American Civil War Fortifications(1) - Coastal Brick and Stone Forts

The fortification of American ports began long before the 19th century. Small wood and earth works fortified the first settlements in the American Colonics from the 16th century onward. Shortly before the start of the American Revolution in 1775, some of these early coastal fortifications were developed into more substantial structures. Among the strongest of these was the Spanish-held Castillo de San Marcos, which protected St. Augustine on the Atlantic coast of Florida. An earlier structure had protected the first Spanish settlement at St. Augustine, but in 1672 work began on an imposing stone-built fortification; the first substantial fort constructed on North American soil. Designed by the Spanish engineer Ignacio Daza, it was essentially a square structure 320 feet across, with a bastion on each of its four corners. Its curtain walls were 36 feet high, built using blocks of coral rock. A ravelin protected the fort's entrance (sallyport), and two drawbridges linked this feature to the main fort by spanning a moat. This imposing structure is important in that it introduced contemporary F.uropean concepts of fortification to the Americas.
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