The Royal Castle of Olite (Palacio Real de Olite) is a former castle of the kings of Navarre, situated in northern Spain.

Royal Palace of Olite History

Olite castle symbolizes the unique character of the Navarre monarchy in the late medieval period, open to Europe through its interests in France and in contact with the other kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula.

The first castle designated the ‘palace of the kings of Navarre’ in 13th-century documents, had been laid out at an unknown date on the site of a Roman praetorium of the 1st century AD; only its outer walls survive, with some Roman foundations, now incorporating the Parador de Turismo.

Olite castle served as a residence for the governors during the kings’ long absences in France, but with the accession of the Evreux dynasty (1328) it became a favorite royal seat, owing to its pleasant climate and position in a rich wooded valley with abundant hunting.

Queen Joanna II (1328–1349) and King Philip III of Evreux (1328–1343), followed by Charles II (1349–1387), all made some improvements to the old castle, but it was during the reign of Charles III (1387–1425) and his wife Eleanor of Castile that this nucleus was expanded, with the construction of new ranges in the space behind the 13th-century church of S María. For this work, begun in April 1399 and continuing, with some interruptions, until 1420, Charles assembled artists of widespread origins.

Many of the painters were from Catalonia, working initially under Master Enrique and then in the second decade of the 15th century under Juan de Laguardia; French artists such as Jacob le Conte and Juan du Ruisel collaborated on the decoration; glass painters came from Aragon and Flanders; and Moors from Tudela were engaged on plasterwork, carpentry, and tiled decoration.

The irregular plan of Olite reflects its construction in stages, as the wishes of the patrons developed. The new ranges, with halls, bedrooms, terraces, and a chapel dedicated to St George, were linked to courtyards and gardens by hanging galleries and corridors; numerous towers (the keep, the Torre del Homenaje, the Torre Nueva, the Tres Coronas, and Cuatro Vientos) crowned the walls, forming an elegant silhouette against the horizon. The massive walls, with only a few slit windows, accentuated the fortified character of Olite, but this was in strong contrast to the luxurious interior.

Charles’s daughter Blanche (1425–1441), wife of the future King of Aragon, John I, continued building works at Olite, and the castle again became an official residence after Navarre lost its independence to Castile in 1515.

Subsequent documents record its gradual decline, despite continual repairs. One of the towers was burnt in 1794, and in 1813, during the Peninsular War, the castle was burnt to prevent its use by the enemy ‘and its interior ruined’.

The ruins were acquired by the provincial government in 1913, and in 1925 Olite Castle was declared a national monument to save it from total destruction. Restoration work, begun in 1937, is now well advanced, but although the documents give some indication of the original state, there are difficulties in achieving it.

Palacio Real de Olite Location

Address: Palacio Real de Olite, Estación, 3, 31390 Olite, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Palacio Real de Olite Map

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Castillo de Javier History

The Castillo de Javier is situated in the small town of Javier, less than an hour’s drive from Pamplona, the capital of the province of Navarre.

In the 10th and 11th centuries, prior to the construction of the castle, a watchtower stood here, to which new buildings were gradually added.

In the 16th century, Cardinal Cisneros ordered the castle to be redesigned as a fortress, but in recent times the complex has been restored, including its towers and drawbridge. It now hosts a Jesuit college.
St Francis Xavier, a missionary and co-founder of the Jesuit order, was born in this castle in 1506.

Preserved here are the saint’s bedroom and a chapel containing a Gothic walnut crucifix. According to legend, at difficult moments in the saint’s life, and on the anniversary of his death, droplets of blood appeared on the crucifix.

The walls of the chapel are decorated with a macabre mural of grinning skeletons, a fine depiction of The Dance of Death. Every year from 4–12 March, the inhabitants of Navarra make a penitent pilgrimage to the castle chapel.

The Castillo de Javier (Castle of Xabier) can be visited daily between 9:00 – 13:00 and 16:00 – 20:00.

Castillo de Javier Location

Address: Castillo de Javier, Calle del Santo, 1, 31411 Javier, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Castillo de Javier Map

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Royal Palace of Aranjuez History

The Royal Palace of Aranjuez stands beside the rivers Tagus and Jarama in the province of Madrid, 47 km south of the capital.

The palace was intended as a spring and summer residence for the royal family and is renowned for its gardens and fountains.

The summer residence built at Aranjuez in 1387 by Lorenzo Suárez de Figueroa, Grand Master of the Order of Santiago, became royal property under Ferdinand II, King of Aragon, and Isabella, Queen of Castile and León. In the reign of Charles V improvements were carried out by Luis de Vega (from 1537) and the palace was extensively enlarged by Philip II.

