Mola Fortress, Military fortress at Port of Mahón entrance, Spain
Mola Fortress, also called Fortress of Isabel II, stands on the La Mola peninsula at the mouth of Mahón harbour, opposite the castle of San Felipe. Its main entrance is a massive gateway of rough light grey and tan stone blocks with a wide round arch, a smooth rectangular plaque above it, and a carved coat of arms with crossed weapons, a shield and two flanking eagles on the flat coping. Short stone bollards stand at the base, and long stone walls run left and right.
Construction began in the mid-19th century as a response to European instability of that era and was completed over several decades. It combines British structures from earlier occupation periods with later Spanish expansions.
The fortress takes its name from Queen Isabel II, who ordered it built and visited the unfinished works in 1860. Its grounds incorporate the Torre de la Princesa, a watchtower raised by the British in 1799 during their third occupation of Menorca, so Spanish and earlier British military presence stand side by side.
The fortress lies on the Mola peninsula at the mouth of Mahón harbor, next to Spain's easternmost point. Access is via the road from Maó; the site is exposed, with little shade and uneven stone surfaces underfoot. Allow time to walk the grounds and wear sturdy shoes.
The gateway's flat coping carries a carved coat of arms set on crossed weapons and a shield, flanked by two eagles. The fortified zone also takes in the Torre de la Princesa, one of two towers the British built on the Mola peninsula in 1799 during their third occupation of Menorca.
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