to 25 feet thick in places. San Cristóbal is over 150 feet straight up from the Atlantic shoreline. The city walls which join the two fortresses and once encircled the entire colonial capital city are 3.4 miles long. The fortresses and the walls, together with La Fortaleza, are recognized by the United Nations as a World Heritage Site, one of only 12 U.S. National Park units to be so designated.Top Who was Santa Bárbara? The chapel in the central plaza of San Cristóbal and the main cannon platform on the 3rd level of El Morro both bear this name. She was an early Christian saint of the 3rd century A.D. from Asia Minor, and the patron saint of any person in danger of fire or explosion. Cannoneers prayed for her intercession before working with these dangerous big guns.Top How many cannons were there in the forts? Over 450 cannons were mounted in the forts of Old San Juan.Top How far could the cannon at El Morro shoot? The size of the cannon determines the range of the shot. The average cannon found in El Morro 200 years ago could shoot a cannon ball a mile covering all of the areas between the forts and across the Bay. Some of the 18 pounders which shot a solid cannonball about 6 inches in diameter had a 3 mile maximum range. This maximum range for the smooth bore cannon is the origin for the 3 miles offshore international limit.Top How many soldiers were there living inside the forts? An average number for both forts combined would be 400-450 troops, but there were as many as 6,000 during the 1797 attack by the British.Top Who built the forts? Were they slaves? Work crews of civilian craftsmen, off duty soldiers, prisoners, and slaves were used in the construction of these forts. About 400 were busy in the peak construction times of the 1770's and 1780's, after King Carlos III had given the orders to make San Juan "a Defense of the First Order."Top What caused the Spanish-American War in 1898? Cuban insurgents revolted against Spanish rule, fighting a long, bitter guerrilla war. The United States was drawn into the fighting on the Cuban side after the mysterious explosion of the battleship "Maine" in Havana harbor. The last overseas colonies of Spain were captured by American troops in less than six months; Cuba and Puerto Rico in the Caribbean, and Guam and the Philippine islands in the Pacific.Top Is it safe to drink the water in Puerto Rico? Water quality in San Juan is maintained at stateside levels. The same environmental standards and laws apply here as on the mainland United States.Top Is it safe to go down into the Cemetery and La Perla? The NPS does not recommend that visitors go down into either the Cemetery which is outside the walls at El Morro, or the famous seaside barrio, La Perla, below the city walls between the two forts. Crime in general in Old San Juan is lower than in other communities in the metropolitan area.Top Is El Morro closed to the public? The historic grounds of El Morro have recently been restored to the way they looked in the 18th and 19th centuries. Parking areas and modern roads were removed in 1992, and vehicles are not permitted on the grounds, except for emergency medical or police cars. Fort El Morro is usually open to visitors every day of the year, except Christmas Day, and is a great deal more tranquil than when buses and cars could drive up to the main door. For your visit to El Morro allow an extra 5-10 minutes walk to the fort from the underground parking area at the end of the Norzagaray Street at the Fifth Centennial Plaza.Top  Back To Top
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