The church of San Francisco belonged to the convent of the same name, with construction work delayed between 1755-85. In 1847 it formed part of a group of ecclesiastical buildings handed over to the Navy in the region of Ferrol, as part of the process of seizure of church property throughout Spain. San Francisco, set just a short distance from the Capitanía Palace and sharing with it the role of a watchtower over the Dockyards, became a military church, replacing a previously abandoned building that remained in Esteiro Square.