Castles of Loarre, Huesca (Aragón, Spain).

The more important spainsh castle of centuty X-XII.

Castles of Aragon (Spain). Castillos de Aragón.

Castle of Fuentidueña of Tajo (Madrid). Castillo de Fuentidueña

Castle Fuentidueña of Tajo is on a hill that dominates the population called Loma del Castillo, next to the cemetery in the town of Fuentidueña of Tajo, in the province of Madrid.
History

There are indications that could be built in the twelfth century and expanded or rebuilt in the fourteenth century. Its history is connected with the Reconquista and the kings Alfonso VI and Alfonso VIII.

Castle of Mesones de Isuela (Zaragoza, Aragón). Castillo de los Luna en Mesones de Isuela

One of the most important castles in the kingdom of Aragon. Castle Moon in Mesones of Isuela, near of the Aranda's river, on the border with Castilla.

Castle of Tiedra, Valladolid (Castilla León). Castillo de Tiedra (Spain)

The Castle of Tiedra in Valladolid (Spain), appears by first in the embassy of the Cid before Doña Urraca in whom Sancho II of Castile along with offers other possessions in exchange for the city of Zamora.

Tiedra belonged to the kingdom of Leon and was border with the kingdom of Castilla in the XII.

The castle of Tiedra comprises of the historical line of defense of the Torozos mounts. Its construction dates between centuries XII and XIII, giving an idea us of the simple thing that they were these primitive defensive constructions, because as still we see there it dealed with one massive tower surrounded and encastillada within a defensive enclosure. This castle of Tiedra is formed by a square tower protected by close. The tower is of ashlar masonry, consists of several vaulted floors and has three ajimezados hollows of little width. They conserve matacanes on which the nonexistent battlements would go. As far as close it is necessary to say that it has little height, it forms exagonal and is constructed in sillarejo. This old castle was possession of the linajudas families terracampinas of the Meneses and the Girón.

Video about Don John of Austria. Lepanto.

I found this video about the Spanish Hero Don Juan de Austria (Don John of Austria), victorious Commander-in-Chief of the European Armada at the Battle of Lepanto (1571) against the Turks.

Castle of Montealegre de Campos (Valladolid, Castilla y Leon). Castillo de Montealegre.

The Castle of Montealegre was constructed in the Century XIII or principles of XIV by Alfonso Menezes, and replaced the one of Villalba of the Alcores like main strength of this family. This immense castle, of high walls and towers never was conquered by the arms.

Castle of Encina's Baños. Castillo de Baños de la Encina (Jaen, Andalucia)

This magnificent castle dominates the small town of Banos de la Encina which lies about 28 miles north of the city of Jaen.
its fifteen ten metre high towers, the fortress was constructed on the orders of Al-Hakam II, who dominated the area, and was completed in 970.

Originally named simply Baños, the village bacame 'de la Encina' ('of the holm oaks') in the 13th Century, when an apparition of the Virgin Mary was reported to have occurred amongst the oak trees.

Castle of Biel, Tower of Biel. Castillo de Biel (Zaragoza, Aragón).

The Castle of Biel in the Cinco Villas (Zaragoza, Aragón) was always a strategically important point given its proximity to the border with Navarre, you command to construct by Sancho the Greater one, its first tenente was Blasco Ariol from 1004 and 1054, already with king Ramiro I. The region of Cinco Villas is one of the more important of all old Kingdom of Aragón.

The castle this formed by the set of the monumental tower and the románica church of San Martin, something subsequent to the tower because it would be of end of century XI, although was reconstructed in the century XVI, and that has the leaned North wall to the imposing tower.

Castle of Alburquerque (Badajoz, Extremadura), Castillo de Alburquerque.

The castle of Alburquerque is another imposing castle of Badajoz constructed in the altomedievales centuries although very modified by Don Alvaro of Moon, Master of the Order of Santiago and Condestable de Castilla, that undertakes between the 1445 and 1453 construction of several significant elements.Its imposing tower of the tribute is conserved and has several vaulted floors very well. To this tower it is acceded by a bridge of pointed arc. Another one of the particularitities of this castle is the presence in its interior of the church of Santa Maria the Greater one of the Castle, Romanesque temple of transition with three ships covered by tube vault and supports of pillars with columns.

Alcazaba of Almeria, Castle of Almeria. Castillo de Almería (Andalucia)

In 955 the first Caliph of Al-Andalus, Adb Al Rahman III established Almeria as an important port for trade throughout the Mediterranean. He authorised the building of the Alcazaba and the castle on a hill overlooking the bay of Almeria.

