The first settlement of what is now Santo Domingo was established by
Bartholomew Columbus on the East bank of the
Ozama River near the end of the 15th century. After the 1502 hurricane that claimed
Francisco de Bobadilla among its victims, however, the city was relocated on the West bank under the leadership of
Nicolás de Ovando. Ovando and his successor
Diego Colón presided over the first constructions of the Colonial City, many of which still exist today.
Santo Domingo's fortifications were an important feature of the urban landscape. The
defense wall (
muralla) extended from the
Ozama River to the
Puerta del Conde, which was the entrance to the
hinterland and the Western boundary of the city until the late 19th century. The Spaniards used this settlement as the first point of influence in the Americas, from which they conquered other Caribbean islands and much of the mainland of the Americas. Santo Domingo was initially the political and cultural hub of Spanish presence in the new world, but after a few decades started to decline as the Spaniards focused their attention more on the mainland after conquering
Mexico,
Peru, and other regions of Latin America. Ciudad Colonial nevertheless remained an important historical site. In 1655, the Ciudad Colonial was submitted to a
siege led by the English officers
William Penn and
Robert Venables. The 1655 invasion was thwarted by Spanish troops commanded by the Captain General of the Colony, Don Bernardino de Meneses y Bracamonte, Count of Peñalva, to whom the
Puerta del Conde ("Gate of the Count") is named after. The
defensive wall was modified during this episode. Prior to the invasion, there was a fort at the site where the
Puerta del Conde is today, Fuerte San Genaro. It is believed that the modification that occurred after the siege involved the expansion of the wall to the fort, effectively creating a
bastion,
El Baluarte del Conde. In the late 19th century and early 20th century, the city started to expand beyond its old boundaries but the Ciudad Colonial remained the main hub of activity until the
Trujillo era. Trujillo also presided over the restoration of major monuments, including the
Alcázar de Colón in the early 1950s. ==Colonial City today==