Esquimalt Harbour is a sheltered body of water in Greater Victoria

Greater Victoria, British Columbia

Greater Victoria is located in British Columbia, Canada, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island. It is a cultural rather than political entity, usually defined as the thirteen easternmost municipalities of the Capital Regional District on Vancouver Island but also includes adjoining areas and...

, British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. It is connected to the Strait of Juan de Fuca

Strait of Juan de Fuca

The Strait of Juan de Fuca is a large body of water about long that is the Salish Sea outlet to the Pacific Ocean...

 by a narrow channel known as Royal Roads

Royal Roads

Royal Roads is a roadstead or anchorage located in Strait of Juan de Fuca near the entrance to Esquimalt Harbour in Greater Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. In 1790, Sub-Lt Don Manuel Quimper of the Spanish navy anchored his ship the Princess Royal there and claimed the territory for Carlos IV....

. Its entrance is marked by Fisgard Lighthouse

Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Site

Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Site in Colwood, British Columbia, on Fisgard Island at the mouth of Esquimalt Harbour, is the site of Fisgard Lighthouse, the first lighthouse on the west coast of Canada.-History:...

.

Esquimalt Harbour is home to the Canadian Forces

Canadian Forces

The Canadian Forces , officially the Canadian Armed Forces , are the unified armed forces of Canada, as constituted by the National Defence Act, which states: "The Canadian Forces are the armed forces of Her Majesty raised by Canada and consist of one Service called the Canadian Armed Forces."...

 Maritime Forces Pacific

Maritime Forces Pacific

In the Canadian Forces, Maritime Forces Pacific is responsible for the fleet and operations of the Royal Canadian Navy in the Pacific Ocean...

, based at CFB Esquimalt

CFB Esquimalt

Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt is Canada's Pacific Coast naval base and home port to Maritime Forces Pacific and Joint Task Force Pacific Headquarters....

. It was the home of the Esquimalt Royal Navy Dockyard from 1842 to 1905.

Just to the east of Esquimalt Harbour lies Victoria Harbour

Victoria Harbour (British Columbia)

Victoria Harbour is a harbour, seaport, and seaplane airport located in the Canadian city of Victoria, British Columbia. It serves as a cruise ship and ferry destination for tourists and visitors to the city and Vancouver Island. It is both a port of entry and an airport of entry for general...

.

In the summer of 1790 Manuel Quimper

Manuel Quimper

Manuel Quimper Benítez del Pino was a Spanish Peruvian explorer, cartographer, naval officer, and colonial official. He participated in charting the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Sandwich Islands in the late 18th century. He was later appointed a colonial governor in his native Peru at the...

, Gonzalo López de Haro

Gonzalo López de Haro

Gonzalo López de Haro was a Spanish explorer, notable for his expeditions in the Pacific Northwest in the late 18th century....

, and Juan Carrasco

Juan Carrasco (explorer)

Juan Carrasco was a Spanish naval officer, explorer, and navigator. He is remembered mainly for his work in the Pacific Northwest during the late 18th century. He was second in command of the 1791 voyage of José María Narváez, the first European exploration of the Strait of Georgia.Many details...

 aboard the Princesa Real

Princess Royal (sloop)

Princess Royal was a British merchant ship that sailed on fur trading ventures in the late 1780s, and was captured at Nootka Sound by Esteban José Martínez of Spain during the Nootka Crisis of 1789...

explored the Strait of Juan de Fuca where they claimed Esquimalt Harbour for Spain, naming it Puerto de Córdova.