Monuments to visit Santo Domingo

Located at the end of the Plaza España esplanade, the austere façade of the palace overlooks the River Ozama. It was built between 1511 and 1514 on the model of a similar building in Salamanca, Spain. It was the first fortified palace built by the Spanish colonizers, and the only known residence of a member of the Columbus family. To take charge of this monumental construction, an architect, whose identity has been forgotten, came specially from Spain. Some 1,500 Amerindians were forced to build the edifice from coral rock quarried from the banks of the Ozama River, using only hammer, chisel and saw. The building's style is predominantly Gothic and Arabic, with a few Renaissance features, such as the arcades. A technical feat, the Alcazar's 55 rooms (only 22 still exist today) and 72 doors and windows were built without a single nail. During his great sacking in 1586, the English pirate Francis Drake is suspected of having stolen most of the palace's valuables. The building was subsequently abandoned over the centuries and soon fell into ruin. There is evidence that the site, once an emblem of Spanish power, was used to confine cattle in the ^18th century. It wasn't until 1870 that it was declared a national monument to preserve its ruins. The Dominican government ordered its renovation between 1955 and 1957.

Built between 1502 and 1507 by order of Nicolás de Ovando to protect the city from pirate attacks, it is the oldest military construction in the New World. It is so reassuring that in the days of the colony it was called the Fuerza. At its centre is the Torre del Homenaje, a massive medieval tower dating from 1503, more than 18 m high. From its top, the view of the river and the city is superb. The defensive system of the fortress is completed by a series of forts. During the Trujillo dictatorship, the fortress was used as a prison.

The National Theatre was inaugurated in 1973 by President Joaquín Balaguer. In front of the imposing marble and mahogany building, the statues of the three great writers of the golden age of Spanish literature (Lope de Vega, Tirso de Molina and Calderón de la Barca) stand guard. In the entrance hall, the great Dominican baritone Eduardo Brito and Ludwig van Beethoven greet the audience. The main auditorium can hold 1,589 people.

It was one of the accesses to the city by land, built in 1543 in the style of a medieval fortified gate. In this place, Francisco del Rosario Sanchez, Ramon Matias Mella, and a group of patriots began the struggle for independence from Haiti on February 27, 1844. On the west side of the gate, the remains of the two small bastions that completed it are still visible. It owes its name to a small chapel built nearby in 1842, where the inhabitants went to implore for mercy.

Dating from the 17th century, originally called the bastion of San Genaro, the Puerta del Conde is part of the fortified wall that surrounded the city. It is one of the greatest symbols of the city. The gate is named after the Count of Peñalba, governor of the island, who defended the city against the English in 1655. Its two solid square towers are connected by a stone arch. It was the site of the first acts of independence of the Republic. Today the Puerta del Conde is one of the main entrances to the Independence Park.

Located at the very end of Calle Mercedes, this most important strategic place was a link in the great chain of garrisons and military forts built for defensive purposes in the course of the 17th century by the Italian military engineer J. B. Ruggero. The Fort of Conception is located on the edge of the colonial zone, next to the Independence Park. It is made entirely of stone and was used as a tramway station in the 19th century. A monument that you will not miss to discover during your visit to Santo Domingo.

The long, three-storey National Palace is built in pure neoclassical style. As if it weren't imposing enough, it has been topped by an 18 m radius dome. Built from 1944 on Trujillo's orders and inaugurated in 1947, the National Palace is the seat of executive power: it houses the government offices, but not the president's official residence. The neoclassical style of the palace was designed by Italian architect Guido D'Alessandro. The presidential chapel is in the same style.

This two-storey building was built in 1554 by the Duke of Rivera, whose shield surmounts the door of the main entrance. The house owes its name to a strange character who lived in it and permanently masked his face. The legends say that he was the twin brother of a Spanish king or a disfigured leper. It is also said that prisoners from Mexico were locked up here and never showed their faces so as not to be recognized. Today the building is used for cultural events and art exhibitions.

It is the most famous building on the street. It is said that the six zoomorphic gargoyles that adorn its façade are typical of the Middle Ages! They were used as much to drain rainwater as to protect the building from harmful influences. They would have originally belonged to the cathedral. This building was the seat of the university of Santiago de La Paz. The national anthem was first performed here on August 17, 1883. The house communicates with the neighboring houses through interior corridors. A very interesting building to discover.

It is one of the oldest buildings in the city, built by order of Nicolás de Ovando (who ordered a total of fifteen). The Casa de los Jesuitas is a simple building with a colonial appearance typical of the period and a Moorish interior. The University of El Gorjo was transferred there under the supervision of the Jesuits until their expulsion in 1767. It was then inhabited by a few local families before becoming the property of the State. The adjoining church, now a national pantheon for some of the heroes of the resistance, was built from 1714 and finished in 1755.

Built between 1540 and 1555, it is the only decorated gate in the city. It opened the access to the port. This is where goods and travellers entered the walled city. The gate is also called Puerta de la Mar. At the back stands the Fort of San Diego, whose two-level structure protruded into the waters of the Ozama River and which has undergone several destructions and reconstructions. The Calle de las Damas, which overlooks the San Diego gate, offers a beautiful view of the river and the Alcázar.

The three houses that make up the palace were built by Nicolás de Ovando, founder of the city, during the first decade of the sixteenth century, when the governor general lived in Santo Domingo. The long and low façade is faithful to the austere gothic style of the time. The houses were attached to the Davila house at number 57 of the street when they were restored, and transformed into a tourist hotel in 1974 by the Dominican government.

This monument pays homage to Antonio de Montesinos, a Dominican priest and defender of the American Indian peoples under the Spanish Empire. Donated by Mexico in 1982, the bronze and limestone structure depicts the priest delivering his famous sermon on December 21, 1511 against the injustices suffered by the natives. He even threatened excommunication and denied the sacraments to the large landowners who enslaved the natives in the mines and fields.