The Aranjuez chapel was designed by Juan Bautista de Toledo and completed byJerónimo Gili and Juan de Herrera.

The Palace of Aranjuez was built in a combination of white stone from Colmenar de Oreja and brick, giving a two-toned effect that was adopted for the rest of the palace. In 1571 work began on the cuarto nuevo, as the new palace was described, besides the chapel.

The materials and moldings of the palace were similar to those of the chapel. The ground plan of the palace was square, with a square central courtyard, but the lack of towers with pinnacles at each corner, more usual at this date, gave the building a more classical appearance.

The principal façade was elongated by wings, and at the end of one stands the chapel. This meant that the more usual plan of a block with four equal sides was replaced in favor of a design with one principal block, an emphasis that was to acquire greater importance with successive renovations.

The separate Casa de Oficios, quarters for the courtiers and servants, was begun in 1577 after the design of Herrera, and the angled forms and sense of volume characteristic of his style are seen in the order of the cloister.

Aranjuez Palace as planned in the 16th century was not completed. From 1715, under Philip V, a north wing was added by Pedro Caro Idogro. Giacomo Bonavia was commissioned to rebuild the palace, which had been damaged by fire, and restore the town. He was responsible for the vestibule, the great imperial staircase, and the main façade (1744), in the center of which is a portico surmounted by the ceremonial balcony of honor.

Bonavia added a third story and the frontispiece that gave weight to the main entrance. The statues on the balustrade of Philip II, Philip V, and Ferdinand VI by Pedro Martinengo were added in 1752. The general style of this façade, combining designs that are both French and Italian, can be associated with that of the Spanish Bourbons.

The Aranjuez Palace was enlarged under Charles III in order to meet the increasingly elaborate etiquette of the court. Two wings at right angles to the main façade, forming a U-shaped entrance courtyard in the French manner, were added by Francesco Sabbatini (wings dated 1772 and 1777).

Royal Palace of Aranjuez Gardens

The gardens at Aranjuez are among the most important in Spain. They were first created by Philip II and their continued development was made possible by the plentiful supply of water. An initial design was made by Juan Bautista de Toledo in 1560, but Herrera carried out the planning. Philip II first created a garden behind the main façade, ornamented with busts of Roman emperors.

The Flemish naturalist Juan Holveque was employed from 1561 for the planting, and fountains were imported from Italy, such as that of Venus (1571). Conservatories, for example, the Casa de los Naranjos (1571), were also built after the design of Herrera.

From 1660 the design of the gardens was modified by Sebastián de Herrera Barnuevo. Among the garden fountains, some incorporated musical devices, and others delighted with surprisingly devised waterworks.

The fountain of Hercules and the Hydra (1661) was by Martinio Regio; that of Trypolemus (sculptor unknown) was set in the Jardín de la Isla (designed by Herrera Barnuevo, 1669).

The planning of the Jardín del Príncipe was initiated by Ferdinand VI in 1750, but it was officially founded in 1772 under Charles III (plan dated 1784). It is the largest garden at Aranjuez, sited with an attractive wharf beside the Tagus, and was designed, as were the pavilions, by Juan de Villanueva.

This informal garden, with fountains and statues, including the fountain of Narcissus built between 1789 and 1795 by Joaquín Dumandré, surrounds the Casa del Labrador, which was begun in the reign of Charles III and completed (under Charles IV by Villanueva. The Casa del Labrador, decorated under Charles IV in Neo-classical style, was conceived in the same spirit as the Petit Trianon at Versailles, a retreat for the heirs to the throne, the Princes of the Asturias.

Interior of the Royal Palace of Aranjuez
The interior of Aranjuez was adorned during the 18th century with a considerable collection of paintings, statues, furniture, mirrors, and chandeliers.

One of the most decorative rooms is the Gabinete de la Porcelana, which was sumptuously decorated in the Japanese style for Charles III with plaques of porcelain made in the Fábrica del Buen Retiro by Giuseppe Gricci of Naples.

The Aranjuez town
Since the reign of Philip II only those belonging to the royal household had been allowed to reside at Aranjuez. Under Ferdinand VI, therefore, a town adjacent to the palace was laid out on a perfectly regular plan designed and executed by Bonavia. A triple avenue extends the axis of the gardens in a design resembling the trident at Versailles.

