Canary Islands Military History Museum

Santa Cruz de Tenerife · Category: Cultural spaces · Subcategory: Museums · Year: 1988

The Canary Islands Military History Museum is located in the Fort of Almeida, in the very heart of Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The fortress was built in the second half of the 19th century to the north of the Toscal neighbourhood, in a place long known as "Huerta de los Melones", already occupied by artillery batteries since the mid-17th century.

The museum opened to the public on 1 February 1988 and was officially inaugurated on 25 July of the same year. It has an exhibition area of more than 900 m2 indoors. The upper floor presents a chronological journey through the military history of the Canary Islands in connection with the events of its surroundings: the incorporation of the Canary Islands into the Crown of Castile, fortifications and militias, the Deed of 25 July 1797, Spanish West Africa, among others. On the ground floor, flags, monographic collections of weaponry, decorations, measuring and calibration devices, communications equipment, cartography, art, models and dioramas are exhibited. 

Among its collections was the "Hércules", a wrought cannon cast in Flanders in the 16th century that protected the coasts of Tenerife until the 19th century and was moved to the Castillo de San Cristóbal Interpretation Centre in 2009. It also houses two English flags won in combat against the forces that attempted the landing in Santa Cruz de Tenerife on 25 July 1797. Surrounding the site, the rest of its heritage collection is distributed among the garden areas and historic vehicles.

Its outer fortress, a faithful reflection of late 19th-century architecture, combines stone and the first hydraulic concrete in the Canary Islands. It has eight vaulted casemates and a defensive caponier. On its upper part stands a walkway among anti-aircraft pieces, from where the port and part of the capital’s coastline can be seen.

Since its opening in 1988, the museum has grown and increasingly offered more collections for visitors to contemplate. In addition to its permanent exhibition, it develops an intense activity that has made it a prestigious institution in the life of the city and the archipelago, relating to cultural bodies of the Autonomous Government, councils, town halls, universities, educational centres, etc.

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