Although today the Alcazaba is principally an area of gardens with fabulous views overlooking the sea and the mountains, it was originally capable of containing and supporting a population of up to 20,000 people within its walls. These perimeter walls extend to a total of 1430 metres, making Almeria the second largest Moorish fortification in Spain after the Alhambra in Granada.

At one end of the Alcazaba is the (relatively) more recent castle, built after the Christian reconquest. The simple strong lines of the castle are set off by elegant touches of Mudejar embellishment. The word "Mudejar" denotes the style of architecture which was adopted in much of southern Spain as the formerly Moorish stonemasons and craftsmen continued their work under the influence of their new Christian masters. It is a style that leaves traces even in many modern buildings in Andalucia today.

Castle of Uncastillo (Zaragoza, Aragón). Castillo de Uncastillo.

Uncastillo has one of the richest monumental sets of all Aragón. Declared Joint Historical Artistic in 1966. The villa has the rest of its important castle, today museum, and two towers fortified in its churches.

Castle of Alaro (Majorca). Castillo de Alaró (Mallorca). Castell d'Alaró.

The Castle of Alaro is a old castle of Majorca with an altitude of 822 M. The castle is located in the municipality of Alaró and is an extraordinary viewpoint from which the bays of Palma and Alcudia are descried and the Mountain range of Tramontana. In the top of the mountain there is the old fortification from Muslim time.

The mountain also welcomes from century XVII the Sanctuary of the Mother of God of Refuge and one hospedería.

The history of the Castle of Alaró intimately is bound to develops it legendary carried out by Guillem Cabrit and Guillem Bassa, personages who died burned in century XIII, after to have defended ferociously the fortification, when staying faithful to Jaime II of Majorca and being against to the occupation of the island by Alfonso II of Aragón.

Castle of Peñiscola (Castellón). Castillo de Peñiscola.

Peñíscola is a Valencian municipality located on the Costa del Azahar along the eastern Mediterranean coast of Spain in the province of Castellón. It is presently a tourist destination for Northern Europeans in search of some sun.

The castle where Benedict lived from 1417 until his death in 1423 was restored, improved and new walls were added in 1960 when Anthony Mann's film El Cid was partially filmed there. The town and castle of Peñiscola were playing the role of Valencia. The castle is now a popular tourist attraction.

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Castle of Manzanares El Real (Madrid). Castillo de Manzanares El Real.

The Castle of Manzanares el Real, 30 miles north of Madrid, is most famous for its castle that is an imposing example of the military architecture of the 15th century in Spain. The construction of the castle began in the year 1475, at a time when Madrid had little more than 100 houses and about 300 citizens. The castle has a quadrangular plant with four towers on the corners. Three cylindrical towers and a larger one known as Torre del Homenaje (Homage Tower) with a squared layout. Each of the three cylindrical towers is crowned with smaller towers, and the "Homage Tower" is finished off with another smaller octagonal tower. The body of the castle has sides of 30 meters and the cylindrical towers have a diameter of 6.5 meters at the base. The central courtyard (called Patio de Armas) is surrounded by corridors with arcades as an example of the late Gothic style with Mudejar influence. Finally, the castle is surrounded by a barbican wall with a single entrance through a beautiful gate facing the west side and flanked by two solid towers. All the walls of the barbican have arrow loops in the shape of the cross of Jesusalem.

The castle of Manzanares el Real appears in the movie "El Cid" (1961) featuring Charlton Heston and Sophia Loren.

Castle of Peñafiel, Valladolid (Spain). Castillo de Peñafiel.

The Castle of Peñafiel is one of the more beautiful castles of Spain. The castle is situated on a hill from where it is possible to see the Duratón and Botijas valleys. Its outward appearance is smooth and it has only one gateway. The plan of the keep is rectangular, it measures over 30 metres high and 14.5 by 20 at the base, and is topped by eight small towers. The keep is flanked by two courtyards. The interior of the castle has two floors with a stone vault. It was declared a National Monument in 1917. Currently the Provincial Museum-Foundation of the Wines of Valladolid.

Peñafiel Castle is built with stone from Campaspero. It measures 210 metres long, and 33 wide. Largely responsible for building the castle we see today was Don Juan Manuel. He was one of the richest lords in Castile and played an very active part in the politics of the kingdom. He was married to the granddaughter of King Ferdinand III. He also occupies an important place in Spanish literature as one of its most important writers from the Middle Ages. He was the prototype of the medieval knight; not only involved in wars but also cultivated.