The Plaza de S Antonio was aligned with the avenue, and to the south stands the church of S Antonio (plan by Bonavia, 1748), linked to the palace by a long covered passageway of a type often used in Spanish urban planning.

The Aranjuez church has a circular plan, and a tribune for the royal family, thus allowing the public some proximity to the monarch.

Royal Palace of Aranjuez Location

Address: Avenida Palacio, S/N, 28300 Aranjuez, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Royal Palace of Aranjuez Map

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Real de Madrid Palace (Palacio Real de Madrid) is the first royal palace in Madrid known as the Alcázar.

Royal Palace of Madrid History

Palacio Real de Madrid was initially a fortress built around 875 by Muhammed I on a promontory that was soon incorporated into the northwest corner of the city walls.

The Trastámara dynasty altered the structure, creating new towers around the military courtyard, a chapel, and a room decorated with Mudéjar-style images.

In 1536 Charles V, as part of his general initiative for improving a number of royal palaces, commissioned a major reworking of the palace. But almost 200 years later, a fire on Christmas Eve 1734 destroyed nine centuries of history but enabled the new dynasty to build a palace to its own taste.

The new Palacio Real was built in 1738 to designs by Giovanni Battista Sacchetti. The new palace, built on a square ground plan from Colmenar stone on a granite base, displays Italian and French Neo-classical influences.

Royal Palace of Madrid Decoration
In 1753 the decoration began under Corrado Giaquinto; Anton Raphael Mengs and Giambattista Tiepolo took over in 1761–1762. The palace’s collection of paintings, sculptures, and tapestries by leading Spanish, Italian, Flemish, and French artists, which had suffered heavily in the fire of 1734, was increased by successive monarchs, notably Charles III (1759–1788).

Among the works that survived the fire, however, were the gilt bronze lions by Giuliano Finelli in the red satin-lined Salón del Trono; the same room has a painted ceiling by Tiepolo, depicting the Glory of Spain. Mengs decorated the ceiling of the Gran Comedor (formerly the Cuarto de la Reina) with the Triumph of Aurora (1762–4), and Francisco Bayeu also painted al fresco ceiling decorations.

Also by Mengs is the unfinished altarpiece in the Capilla Real; the ceiling displays impressive paintings by Giaquinto who also painted the ceiling above the palace’s main marble staircase.

The palace also houses the Armería Real, the central feature of which is a collection made by the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V of Flemish and German armor.

In 1962 the Nuevos Museos was established in the northwest wing of the palace in order to exhibit properly the numerous paintings contained in the royal collection.

Royal Palace of Madrid Location

Address: Royal Palace of Madrid, Calle Bailen, 0, 28001 Madrid, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Royal Palace of Madrid Map

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Buen Retiro is a former royal palace in the east of Madrid, built-in 1630 on the site of the Hieronymite monastery; the buildings are mostly no longer extant, and the extensive gardens are now a public park, the Parque del Retiro.

Buen Retiro Palace History

Lying at the city’s eastern gate, the monastery had played an important part in the life of the monarchy on such occasions as royal processions, funerals, and religious festivals.

In July 1630 the Conde-Duque de Olivares, First Minister under Philip IV (reg 1621–65), was named Alcalde del Cuarto de S Jerónimo and immediately ordered the building of an extension of the royal apartments towards the south.

In July 1632 Olivares entrusted the further eastward extension of the apartments to the care of Alonso de Carbonal, Aparejador Mayor (assistant architect-in-chief) of the royal building projects, under the direction of the Italian Giovanni Battista Crescenzi.

Thanks to the generous financing of the project, and the plentiful supply of building land, the Plaza de Fiestas was laid out in 1633, enclosed by a three-story building.

In 1634 a further square was added to the north—larger still, but architecturally very simple—while to the east, towards the gardens, Carbonel built a rectangular ballroom in stone in 1637, known as the Casón de Felipe IV.

Buen Retiro Palace Architecture

The Buen Retiro Palace generally reflected its hasty construction and its purely festive function: the design was simple, executed mainly in brick with stone door- and window frames, with corner towers roofed in slate and balconies of wrought iron, the whole built around the square courtyard.

The interior decoration comprised paintings and sculptures from the royal collections, sometimes arranged by subject in different galleries and specifically commissioned for that purpose.

Some of the nine hermitages that were built (1633–40) throughout the park revealed greater architectural inventiveness than the main buildings and a greater concern for their interior decoration, as with the hermitage of S Antonio.

The perfunctory construction of the Buen Retiro and the court’s irregular periods of residence led to the rapid deterioration of the buildings in general.

