Fort Tauco (From Spanish: ''Fuerte Tauco'', also known as ''Fortín Tauco'') is a coastal battery built in 1779 in the commune of

Chonchi Chonchi is a Chilean List of towns in Chile, town and Communes of Chile, commune located in Los Lagos Region. The commune consists of the town of Chonchi and the following villages: * Rauco * Quinched * Vilupulli * Teupa * Terao * Petanes * Notue ...

, Province of Chiloe in southern

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

History

Colonial history

In 1767 the

Governorate of Chiloé The Governorate of Chiloé was political and military subdivision of the Spanish Empire that existed, with a 1784–1789 interregnum, from 1567 to 1852. The Governorate of Chiloé depended on the Captaincy General of Chile until the late 18th cen ...

was separated from the Capitanía General de Chile, and attached directly to the

Viceroyalty of Perú The Viceroyalty of Peru (), officially known as the Kingdom of Peru (), was a Monarchy of Spain, Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in ...

. This administrative change introduced many transformations to the archipelago, including building a series of military forts around

Chacao Channel The Chacao Channel () is located in Los Lagos Region, Chile and separates Chiloé Island from mainland Chile. The channel is about 40 km long and 4 km wide and connects the Pacific Ocean and Gulf of Ancud. The channel was created during the Quat ...

and in the middle of the province. In this context, the Spanish engineer Miguel de Zorrilla designed a coastal fort able to protect the access to the city of Castro, capital of the province. Zorrilla designed a military placement in one of the narrower points of the fjord of Castro, and for this purpose a cut was made in one of the hills surrounding the fjord, in order to build an artificial terrace for the battery. In this place three cannons and a

culverin A culverin was initially an ancestor of the hand-held arquebus, but the term was later used to describe a type of medieval and Renaissance cannon. The word is derived from the antiquated "culuering" and the French (from " grass snake", follo ...

were installed. In this place were also located the barracks for the soldiers that occasionally had to take guard there. For protection against coastal attacks, the fort had a parapet of

fascine A fascine (pronounced ) is a rough bundle of wikt:brushwood, brushwood or other material used for strengthening an earthen structure, or making a path across uneven or wet terrain. Typical uses are protecting the banks of streams from erosion (a ...

in front of the terrace The fort was supported by a look-out dedicated to the vigilance of the fjord, and located not far from there.

Republican history

Due to its location, fort Tauco was never used in battle, and during the independence wars its usage was just as an alert system among the communities of the zone. Since 1826 the place is abandoned, and in 1930 its cannons are moved to Castro, where were used as decorations of the main square of the city until the first years of the 21st century. During this operation, the

was lost due to its falling overboard. It was declared

national monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a sp ...

by the decree 744 of 1926, but a report from the Chilean Society of History and Geography, which indicated that forts of Tauco, Poquillihue, Chacao and

Pargua Pargua is a village in the commune of Calbuco, in Los Lagos Region of Chile. It is located on the northeast side of the Chacao Channel. Pargua is on Route 5 (''Ruta 5 Sur'') and a ferry connects the village with the village of Chacao, Ancud Comu ...

were totally destroyed, led to the removal of the category for those places through the decree 1295 of 1983. After a process of restoration, three cannons were returned from Castro to their original position in the fort . However, due to the lack of infrastructure, the archaeological discoveries of the forts are currently located in the Municipal Museum of Castro. In year 2015 a new restoration process was executed. This project included building a new wooden look-out in the historical terrace with information about the site, and a lighting system visible from the sea. These works finished in the firsts months of 2016.{{cite web , url= http://www.laestrellachiloe.cl/impresa/2016/01/29/full/cuerpo-principal/6/, title= Fortín Tauco estrena remozado rostro con pabellón turístico, access-date=April 15, 2016 , last= Núñez, first= M. Eugenia, date= January 29, 2016 , publisher= Diario La Estrella de Chiloé

References

External links

Flandes Indiano Chiloense: un patrimonio invencible en el tiempo
Revista de Urbanismo,

Universidad de Chile The University of Chile () is a public research university in Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the co ...

. Colonial fortifications in Chile Buildings and structures completed in the 18th century Coastal fortifications in Chile Buildings and structures in Chiloé Archipelago