The Tower of Santa Ana

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria · Category: Memory · Subcategory: Memory spaces · Year: 1575-1579

[...] the northern wall ran downwards from the castle of Casamata, on the hillside of San Lázaro mountain to the point at which, between 1575 and 1579, the little defensive castle tower of Santa Ana was erected by the sea shore; when the tide was out it looked like an island, with its main entrance on a regular level, providing access to a wooden drawbridge which in turn when raised also separated the structure from land. 

In a meeting held in Las Palmas on 26th October 1541, under the presidency of Governor D. Agustín de Zurbarán, the proposal was put forward to build a wall around the city, and taking into account the situation of the Castle of Las Isletas, to build a fortress where this tower was installed. The site for it was chosen by D. Rodrigo Manrique de Acuña in 1554, with an estimated cost of 25,000 ducados. Governor D. Pedro Rodríguez Herrera laid the foundations for this work, as well as some trenches in its coves. The project was mainly down to Governor D. Martín de Benavides, who had originally arrived in Las Palmas on 7th July 1579. The tower was built on a reef, featuring a mixed line structure over a diametre of around 29 yards and 10 yards high, on the sea edge and closing off the avenue of Port of La Luz, with seven rampart cannons placed along the esplanade. It had a gunpowder, rope and cannonball store, and a bedroom made wholly out of stone. It was used against the English in 1595 and against the Dutch in 1599, who placed a barrel of gunpowder in the mayor's bedchamber and blew it up. Its mixed line base was partly a semicircle facing the city, whose ends extended out to sea, forming an angle of 77º and completing the circle.

In 1599, when the Dutch invaded, in the Castellano period of this Alonso Venegas Calderón Tower [...], Castellano ordered the door of the Tower to be walled in. He was given just enough defensive cover, but was exhausted, and saw that there was barely enough ammunition for them to hold out inside the tower. He informed the arms Commander, who ordered everyone out of the castle. Their resistance lasted two days, having defended resiliently, although they may have lasted a while longer, if it wasn't for the Castle of La Luz being handed over by its Mayor Antón Joven.

The tower was a good stone's throw out to sea, while connecting to land when the tide was out. It was accessed by the wall itself, and the door had a wooden board which if removed cut it off completely. 

The fortress was rebuilt in 1601 by Canary Governor Gerónimo de Valderrama y Tovar, but with only the capacity to hold limited amounts of gunpowder, replacement parts and a hollowed out platform for up to six men at a time. 

[...] in 1892 approval was given for the construction of a Batería de Salvas y Saludos over the original foundations of the Tower of Santa Ana. This was carried out in 1893, and continued in this way until by Royal Decree dated 2nd September 1903 it was decided that it should be moved to the former San Fernando, thus leaving Santa Ana tower as an empty shell.

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