This was partly remedied on occasion by restoration work: the Casón de Felipe IV was restored in 1692, and in 1697 Luca Giordano painted the Foundation of the Order of the Golden Fleece on its vaulted ceiling.

Philip V planned to renovate the palace and lay out the park along the lines of Versailles or Marly, but the plan was abandoned; thus while the new Palacio Real was built (from 1738) on the ruins of the Alcázar, destroyed by fire in 1734, the sovereigns had to do with a somewhat inferior residence.

Alternative uses for the site were found in 1759, when Charles III established the Fábrica del Buen Retiro there to manufacture porcelain, and also set up the Laboratorio de Piedras y Mosaico specializing in the working of hardstones.

Occupation of the palace by Napoleonic troops in 1808, however, merely served to accelerate a general collapse into ruins that were in fact well underway.

The Palace Today
The west side of the Buen Retiro Palace was later built over, the rest of the complex becoming municipal property and the gardens being converted into the public Parque del Retiro, to which such buildings as the Velázquez Pavilion were added.

The remaining two buildings, the Salón de Reinos and the Casón de Felipe IV became, respectively, the Museo del Ejército and an extension of the Museo del Prado.

Buen Retiro Palace Location

Address: Buen Retiro Park, Calle de Alfonso XII, 14, 28014 Madrid, Spain.
Approximate Geographic Coordinates:40.413666,-3.681807.
Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Buen Retiro Palace Map

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Vimianzo Castle History

Vimianzo Castle was built in the 12th century and it was the property of the Moscoso family.

In 1467 it was conquered and destroyed by the Irmandinos, but later it was rebuilt under Archbishop Fonseca.

After the Vimianzo Castle came back to its original owner, the Moscoso family, Archbishop Fonseca became the castle’s prisoner.

Due to this fact, the Catholic Kings expelled the family from Galicia and they lost their property again.

Alternative Names:
Castillo de Vimianzo (Spanish), Castelo de Vimianzo (Galician), Torres de Martelo
English: Castle of Vimianzo, Vimianzo Castle, Vimianzo Towers
The Castle Today

Vimianzo Castle is one of the best-preserved castles in Galicia. Currently, it is owned by the local government and it is open to visitors.

Vimianzo Castle Location

Directions: Rúa da Torre, 22, 15129 Vimianzo, Spain
Approximate Geographic Coordinates: 43.111181, -9.03177

Vimianzo Castle Map

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The Castle Today
The entrance to the inner yard is made through a pointed arch gate in one of the towers. Torres de Mens Castle is private property, and only its exterior can be visited.

Torres de Mens Castle Location

Directions:Lugar de Torres, 8, 15113, Malpica, Spain
Approximate Geographic Coordinates: 43.297222, -8.864722

Torres de Mens Castle Map

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Torres de Altamira Castle History

Built over the remains of a previous fortification in 1471 by fon Lope Sanchez de Moscoso, Torres de Altamira played an important role in the conflict between the Moscosos and the Mitra of Compostela in 1554.

Today, little remains of this once important stronghold apart from a corner tower and a wall of the residential wing. It was abandoned by the Moscoco-Altamira family in the 19th century, and since, it was left to decay.

Torres de Altamira Castle is located over a hill dominating the village of San Fiz, close to Brion, commanding the ancient road between Santiago de Compostela and Noia. The castle is freely accessible.

Torres de Altamira Location

Directions: AC-451, 15938, Brión, Spain
Approximate Geographic Coordinates: 42.877506, -8.687547

Torres de Altamira Map

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Located not far from Ponte Sampaio, Pontevedra, the origins of the Sotomayor Castle dates back to the 12th century and the name of Don Pax Mendez Sorrede.

Its plan is oval with a double line of defenses and it is situated on top of a rocky promontory. One of its most famous owners was Pedro Madruga (aka Pedro Sotomayor) who played an important role in the Irmandinos Revolt in the 15th century.

In the 19th century it belonged to the Marqueses of Armijo who decided to create an estival-palatial Residence, adding the arched gallery and opening windows although these changes didn’t alter the military character of the construction.

Today, Sotomayor Castle is a public building, open for visitors paying a small fee and it has become a popular venue for local weddings.

Sotomayor Castle Location

Directions: PO-2908, Soutomaior, Galicia, Spain
Approximate Geographic Coordinates: 42.330009,-8.568601

Sotomayor Castle Map

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Sobroso Castle History

The oldest reference to Sobroso Castle dates back to 1096. Back then, the castles were the property of the Counts of Galicia, Dona Urraca, and Don Raimundo of Burgundy, the Mitra of Tui.

