Cartagena - Colombia

New country, new unesco world heritage site :D Thanks to Jenny "razviti".

This is the San Filipe Castle in Cartagena, Colombia.

"Cartagena de Indias was founded in 1533 by the Spanish conqueror Pedro de Heredia, who actually built it at the location of an existing settlement of the indigenous Carib Indians. It soon acquired importance as the main gateway for Spain into South America, and it became the warehouse of the Spanish treasures taken from the newly discovered territories. Not surprisingly, Cartagena became a prime target for pirates, and in order to defend it against attackers, the city was turned into a fortress, surrounded by a defensive wall. The Spanish also decided to build a real fortress, which was cleverly constructed to make it difficult to attack and impossible to conquer. Initially based on a design of the Dutch engineer Ricardo, the fortress was ultimately finished by Antonio de Arévalo."

Cartagena's colonial walled city and fortress were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984.

"The Castillo San Felipe, originally built in the 16th century and rebuilt in the mid-17th century, was so strong and so well located, on top of the San Lázaro Hill, that is was never taken. There were plenty of attempts, heavy battles, but in the end, the defenders always prevailed. The most famous battle was the one waged by the English admiral Edward Vernon in 1741. The British were so convinced of their victory against the Spanish, based on their much larger numbers of ship, cannons and men, that they even minted coints depicting a humiliated Blas de Lezo kneeling before Vernon. In reality, however, the Brits were defeated, and the physically handicapped Blas de Lezo, missing a leg, an arm and an eye, turned into a hero. He is still visible as a statue at the foot of the San Lázaro hill on which the fortress is built. Copies of the British coins depicting his defeat are attached to the sides of the pedestal on which his statue stands." - in: www.traveladventures.org/continents/southamerica/castillo-san-felipe/shtml