Video about Castle of coca (Segovia, Spain)

Video about Castle of coca, Castillo de Coca.

Castle of Sadaba (Aragón). Castillo de Sadaba.

he castle of Sádaba is of an elegance extraordinary, very austere and harmonic, very homogenous due to the quality of his sillares. His stranger architect had to be a great teacher. It is a castle of cisterciense style, century XIII. Its stamp is little frequent, a quadrilateral plant very approximated to a rectangle, of 38 by 30 meters measured in the greater sides of each pair. A surface of more than 1,000 square meters. Its uniform in height and very elevated, with seven towers of rectangular plant, that are not identical. Four are in the corners, two in center of the North sides and this, and seventh in the South side, but closely together of the one of the southwestern angle to flank between both the only entrance.

Castle of Cuellar (Segovia) Castilla y León. Castillo de Cuellar.

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The castle of Cuellar in Segovia, is a very old strength that already existed in century XI although the present building data of centuries XIV and XV

Castle of Siguenza, Guadalajara (Castilla La Mancha). Castillo de Sigüenza.

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The origin Arab castle was built upon fortress visigodo and I castrate Roman, is in upper of Sigüenza. One began to construct in year 1,123 to serve as palace-strength and calls to account of the bishops who were gentlemen of the city during seven centuries. As such residence, is witness during centuries of important episodes and visits of historical personages. In century XIX the abolition of the señoríos and the confiscation caused its abandonment, that took it to the almost total destruction during the Civil War, until its restoration began and conversion in Inn in 1976.

All the architectonic set deserves to be visited. From the battlements the complete panorama of the city is descried perfectly, fulfilling its defensive mission. A door in the wall introduces to us in the parade ground, provided in its center with a deep providing water well, essential to resist long sieges. In the interior it emphasizes the impressive Hall the Throne or the Red Hall, in which the bishops distributed justice. Also it has a pretty chapel and a cell where some say that it lived, until the moment of their exile, Doña Blanca de Borbón, wife of Pedro I the Cruel one. Other theories suppose their residence in one of the towers of the castle, that conserves its name and from which could contemplate the city and listen to the bells of the churches of Santiago and San Vicente. Its unfortunate history stages every year in the Medieval Days Within one of its towers is conserved, although very reformed, the first church of Sigüenza, call of Santa Cruz, constructed in century XII and with decoration to mudéjar in its interior.

Walls and Towers of Zaragoza (Aragon) Spain. Murallas y torres de Zaragoza.

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Caesaraugusta, the Roman Zaragoza, was surrounded by a wall with numerous towers, possibly 120. Their walls had a considerable thickness, being the outer part of sillares of alabaster and limestone, and the interior of a mortar of great hardness. The date of construction of the Roman wall is not known with exactitude, but it thinks that the present rest date from centuries II and III d.C. Possibly a primitive wall of the time of Augusto existed, at the moment of the foundation of the city, towards century I a.C., that served as laying of foundations the new wall. It was reaprovechada by Muslim visigodos and, exerting an important defensive function during the Average Age. In century XIV, the wall still turned its mission during the War of both Peters that took place during years 1356 and 1369. As of that moment the expansion of the city made it unnecessary, and as of century XV it went dismantling.

Castle of Fuensaldaña, Valladolid (Castilla y León). Castillo de Fuensaldaña.

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The Castle of Fuensadaña in Valladolid (Castilla) was constructed in century XV by the family as it calls to account satately. It was reformed in century XX. As curiosity is possible to emphasize that in this castle the catholic kings passed their honeymoon.

Castle of Coca, Segovia (Castilla y León). Castillo de Coca

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Castle of Coca was constructed in 1473, he is one of most impressive of Spain and Europe. It was constructed next to the meander that draws the Voltoya river. The basic material is the brick, that is used not only as material of work, but also like decorative element, creating showy games of colors and forms. The limestone stone is used single is used for the saeteras, the decorative columns of the Parade ground and some elements.

Castles of Spain

Castles of Spain is a blog that want to show the best photographs, prints and pictures the most important castles in Spain. If you like the castles or you like to study about them or you like the Medieval age and Medieval history of Spain, this is your blog.

Spain is the country with more castles and fortifications of all Europe. Centuries of fights of the different Christian kingdoms against the Muslims, between they themselves and against other European Christian kingdoms like France, Portugal or England, seeded Corona Castilla, Corona de Aragón and last kingdom of the Al-Andalus, the kingdom of Granada, of thousand of castles and fortifications.