The Sobroso Castle that stands today dates back to the 14th or 15th-century construction consisting of 2 enclosures. The outer one is irregular and the entrance is made through a drawbridge, and the inner one is rectangular with its keep on its weakest side.

In the 15th century, Sobroso Castle saw the fight between the Sarmientos and Pedro Madruga, but after that, the castle wasn’t much action.

Sobroso Castle Today – Visitor Info

Sobroso is one of the most beautiful castles in Galicia. It stands high on a mountain commanding a vast area.

Located in the Villasobroso village in Galicia, the castle is easily accessible and is open to visitors. The castle also hosts an ethnographic museum.

Sobroso Castle Location

Sobroso Castle (Galician Castelo do sobroso) is located in the vilage of Villasobroso (Mondariz) in Galicia, Spain.
Directions: PO-4402, 36870 Mondariz, Spain
Approximate Geographic Coordinates: 42.205972, -8.463750

Sobroso Castle Map

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San Paio Castle History

The San Paio Castle (Spanish: Fortaleza de San Paio de Narla) was probably built by Gonzalo Ozores in the early 15th century.

Like nearly every castle in Galicia, it suffered from the Irmandinos uprising. Reconstruction began shortly after the war, by nobleman Vasco das Seixas.

The San Paio Castle consists of a huge keep and a domastic range attached to it, that previously formed the enclosure. It has a little courtyard in the middle and some beautiful stone staircases leading to the upper floor.

Visit San Paio Castle: Historical and Ethnographic Museum
Today, San Paio Castle houses an ethnographic museum (Museo-Fortaleza San Paio de Narla). Entrance to the museum and the castle is free.

Getting to the San Paio Castle is easy, it can be reached on the road from Friol to Sobrado.

San Paio de Narla Castle Location

Address: Museo Historico Y Etnografico, Castronela, S/N, 27227 Friol, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

San Paio de Narla Castle Map

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Pambre Castle History

Pambre Castle was built in the second half of the 14th century by Gonzalo Ozore de Ulloa. It is one of the few castles in Granada that wasn’t destroyed during the Irmandinos uprising.

Thus it is one of the best-preserved examples of medieval military architecture in Spain.

The Pambre Castle has a square plan and consists of 4 corner towers and 2 curtain walls that protect its huge central keep. Located on the top of a hill, overlooking the river Pambre gorge, it is covered by vegetation and trees.

Pambre Castle is in private hands and thus its interior cannot be visited, but the exterior is a must-see if you are in the region.

Pambre Castle Location

The Pambre Castle is located in Palas de Rei, Spain.
Directions: LU-4008, 27200, Palas de Rei, Spain
Approximate Geographic Coordinates: 42.859686, -7.948250

Pambre Castle Map

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History of Monterreal Castle

Monterreal Castle’s origins date back to the Catholic Kings (hence the name “Mount Royal”) when they built it as a protective enclosure for the villagers of Bayona in times of danger, although much of it was re-built between the 16th and the 18th centuries.

Its walls spread on top of an elevation surrounded on 3 sides by the sea. The fourth side faces the land and that is more heavily defended. Monterreal Castle was attacked on several occasions by Drake and by Moorish and Turkish pirates.

It was also the place where the Caravel “Pinta” docked after its first voyage to America. Thus Monterreal was the first town in the Western world that knew about the discovery of the New World by Columbus.

The Castle Today
Today, within the castle’s walls you can rest or dine as it is the location of the “Parador Conde de Gondomar”.

Access is permitted and you can walk around the lengthy walls without being a guest of the Parador.

Monterreal Castle Location

Monterreal Castle Address: Avenida Monterreal, S/N, 36300 Baiona, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Monterreal Castle Map

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Moeche Castle was built in the 14th century by the Andrades Family.

It has an octagonal ground plan, and its walls are 10 m high and 3 m thick. Its gatekeep is 18 m tall and it is the only part of the castle protecting its walls from the outside. It was under siege and taken by the Irmandinos uprising.

Every year on the 3rd week of August this event is commemorated at Moeche.

The Moeche Castle has been restored recently, but in order to visit the interior of the castle, you’ll have to request the keys from the local town hall.

Moeche Castle Location

Approximate Geographic Coordinates: 43.549901,-7.992961
Directions: AC-4901, 15563 Moeche, Spain

Moeche Castle Map

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Maceda Castle History

Originally built in the late 11th century, the Maceda Castle that we see today is a mixture of very different styles of construction. It comprises two concentric enclosures.

