St. Augustine is a stronghold city of the Spanish Royal Navy in Florida. Founded in 1565 by Spanish explorers, this Spanish Fort is the oldest continuously-inhabited European-established settlement in the New World.
History
St. Augustine was founded on September 8, 1565, by Spanish admiral Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, Florida's first governor. He named the settlement "San Agustín", as his ships bearing settlers, troops, and supplies from Spain had first sighted land in Florida eleven days earlier on August 28, the feast day of St. Augustine. The city served as the capital of Spanish Florida for over 200 years. It was designated as the capital of British East Florida when the colony was established in 1763; Great Britain returned Florida to Spain in 1783.
A City atop a Village
St Augustine, though the city's fort Castillo de San Marcos was built from scratch as a Spanish Garrison, is built up from the structure of the native Seloy people into a modern Spanish settlement. The Seloy eventually were able to build a new village deeper inland thanks to the help of the Spanish, who were then able over a number of years to establish streets and houses with architecture modeling those of the Mediterranean Revival and British Colonial era styles. This city became a bustling center of colonization for Spain in the New World.
Population
The city contains about 1,000 settlers with a garrison of 900 or so, not counting the Spanish Royal Navy that controls Castillo de San Marcos. Most of the city's population are Spanish-born colonists, but the city actually has no slaves, and has been the settling place for many freed slaves from the British Colonies in the New World.
Politics
At this point in History, St. Augustine has just come under the governorship of a new governor: Laureano de Torres y Ayala. Hailed as the militant leader who finished Castillo de San Marcos just a year ago, he prevented the sacking of the fort by Alibamu indians from further inland who were trying to keep Spanish power in the region in check.
His three children, Tomasa Maria (daughter), Laureano Antonio Jose (son), and Sor Manuela de San Laureano (daughter) oversee much of the city's affairs along with him.
Crime
As one of the capitols of the European Colonies, the city of St Augustine is very well guarded, but that doesn't stop secret practices and crime from occurring. A small outcropping of local thieves and ship-stealers lives in the area, benefitting off the lucrative trade market St Augustine gives. There is also rumor of a deep voodoo cult somewhere in the depths of the city.
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