Which site was the heritage designation of La Fortaleza from Oct 1966 to Oct 1973?
La Fortaleza La Fortaleza ( The Fortress ) is the official residence of the Governor of Puerto Rico . It was built between 1533 and 1540 to defend the harbor of San Juan . The structure is also known as Palacio de Santa Catalina ( Santa Catalinas Palace ) . It is the oldest executive mansion in continuous use in the New World . It was listed by UNESCO in 1983 as part of the World Heritage Site La Fortaleza and San Juan National Historic Site . During the 1640 reconstruction , the chapel of Santa Catalina , which originally stood outside the walls , was integrated into the walls of the structure , resulting in the alternate name Santa Catalinas Castle . The structure . La Fortaleza was the first defensive fortification built for the city of San Juan , and the first of a series of military structures built to protect the city which included the Fort San Felipe del Morro and the Fort San Cristóbal . The construction was authorized by Charles V , Holy Roman Emperor as a defense against attacks from Island Caribs and the European powers of the time . Initially , the structure consisted of four walls enclosing an interior patio with a circular tower known as the Homage Tower . From the top of the tower , the governor , following military tradition , would take oaths of fidelity at critical moments to the King and Queen of Spain . Later , a second tower named the Austral Tower was constructed . At present , the complex consists of a few attached buildings with formal living quarters in the second floor , and private quarters in the third . It overlooks the high city walls that front the bay , and within the north perimeter of the house are sheltered gardens and a swimming pool . History . Starting in 1529 , Governor La Gama petitioned the emperor on the need to build defensive fortifications , because the islands defenseless condition caused the people to emigrate . Construction started in 1533 , with the use of stone , and concluded by 1540 . Yet the fort had no guns , and Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés commented if it had been constructed by blind men could not have been located in a worse location . Yet the structure has served as the governors residence since 1544 . Since the 16th century , La Fortaleza has acted as the residence of the Governor of Puerto Rico , making it the oldest executive mansion in continuous use in the Americas . On November 27 , 1822 , its traditional status as the executive mansion was made official . The fortress underwent a massive reconstruction in 1846 to change its military appearance into a palatial facade . La Fortaleza has been the residence of more than 170 governors of Puerto Rico and has hosted various dignitaries , including President John F . Kennedy and his wife Jacqueline Kennedy who stayed in La Fortaleza in 1961 . King Juan Carlos of Spain and Queen Juliana of the Netherlands are among several heads of state who have stayed in La Fortaleza . In June 2011 , U.S . President Barack Obama visited the mansion during a brief trip to the island marking the first visit of an in-office US President to the Fortaleza as well as the Island on official business since Kennedy , 50 years previously to that date . King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain also visited La Fortaleza in 2016 . La Fortaleza has been captured twice by invaders : - 1598 , George Clifford , Earl of Cumberland , attacked San Juan . - 1625 , General Boudewijn Hendrick ( Balduino Enrico ) of the Netherlands invaded the city and established himself at La Fortaleza . During the Dutch retreat , the fortress and the city were set ablaze . In 1834 , Colonel George Dawson Flinter described the fortress of Santa Catalina as having a chapel , stables and a cistern as well as an east wing with spacious apartments . According to tradition , in 1898 , just before the United States invaded Puerto Rico during the Spanish–American War , the last Spanish governor of the island , Ricardo De Ortega , struck a longcase clock in La Fortaleza with his sword , stopping the clock and marking the time at which Spain lost control over Puerto Rico . On October 30 , 1950 , there was an attempt by a few nationalists to enter La Fortaleza in what is known as the San Juan Nationalist revolt , intending to attack then-governor Luis Muñoz Marín . The 5-minute shootout resulted in four Nationalists dead : Domingo Hiraldo Resto , Carlos Hiraldo Resto , Manuel Torres Medina and Raímundo Díaz Pacheco . Three of the guards of the building , among them Lorenzo Ramos , were seriously injured . On October 9 , 1960 , La Fortaleza was designated a United States National Historic Landmark . In 1983 , La Fortaleza , along with the San Juan National Historic Site , was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO . On May 26 , 2004 , a man armed with a knife entered the mansions mailroom located just outside the palace gates and took a receptionist hostage . The 2½ hour stand-off ended after Governor Sila María Calderón entered the building and listened as the hostage-taker read a letter . From July 13 to July 24 , 2019 , the surrounding streets around La Fortaleza were the scene of various protests as part of Telegramgate as a result of leaked messages involving Governor Ricardo Rosselló . As protesters continued to demand the governor to step down on July 24 , 2019 , Rosselló announced his resignation from office , effective August 2 , 2019 . In literature . In 2011 , Puerto Rican author Giannina Braschi wrote the dramatic novel United States of Banana , featuring climactic scenes of revolution at La Fortaleza .