Calle del Castillo

Santa Cruz de Tenerife · Category: Architecture · Subcategory: Squares, streets & markets · Year: Siglo XVI

This street is one of the most important in the city. A prototype of a commercial street with heavy pedestrian traffic, it has been the busiest in Santa Cruz for centuries, and its longitudinal growth from the sea inland paralleled the urban growth of the city. It takes its name from the now disappeared Castillo de San Cristóbal, which was located on the site now occupied by Plaza de España, from where the street started and developed until reaching Plaza de Weyler.

Since the 16th century, when the other longitudinal streets stopped at Botón de Rosa (today Nicolás Estévanez), Calle del Castillo already reached Calle del Norte, today Valentín Sanz, in what were then the outskirts of the city. By the mid-18th century it had climbed further up the slopes of Santa Cruz, first reaching the height of Calle del Pilar (today Teobaldo Power), and by the end of the century to Calle de San Roque (today Suárez Guerra). This growth was greatly influenced by the opening in 1754 of the Zurita bridge, an element that configured a new route to La Laguna starting from the pier and running along Calle del Castillo to enter the island.

During the 19th century, the street beyond Suárez Guerra encountered estates, wasteland, and the beginnings of an urbanisation that could have definitively cut off its future development. In 1867 a citizens' board was formed to extend Calle del Castillo to the esplanade of the Military Hospital, as the town council was unable to do so. The works were funded by money collected from society members who subscribed shares. A project for the extension was drafted in 1872, revised by the municipal architect and approved the following year by the town council. The new section was inaugurated on 25 July 1875, on the occasion of the feast of Santiago. Later, the town council became its owner by purchasing the society's shares in 1883. Thus, the street was completed in its entire length: from the start at Plaza de La Candelaria, near the pier, to Plaza de la Capitanía General (Plaza de Weyler).

From its origins, it was a street with great commercial activity. In addition to merchants, several important shipping agents were established there, numerous offices of liberal professionals (lawyers, pharmacists, notaries), official buildings (the first headquarters of the Cabildo Insular, the Banco de España, the Telefónica offices, etc. were located here) and some important centres of cultural activity, such as the now disappeared Gabinete Instructivo (at numbers 60 and 62) and the still active Círculo de Bellas Artes.

The island's first tram ran along this street, initially on its route to La Laguna and later, after its extension, to Tacoronte. The first traffic light for vehicular traffic in the city was installed on Calle del Castillo, at the corner with Calle Norte, today Valentín Sanz.

On the occasion of Alfonso XIII's visit to the Canary Islands in 1906, the street was named after the monarch, and during the Second Republic it was renamed Capitán Fermín Galán, an infantry officer who unsuccessfully rebelled in 1930 against the Monarchy. After the Civil War, it reverted to its original name.

Today, fully pedestrianised, Calle del Castillo remains a major commercial axis for the city, keeping alive its spirit as a busy thoroughfare. Along its route there are numerous buildings of all periods and architectural styles (traditional Canarian, eclecticism, modernism, rationalism and contemporary architecture).

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