Gun from the Infanta Maria Teresa

Contributed by Jon Ault

One of the guns of the Spanish Cruiser INFANTA MARIA TERESA is located at Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park in Groton, Connecticut. The gun is apparently a Honotoria 10 centimeter (5.5 inch) gun, one of ten that were aboard the Spanish flagship at the Battle of Santiago. This particular gun is reputed to have fired the battle's first shot. This page contains two images of the gun.

The gun is 17.5 feet long, and, at the breech is approximately 1.33 feet in diameter.
 

Three quarter view of the gun. Please note that the round cannon balls located at the corners of the gun's concrete foundation are not the type of ammunition that would have been used in this weapon.



The breech of the gun, showing the breech mechanism. At the top of the shield, a brass plaque can be seen. The plaque reads
 "This gun was taken from the wreck of Admiral Cervera's flagship MARIA TERESA, which fired the first shot July 3, 1898 as she steamed from Santiago Harbor."

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