The other one was finished in the 16th century and was adapted for firearm use.

It is believed that it was at Maceda where King Alfonso X the Wise studied Galician during his childhood, a language he used later in his “Cantigas de Santa Maria.

In the 15th century, Maceda Castle was assaulted and damaged by an Irmandinos army under the command of Diego de Lemos, who, at that time had an army of 10.000 rebels.

Today Maceda Castle is privately owned and run as a hotel, but the local government plans to convert it into a cultural center.

Maceda Castle Location

Address: Castilo de Maceda, Calle de Castelo, 32700 Maceda, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Maceda Castle Map

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Built-in 1396 by Fernan Perez de Andrade on lands owned by the Monastery of Sobrado, Los Andrade Castle is a perfect example of a Galician rock castle.

From its high location, the castle dominates the sea entrances of Pontedeume, Ferrol, and Betanzos.

It comprises of a 20 m high keep and an irregularly shaped enclosure adapted to its rocky foundation. Traces of a moat can be seen surrounding it.

This is the castle where the Andrade family took refuge after the siege of Moeche castle by the Irmandinos.

The Andrade’s Castle can be visited only in the summer months, but it is worth visiting it as from its top the castle offers magnificent views.

Andrade’s Castle Location

Address: Castillo de Andrade. Castelo, 15608 Pontedeume, Spain

Andrade’s Castle Map

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This once-powerful fortification is currently in ruins. Only two towers and a chapel left.

Catoira Towers of the West History

The Catoira Towers were built by the government of the city of Compostela to guard the sea entrance and prevent Moorish or Norman pirate attacks.

Originally it comprised 7 towers linked by a wall and protected by a moat. To avoid sea incursions, two towers (one on each side of the water) were linked by a chain so no attacker could sail further inland from that point on.

Torres do Oeste Today
Today, the site of the Catoira towers is the venue for one of the biggest festivals in Spain, the “Catoira Viking Festival” where locals dress up accordingly, sail up the sea entrance of the towers, and “attack” them.

Catoira Towers Location

Approximate Geographic Coordinates: 42.677009 -8.725993
Directions: Catoria Towers Castle is located near Puente de Catoira, Galicia, Spain. Get help with directions:

Catoira Towers Map

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The Palacio del Infantado is a former aristocratic residence in the town of Guadalajara in Castile, Spain.

Palacio del Infantado History

The Palacio del Infantado is a fine example of the Isabelline style, showing a harmonious blend of Mudéjar and Flamboyant Gothic forms.

It belonged to the House of Mendoza, the most influential family in Castile at the time of Queen Isabella. The family had settled in Guadalajara in the 14th century, and it is recorded that Pedro González de Mendoza finished building his houses there in 1376.

The old palace was renovated by the humanist Don Iñigo Lopez de Mendoza, Marques de Santillana, and was decorated with works of art imported from the Netherlands; travelers such as Baron Rosmital recorded that it was magnificently furnished.

This palace was demolished by the 2nd Duque del Infantado, Don Iñigo Lopez de Mendoza, and construction of the present building was begun in 1480 and was completed around 1500.

The magnificent two-story courtyard was altered under the 5th Duke in 1570. The original spiral columns with foliate decoration on the ground floor were replaced with Tuscan columns, but the double ogee arcading was retained. The upper arcade, still supported by spiral columns, has broken ogees surmounted by fleurons framed by griffins.

The Infantado Palace was severely damaged during the Civil War of 1936-1939. The magnificent ceilings with their arabesque decoration and rich friezes were burnt, but old photographs and descriptions show that the finest were in the Salon de los Salvajes and the Salon de los Cazedores.

Restorations on the façade began in 1942. The Palacio del Infantado now houses the Museo de Bellas Artes (El Museo Provincial de Guadalajara) and is the headquarters of other cultural institutions.

Palacio del Infantado Location

Address: Palacio del Infantado, Plaza Caídos en la Guerra Civil, S/N, 19001 Guadalajara, Spain. Get help with directions:

Palacio del Infantado Map

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Villafranca del Bierzo Castle History

The Villafranca del Bierzo Castle was built in 1515 over the remains of a previous fortification. Its first owner was Don Pedro Alvarez de Toledo (second marques of Villafranca) and since 1850 by Don Joaquin Caro y Alvarez.

