The Place
Built in the late 1700s, the Real Felipe Fortress in Lima, Peru was pivotal in several battles during Spain’s rule over the country. The construction was built so it was the ultimate fortress for defense during its time. It is said to have been built to even withstand tsunamis.
Viceroys Galore!
During the Viceroyalty of Peru, the barrio (neighborhood) of Callao was one of the main ports for Spain in the Americas. Prior to the construction of the fort, pirates were a major threat and terrorized the area on many occasions. In order to protect the port, viceroy Pedro Alvarez de Toledo y Leiva ordered for walls to be built around the city. Nearly a century later in 1746, a major earthquake his Lima and destroyed most of the walls around the city. Viceroy Jose Antonio Manso de Velsco ordered the construction of the fortress in order to protect the important port city during this time.
Who Is This Godin Guy?
A French architect by the name of Louis Godin was selected to design the fortress. On January 21st, 1747 the construction of the fortress began. The construction of the fortress was a massive undertaking for its time and cost Spain nearly three million pesetas to build.
Most of the stone used to construct the fort came from the nearby San Lorenzo Island off the coast of Lima and from the ruins of the walls surrounding the city. The name of the fortress was to honor the Spanish King Felipe V, whom had recently died during the time of the construction.
Construction Complete!
The construction was completed in 1774 with later enhancements added throughout the next century as time went on. By the early to mid 1800s, the fortress was a well-fortified and self-sufficient base, capable of feeding and supplying soldiers for up to four months during a siege.
The first major test for the fortress came around January 1816 when Admiral Guillermo Brown blockaded the port of Callao, captured several boats loyal to the crown, and bombarded the port. His rebellion was quickly subdued as artillery fire from the fortress quickly eliminated their threat.
The Tour
The fortress is an immense place full of historical artifacts and cool buildings to visit. It is constructed from stone for the most part. You will be able to see many artifacts, weapons, and statues throughout the tour.
The first part of the tour will show you a statue of Francisco Bolognesi Cervantes and then take you to see some artillery from the 1700s to the mid 1900s. You will see canons, tanks, and even some real canon balls!
After seeing the artillery, we headed to the Casa del Gobernador (The Governor’s House) on the left side of the fortress. This building will likely make up a quarter of your time on the tour or more depending on how fast you went through the previous stuff.
The Governor’s House
A view of the entrance to the Governor’s House. This building houses the military museum.
The canon balls in the photo above are real and are still filled with gunpowder. I was able to hold them, but you should be careful if you decide to hold them, as they are very heavy for their size!
After viewing the canons and seeing some of their ammunition, we headed deeper into the fortress. Once there, we saw displays of ancient native artifacts, military, weapons, and some people dressed as pirates. Yes, there will be some people dressed as pirates who will try to sell you some souvenirs. Yay!
When you step outside of the Governor’s House you can see part of the modern military barracks that resides in the center of the fortress. As you take the tour, you are likely to encounter Peruvian military soldiers throughout the fortress.
You can see the Governor’s House in the distance along the wall here.
Yes, there are tanks here. I wanted to drive one but they wouldn’t let me do that for some reason.
Casa Bolognesi Replica
On the left side of the picture above, you can see a replica of the Casa de Bolognesi. The original house is located in present-day Arica, Chile. During the War of the Pacific, Arica was part of Peru and the original house served as the headquarters for the Peruvian troops who were stationed there.
The Forbidden Place
I managed to sneak away from the group and take some of these photos from an area along the wall. You can see the replica house on the left.
This is a view of a shipyard. After I took this photo, a military guy came and told me I couldn’t be up here. In cases like these, it is good to play the part of the dumb foreigner who doesn’t speak Spanish and pretend you are lost.
The King’s Tower
As you make your way through the King’s Tower you will walk through many long passages such as this one. They are pretty narrow and the walls are pretty rough, so be careful if you have a material backpack; you may rough it up a bit.
I believe I was put into the dungeon for going to that forbidden zone earlier.
A Paranormal Occurrence?
A strange thing happened when I split from the group and entered this room. The dog in the photo followed me and seemed pretty concerned about where I was going. Prior to this, the dog and I had very little interactions.
As I prepared to take the photo, the dog sat in that spot and kept looking at me and towards the light, as it is doing in the photo. Another strange thing happened in the room, my camera’s digital viewfinder went dark after showing some “static” on the screen. I reset the camera several times but it did it again and again.
I took five photos in that room, or rather attempted to do so without the viewfinder as a result. When I checked my memory card while in the room, there was no photo either. When I got home that evening and put the memory card into my computer, I was very surprised to see that one of the photos had indeed been taken and that it was not complete garbage, quality-wise.
I’m not a major believer in the paranormal, but I do consider these events to be strange. My camera has not exhibited such behavior since then, and I have taken well over 1,000 photos since this one was taken.
Atop The King’s Tower We Go!
Ah, finally we saw the light of day again! I cannot imagine how horrible it must have been for the prisoners in the dungeon area of this tower. Imagine staying in that dark place with no view and little-to-no sound coming from the outside world. Some people would surely lose their minds while staying in such places for extended periods of time.
Here you can see some old colonial buildings and a shipyard along the coast.
The sports area you see here is a recreational area for the military. I saw some people training here and playing tennis when I was at the top of the King’s Tower.
A view from the top of the King’s Tower. You can see San Lorenzo Island in the distance. Many of the rocks use to construct the Real Felipe Fortress came from the island.
In the distance, you can see the “forbidden area” I was not supposed to go to. Shame on me for taking photos of a tourist site I paid to see.
Conclusion
The Real Felipe Fortress in Lima, Peru is well worth a visit. Such historical sites are being destroyed as time goes on and when you come to places like this, you can see the history that built the Americas. I feel lucky to have seen such places because many people never see places like this in their entire lifetimes. Anyway, until next time!
