| This Spanish ruin is
located on the cliff overlooking beautiful
Umatac Bay, which was the
site of Magellan's historic landing in 1521 and an early Spanish
colony. Visitors to Fort Nuestra de la Soledad can expect some
spectacular views of the natural beauty of
Guam and get a glimpse
of Spanish architecture and relics used when the Spanish first
colonized Guam.
For 250 years, beginning around 1565, Spanish galleons
sailed yearly from Acapulco, Mexico to Manila in the Philippines and
return. The only replenishment stop for these Acapulco galleons
on the long voyage was Umatac Bay. From 1680 to 1810, the
Spanish built four fortifications at Umatac to protect the anchorage
from pirates and privateers.
Governor Alexandro Parreno constructed the final
Spanish fortification on Guam and the last of the four Spanish
fortifications in Umatac, Fort Nuestra de la Soledad, Our Lady of
Solitude. The Fort was constructed of mamposteria on Mount
Chalan Ahiti consisting of a barbeta for mounting seven guns, quarters
for the soldiers, and an arsenal.
While the French explorer Freycinet in 1819 noted the
white of the Fort with its four cannons, the galleons had already
ceased to stop at Guam after 1815. The galleons no longer sailed
from Acapulco to Manila due to political unrest in Mexico. With
the usefulness of Fort Soledad gone, the Fort was abandoned. For
years the Fort crumbled aided by weather, treasure hunters, and World
War II. After World War II, the
Government of Guam transformed
the Fort into a park. |
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