More of a fortified palace than a castle, it was ransacked in 1809 by the English and in 1815 and 1819 by the French during the Independence War.

The Castle Today
Today the Villafranca del Bierzo Castle is owned by the Marques of Villafranca. It is also known as Castillo-Palacio de los Marqueses.

Access to the exterior castle is possible, but to visit the interior one needs to get permission from the owners.

Villafranca del Bierzo Castle Location

Address: Castillo-Palacio de los Marqueses, Plaza de Prim, 24500 Villafranca del Bierzo, Spain. Get help with directions:

Villafranca del Bierzo Castle Map

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Torrelobatón Castle is situated in the province of Valladolid in Castile, Spain. Built as an expression of the strength of the influential Enríquez family, whose capital was at Medina de Rioseco, the castle is one of the most important and best-preserved fortresses in Valladolid.

Torrelobatón Castle History

The castle was begun in 1406, when Don Alfonso Enríquez, 1st Admiral of Castile, obtained license from John II to erect a fortress in Torrelobatón; the only fortification there was a modest stone enclosure surrounding the village. The castle was involved in the Comunera rebellion against Charles I (Holy Roman Emperor Charles V).

The Torrelobaton Castle is situated on the outskirts of the village on almost the same level, as is the case with many 15th-century seigneurial Castilian fortresses. It has a square ground plan, with circular turrets at three of the corners and the keep set into the fourth, protecting the gate. The castle was surrounded by an enceinte, of which there are some remains, and a ditch, now mostly filled in.

The entrance to the Torrelobaton Castle courtyard is through a gate with a round-headed arch protected by a portcullis. The keep is the most interesting feature of the fortress. Of considerable height, the upper part is protected by eight turrets supported on accordion brackets, one at each corner and one in the middle of each wall.

The castle, constructed in limestone ashlar, belongs to a large group of Castilian fortresses of which the most outstanding feature is the keep, often reaching monumental proportions. In addition to the defensive function, the keep served to intimidate the population and discourage rebellion, especially if sited, as at Torrelobatón, on the side of the castle nearest the village.

Torrelobatón Castle otherwise lies in the tradition of seigneurial fortresses that, except in some older castles or in those built on raised ground, have a quadrilateral ground plan with the keep set into one of the corners. The most unusual features of Torrelobatón are the turrets on the keep and the straight parapet.

Torrelobatón Castle Location

Address: Castillo de Torrelobatón, Camino de Castillo, 47134 Torrelobatón, Spain. Get help with directions:

Torrelobatón Castle Map

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This templar castle (also knowns as Castillo Templario) dominates from high above the crossing of the river Sil in the city of the same name.

Built by the templars in the 12th century, what we see today is mainly the work carried out by different noble owners in the 14th century.

Ponferrada Castle has an irregular plan with a double line of defense on the side facing the city and only one facing the river.

It occupies an area of more than 8000 square meters and its interior is divided into two different parts: the “old castle” built by Galician nobleman Don Pedro Fernandez de Castro and the “new castle” built by the Count of Lemos, Pedro Alvarez de Osorio and his grandson.

The Ponferrada Castle is open to visitors.

Ponferrada Castle Location

Address: Castillo del Temple, Calle de Gil y Carrasco, 24400 Ponferrada, Spain

Ponferrada Castle Map

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Also known as El Buque (the ship) due to its elongated shape, Penafiel Castle is 210 m long and 33 m wide. It was built in the 15th century over much older fortifications.

The keep is rectangular; it is over 30 m high and has 14.5 m and 20 m at the base. The keep is flanked by two courtyards.

Located close to river Duero, the former frontier between medieval Castilla and the Moorish south, it was owned by one of the most famous Spanish knights, the “Infante Don Juan Manuel”.

Currently, the Penafiel Castle houses the Provincial Museum of the Wines of Valladolid and can be visited on a guided tour.

Peñafiel Castle Location

Peñafiel Castle Address: Peñafiel, Av Constitución, 1, 47300 Peñafiel, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Peñafiel Castle Map

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Pedraza Castle History

The original Fortress of Pedraza dates back to the 13th century and was heavily transformed in the fifteenth century.

It was owned by the Herreras and the Fernandez de Velasco families (dukes of Frias and Condestables of Castille). The sons of Francis I of France were held captive here after the battle of Pavia.

Pedraza Castle Today
Today the Pedraza Castle belongs to the Zuloaga family (Spanish painter) and it is open for visits from Thursday to Sunday if the family is not inside.

Pedraza Castle is also the home of the Ignacio Zuloaga Museum.

