Fort San Miguel
Encyclopedia
For Angola fort, see Fortaleza de São Miguel
Fort San Miguel was a Spanish
fortification
at Friendly Cove in Nootka Sound
(now Yuquot), Vancouver Island
.
It was first built by Esteban José Martínez in 1789 but dismantled in October of that year. It was then rebuilt and enlarged in 1790 then Nootka Sound was reoccupied by Francisco de Eliza
. The fort was essentially an artillery
land battery
for the defence of the harbour and buildings. The Spanish settlement, called Santa Cruz de Nuca, was the first colony in British Columbia
.
The fort lay near the home of Maquinna
, chief of the Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nations
.
On May 15, 1789 Martínez chose the location of his fortification at the entrance of Friendly Cove on Hog Island. Work progressed so that on May 26 they were able to place their artillery followed by the construction of barracks and a powder storeroom. On June 24, 1789 a salvo was fired from the new fort and the Spanish ships in what Martínez considered an official act of possession of Nootka Harbour. On July 4, the American vessels and their captains Gray and Kendrick
(who had arrived in the harbour 7 months earlier than Martínez) fired salvos and fireworks in recognition of their recent independence from Britain accompanied by a further salvo from the Spanish fort.
On July 29, 1789 new orders arrived from Viceroy Flores
directing Martínez to abandon the station and return to San Blas. The artillery from the fort was loaded back aboard the Princesa
and he left Friendly Cove on October 30, 1789. The fort was dismantled, but anticipating a reoccupation, Martínez buried crates of bricks and lime.
The fort was rebuilt one year later, in 1790, by Pedro de Alberni, a senior captain of the Spanish Army
from Tortosa
(Catalonia
), who served the Spanish Crown in the First Free Company of Volunteers of Catalonia along with 80 other men of the same origin. They sailed to Nootka with the Francisco de Eliza expedition. After arriving at Nootka, Eliza established three lines of defence: the 300-ton frigate
Concepción, the soldiers under Alberni on land and on the frigate, and the rebuilding of the battery
on San Miguel Island. The construction of the battery was difficult. It was built on top of a rocky island—tall but small. Embrasure
s had to be built to support the guns. It then took four days to emplace eight large cannons. Later, six smaller cannons were also emplaced. The battery did not have enough space for the remaining eight large cannon Eliza had brought, so they were stored ashore.
The Catalan
volunteers left the fort in 1792. In 1795 it was finally abandoned under the terms of the third Nootka Convention
. Before being occupied by Spain the site had been the Mowachaht summer village of Yuquot
. It was reoccupied by the Mowachaht
under Chief Maquinna
. Remnants of the Spanish post, including its kitchen garden, were still visible when John R. Jewitt
, an English captive of Maquinna, lived there in 1803-1805.
Fortaleza de São Miguel
For Canadian fort, see Fort San MiguelFortaleza de São Miguel or Saint Michael Fortress was a Portuguese fortress built in Luanda, Angola....
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
fortification
Fortification
Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defence in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs...
at Friendly Cove in Nootka Sound
Nootka Sound
Nootka Sound is a complex inlet or sound of the Pacific Ocean on the rugged west coast of Vancouver Island, in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Historically also known as King George's Sound, as a strait it separates Vancouver Island and Nootka Island.-History:The inlet is part of the...
(now Yuquot), Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...
.
It was first built by Esteban José Martínez in 1789 but dismantled in October of that year. It was then rebuilt and enlarged in 1790 then Nootka Sound was reoccupied by Francisco de Eliza
Francisco de Eliza
Francisco de Eliza y Reventa was a Spanish naval officer, navigator, and explorer. He is remembered mainly for his work in the Pacific Northwest...
. The fort was essentially an artillery
Artillery battery
In military organizations, an artillery battery is a unit of guns, mortars, rockets or missiles so grouped in order to facilitate better battlefield communication and command and control, as well as to provide dispersion for its constituent gunnery crews and their systems...
land battery
Land battery
A land battery is a special type of gun emplacement or anti-shipping naval interdiction fortification used in coastal defense to protect areas such as anchorages, harbors, and rivers...
for the defence of the harbour and buildings. The Spanish settlement, called Santa Cruz de Nuca, was the first colony in British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
.
The fort lay near the home of Maquinna
Maquinna
Maquinna was the chief of the Nuu-chah-nulth people of Nootka Sound, during the heyday of the maritime fur trade in the 1780s and 1790s on the Pacific Northwest Coast...
, chief of the Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nations
Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nations
The Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nations are a First Nations government on the west coast of Vancouver Island in the Canadian province of British Columbia...
.
