Arsenal de la Carraca

Arsenal de la Carraca, also La Carraca shipyard, is a naval shipyard in San Fernando in the Province of Cádiz, Andalusia, Spain. It is a naval base for the construction and repair of ships, and the storage and distribution of arms and ammunition. The first military establishment of its kind to be created in Spain under the naval policy of Felipe V, it was developed by Patiño and the Marquis de la Ensenada. Though work on building the shipyard began in 1720, the formal decree issued by Felipe V on October 3, 1752 accelerated its construction until it was completed in the late 18th century.

The arsenal is situated in the Bay of Cádiz, 2 miles (3.2 km) south of Puerto Real ("royal port") and 5.5 miles (8.9 km) southeast of Cadiz. It is within the San Fernando municipality in the Province of Cádiz. The location, chosen for its strategic qualities, was at one time a small island northeast of Isla de León, separated by the narrow continuation of the Puntal Channel (or Puntales). Surrounded by navigation channels, the royal dockyard and arsenal measures 3,600 by 1,800 feet (1,100 m × 550 m). The channel in front of the dockyard is 2 fathoms deep at low water.

The island was used for Spanish naval operations from 1655. The arsenal was established early on around the wreck of an old carrack which gave name to the arsenal. Under royal decree of Fernando VI in 1752, formal authorization was given for the construction of a naval shipyard. Antonio Valdés completed the yard during the reigns of Carlos III and Carlos IV. With its docks and workshops, it was the first naval construction centre to be built in Spain. As a result, San Fernando developed as an urban centre, some of its old buildings still standing today.

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