Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
built by the Spanish in the mid-16th century and enlarged somewhat during the 17th century.
Nevertheless, the castle as seen here - an extravagant flowerlike shape formed of counter-
guards and ravelins, surrounded on the landward side by a semi-circle of batteries, lunettes
and redoubts - was largely the result of work conducted by the British at great expense dur-
ing the 18th century. The maze of underground galleries and passages (shown coloured grey)
were of mixed Spanish and British origin.
By 1754, when this plan was drawn by Thomas Souter, the castle was the largest of its kind
in Europe and was still growing. The stout walls and rugged cliffs depicted here present a
conscious impression of strength and impregnability, reinforced by the arms of King George
II (at left) and a suitably military cartouche (at upper right) featuring weaponry, drums and a
snarling beast. Even the sea looks threateningly unsettled.
When put to the test, Minorca's defences proved rather more vulnerable than the plan sug-
gests. In 1756, at the beginning of the Seven Years War, the French successfully besieged
the castle and gained control of the island. In a controversial incident, Admiral John Byng,
who had commanded the British fleet off Minorca, was court-martialled, convicted of failing
in his duty and subsequently executed. This episode was memorably satirised by the French
writer Voltaire in his novella Candide, in which the Royal Navy is said to have shot one ad-
miral 'to encourage the others'.
As conflict in Europe continued intermittently over the following decades, Minorca spent
two more periods in British hands, from 1763 to 1782 and from 1798 to 1802. St Philip's
Castle, however, never regained its former glory. It was destroyed in 1782 on the orders of
the Spanish King Charles III after his country regained control of the island. Another fort was
later built on the site, but this too was demolished in 1805. Although almost nothing of the
once-proud fortress remains above ground, several of the subterranean galleries survive, and
the outline of the castle is still clearly visible from the air.
