Casa de los Coroneles

The Casa de los Coroneles, the House of the Colonels, is the grandest historic building on Fuerteventura, and it stands in the small town of La Oliva in the north of the island. The house was built in the eighteenth century as the residence of the colonels who commanded the island’s militia, and for a long time they were the most powerful men on Fuerteventura. The island was poor and exposed to pirate raids, and the crown relied on a local military hierarchy to defend it and keep order, so the colonels, who came from a handful of landowning families, were effectively the island’s rulers. The house reflects their wealth and standing. It is an unusually large mansion for the Canary Islands, with a long front of whitewashed and stone-trimmed walls, regular windows with wooden balconies and an imposing entrance.

The architecture combines Canarian traditions with a degree of ceremony. The two towers or battlements that rise above the front have been interpreted as a political statement, a display of authority, more than a serious defence, and the building’s scale and symmetry were intended to impress. Inside, courtyards with wooden galleries and carved doorways follow the typical pattern of Canary Islands houses, and the woodwork of balconies, doors and ceilings is finely made. The stone used comes from the island’s volcanic landscape, which gives the building a dark, solid appearance next to the white walls.

In later years, the house fell into decay, and it was restored in the late twentieth century, when it was opened as a cultural centre. It has housed exhibitions of art and a permanent display on the history of the colonels, their power and the society of the island in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It has also been a venue for theatrical tours, concerts and other events, and guided routes known as the Route of the Colonels explore the colonels’ houses and chapels in the area. Opening arrangements have varied, including closures for restoration work, so check its status before travelling.

La Oliva lies in the centre-north of Fuerteventura, in a landscape of dry plains and low volcanic hills, and it was the island’s effective capital for a time during the colonels’ rule. Other buildings in the town, including the Church of Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria with its distinctive tower, belong to the same period and add to the sense of history. The town is easily reached by car from Corralejo and El Cotillo, and there is parking nearby.

The Casa de los Coroneles is best seen as a monument to the island’s social history. A visit takes about an hour, and it can be combined with the Mirador del Río and the beaches in the north.