Tibúrcio Spannocchi

[1] He came from a noble Tuscan family, and served the Papal States in the fleet commanded by Marcantonio Colonna.

[5] However, the project was abandoned when it was realized that many ships would simply bypass the Strait by sailing round Cape Horn.

[4] In 1588 Spannocchi approved plans for the forts of El Morro and La Punta at Havana, Cuba as senior engineer to King Philip II.

[6] Philip II had commissioned the engineer Giovan Giacomo Paleari Fratino to strengthen the Fortifications of Gibraltar.

[7] Spannocchi undertook various works on the citadel of Aljafería in Zaragoza for which Philip II himself had traced the drawing.

[8] Later Spannocchi's main energy went into mapping sites in the Pyrenees along the frontier between Spain and France, during a period of mounting tension between the two countries.

[10] At the start of the 17th century, Spannochi and Jerónimo de Soto were involved in construction of the palace of La Ventosilla in Burgos, including a supply of running water and other features that would contribute to greater comfort.