On May 15, 1789 Martínez chose the location of his fortification at the entrance of Friendly Cove on Hog Island. Work progressed so that on May 26 they were able to place their artillery followed by the construction of barracks and a powder storeroom. On June 24, 1789 a salvo was fired from the new fort and the Spanish ships in what Martínez considered an official act of possession of Nootka Harbour. On July 4, the American vessels and their captains Gray and Kendrick
John Kendrick (American sea captain)
John Kendrick was an American sea captain, both during the American Revolutionary War and the exploration and maritime fur trading of the Pacific Northwest alongside his partner Robert Gray.-Early life:...
(who had arrived in the harbour 7 months earlier than Martínez) fired salvos and fireworks in recognition of their recent independence from Britain accompanied by a further salvo from the Spanish fort.
On July 29, 1789 new orders arrived from Viceroy Flores
Manuel Antonio Flores
Manuel Antonio Flores Maldonado Martínez Ángulo y Bodquín was a general in the Spanish navy and viceroy of New Granada and New Spain .-Early career:Flores entered the royal navy of Spain, where he commanded various...
directing Martínez to abandon the station and return to San Blas. The artillery from the fort was loaded back aboard the Princesa
La Princesa (1778)
La Princesa was a Spanish frigate or corvette built at the Spanish Navy base at San Blas and launched in 1778. She is sometimes called a frigate and sometimes a corvette...
and he left Friendly Cove on October 30, 1789. The fort was dismantled, but anticipating a reoccupation, Martínez buried crates of bricks and lime.
The fort was rebuilt one year later, in 1790, by Pedro de Alberni, a senior captain of the Spanish Army
Spanish Army
The Spanish Army is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest active armies - dating back to the 15th century.-Introduction:...
from Tortosa
Tortosa
-External links:* *** * * *...
(Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
), who served the Spanish Crown in the First Free Company of Volunteers of Catalonia along with 80 other men of the same origin. They sailed to Nootka with the Francisco de Eliza expedition. After arriving at Nootka, Eliza established three lines of defence: the 300-ton frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
Concepción, the soldiers under Alberni on land and on the frigate, and the rebuilding of the battery
Land battery
A land battery is a special type of gun emplacement or anti-shipping naval interdiction fortification used in coastal defense to protect areas such as anchorages, harbors, and rivers...
on San Miguel Island. The construction of the battery was difficult. It was built on top of a rocky island—tall but small. Embrasure
Embrasure
In military architecture, an embrasure is the opening in a crenellation or battlement between the two raised solid portions or merlons, sometimes called a crenel or crenelle...
s had to be built to support the guns. It then took four days to emplace eight large cannons. Later, six smaller cannons were also emplaced. The battery did not have enough space for the remaining eight large cannon Eliza had brought, so they were stored ashore.
The Catalan
Catalan people
The Catalans or Catalonians are the people from, or with origins in, Catalonia that form a historical nationality in Spain. The inhabitants of the adjacent portion of southern France are sometimes included in this definition...
volunteers left the fort in 1792. In 1795 it was finally abandoned under the terms of the third Nootka Convention
Nootka Convention
The Nootka Conventions were a series of three agreements between the Kingdom of Spain and the Kingdom of Great Britain, signed in the 1790s which averted a war between the two empires over overlapping claims to portions of the Pacific Northwest coast of North America.The claims of Spain dated back...
. Before being occupied by Spain the site had been the Mowachaht summer village of Yuquot
Yuquot, British Columbia
Yuquot or Friendly Cove is a small settlement of less than 25 on Nootka Island in Nootka Sound, just west of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada...
. It was reoccupied by the Mowachaht
Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nations
The Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nations are a First Nations government on the west coast of Vancouver Island in the Canadian province of British Columbia...
under Chief Maquinna
Maquinna
Maquinna was the chief of the Nuu-chah-nulth people of Nootka Sound, during the heyday of the maritime fur trade in the 1780s and 1790s on the Pacific Northwest Coast...
. Remnants of the Spanish post, including its kitchen garden, were still visible when John R. Jewitt
John R. Jewitt
John Rodgers Jewitt was an armourer who entered the historical record with his memoirs about the 28 months he spent as a captive of Maquinna of the Nuu-chah-nulth people on the Pacific Northwest Coast of what is now Canada...
, an English captive of Maquinna, lived there in 1803-1805.
Further reading
External links
- 1802 map of Friendly Cove by Espinosa y Tello, showing the artillery battery on top of San Miguel Island (I.a y Bat.a de S.n Miguel), David Rumsey Map Collection.
- 1844 map of Friendly Cove by Eugene Duflot De Mofras, showing San Miguel Island (Ile de San Miguel), Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps