Southport Gates The Southport Gates are three city gates in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar . They are located in the Charles V Wall , one of the 16th century fortifications of Gibraltar . The gates are clustered together , with the South Bastion to the west , and the Trafalgar Cemetery to the east . The first and second Southport Gates were constructed at present day Trafalgar Road in 1552 and 1883 , respectively . The third gate , Referendum Gate , is the widest of the three and was constructed in 1967 at Main Street , immediately west of the first two gates . The Southport Gates are listed with the Gibraltar Heritage Trust . Description . The Southport Gates are a trio of city gates in Gibraltar , the British Overseas Territory at the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula . The gates are located in the Charles V Wall , one of the early fortifications of Gibraltar that defended the former southern limit of the city . They are positioned between the South Bastion to the west and the Flat Bastion to the east , at the bottom of Trafalgar Hill , adjacent to the Trafalgar Cemetery " ( pictured below ) " . The original Southport Gate and the " New " Southport Gate are located at Trafalgar Road , while the most recent of the gates , Referendum Gate , provides access at Main Street . The Southport Gates , together with a rifled muzzle loading ten inch 18 ton gun , are listed with the Gibraltar Heritage Trust . Southport Gate . The Southport Gate " ( pictured at right ) " , formerly known as the " Africa Gate " , was the earliest of the trio of gates in the Charles V Wall . It was constructed by Italian engineer Giovanni Battista Calvi in 1552 , under the reign of Charles V , Holy Roman Emperor . The Southport Gate bears the Royal Arms of Charles V , Holy Roman Emperor , as well as the coat of arms of Gibraltar . The gate was depicted in a 1627 map of Gibraltar by Spanish engineer Luis Bravo de Acuña . On the map now held by the British Museum , the Southport Gate and the adjacent Southport Ditch were labeled in Spanish as " Puerta de África " ( ) and " Fosso " ( ) , respectively . The Flat Bastion ( ) , the South Bastion ( ) , and Southport Ditch were elements in the defence of the gate and the city . The Southport Ditch was a large trench which extended along the south side of Charles V Wall from the southwestern end of the South Bastion to the Flat Bastion at Prince Edward ' s Gate . New Southport Gate . The centre gate was constructed in 1883 . The New Southport Gate " ( pictured above ) " was opened in the Charles V Wall to improve the flow of traffic . It was constructed during the reign of Queen Victoria and the term of Governor of Gibraltar General Sir John Miller Adye . It is ornamented with the coat of arms of the governor and that of Gibraltar , over which is the Royal Arms of Queen Victoria . In the 19th century , the Southport Ditch was the site of an ordnance depot . In the 1880s , the South Bastion featured four new rifled muzzle loading guns . A magazine was built in Southport Ditch at that time to store the ammunition needed for the new guns . Today , one of the guns " ( pictured below ) " is mounted just inside the Southport Gates . By 1908 , the magazine had been converted to use as a pumphouse , as demonstrated on an Ordnance Survey map of that year . Referendum Gate . The third gate , named Referendum Gate " ( pictured below and at right ) " , is the widest of the three gates . Also referred to as the Referendum Arch , it was built in 1967 , to the west of the first two gates . The gate commemorates Gibraltar ' s first sovereignty referendum of 1967 , in which Gibraltarians voted by an overwhelming majority to remain British rather than become Spanish . The western portion of the Southport Ditch had been utilised in the 19th century as a market garden and was known as the Sunken Gardens . At the time that the Referendum Gate was opened , that part of the ditch was filled . Trafalgar Cemetery represents a remnant of the eastern portion of the Southport Ditch , and was formerly referred to as Southport Ditch Cemetery . Gibraltar National Day , an annual holiday held every 10 September in Gibraltar , also commemorates the referendum of 10 September 1967 in which more than 99 % of the votes cast rejected annexation by Spain , favouring the British status quo . The holiday was first celebrated in 1992 , the 25th anniversary of the first sovereignty referendum .