Pedraza Castle Location

Address: Calle Mayor, 40172 Pedraza, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Pedraza Castle Map

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Olmillos de Sasamón Castle History

Built-in 1440 by Don Pedro de Cartagena, the Olmillos de Sasamón Castle was conceived as a fortified palace.

It also belonged to the Cartagenas in the 15th and 16th centuries, to the Viscounts of Valoria in the 17th and 18th centuries, and to the Dukes of Gor in the 19th century.

The castle has a double enclosure. The outer one nearly disappeared and the inner one is defended by cylindrical towers.

Currently, the Olmillos de Sasamón is in private hands and it is used as a hotel.

Olmillos de Sasamón Location

Olmillos de Sasamón Address: 09123 Sasamón, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Olmillos de Sasamón Map

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Grajal de Campos Castle History

Begun in the 16th century by Hernando de Vega over the remains of a 10th-century castle, the Grajal de Campos Castle was finished by his son Juan de Vega y Acuna, count of Grajal.

Designed to withstand the use of artillery the castle has sloped walls and its overall height is lower than those of earlier castles, making it difficult and hard to target by cannon fire.

The Grajal de Campos Castle has a square plan with four corner towers covering all blind spots and it is located on the western edge of the village over a small hill. In this same village, there is a renaissance palace owned by the same counts which is said to be linked by an underground tunnel with the castle.

To this day, the castle belongs to the actual Duke of Alburquerque, its interior is dismantled and can be visited but opening hours are clumsy, matching the will of its caretaker.

Grajal de Campos Castle Location

Address: Castillo de Grajal, Carretera Sahagún, 24340 Grajal de Campos, Spain. Get help with directions:

Grajal de Campos Castle Map

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Corullón Castle History

The Corullon Castle (Spanish: Castillo de Corullón) was built in the 14th century by the Rodriguez de Valarce family on Roman foundations.

It was used mainly as a hunting lodge and holiday residence by the nobility of the neighboring Villafranca del Bierzo.

Corullón Castle Today
Today Corullon Castle is a private property and its interior can’t be visited.

Corullón Castle Location

Approximate Geographic Coordinates: 42.3451°, -6.4925. Get help with directions (From Corullón)

Corullón Castle Map

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Coca Castle (Spanish: Castillo Mudéjar de Coca) is located in the province of Segovia, Spain.

It was built on the site of ancient Cauca, the birthplace of the Roman emperor Theodosius, and was populated by the Arevaca in the 2nd century BC.

Coca Castle Architecture

Situated on a plain on the banks of the rivers Voltoya and Eresma, with markedly uneven ground on three of its sides, it is a magnificent example of a late medieval castle–a palace.

Begun in 1448 by Don Alonso de Fonseca (1418–1473), Bishop of Avila and Archbishop of Seville, but still unfinished at the end of the 15th century, Coca is a characteristic example of the Mudéjar style, combining elements drawn from Islamic traditions with Flamboyant Gothic.

Coca Castle is built of brick, laid on a smooth surface so that the mortar layers and lines of brickwork are equally emphasized, creating a decorative surface pattern. The rectangular ground plan comprises two curtain walls surrounding a central enceinte, on the north side of which is the keep (Tower of Homage).

Traces of the outer curtain wall and the large rectangular towers marking the boundaries of a wide ditch survive. On the second curtain wall, beyond the bridge, is a gateway near the Tower of Homage; its high, pointed brick arch has a square-framed border, and the decorative brickwork in the upper part recalls Arabic schemes.

The walls of the second curtain, which has an accentuated talus down to the ditch, have cylindrical turrets in the center of each side, with smaller ones in the spaces between. The corner towers are polygonal, with further polygonal turrets at the angles.

The walls are machicolated and crowned with two or three sets of battlements in the form of turrets with stepped crests, which jut out in a decorative fashion, according to the varying formations of the brickwork.

Coca Castle is closely related to those of Casarubios del Monte (Toledo), Arroyomolinos (Madrid), Arevalo (Avila), and La Mota Castle in Medina del Campo (Valladolid). The same masons probably worked at La Mota and at Coca: Fernando Carreño, Alfonso Nieto, and the Moors Abdallah de Medina and Ali de Lerma. Coca became a national monument in 1931.

Coca Castle Visitor info

Today the castle hosts a training school for foresters, but can still be visited. Visits can be made only with a guided tour (available in English too).

Coca Castle Location

Coca Castle Address: Castillo Mudéjar, Calle de la Ronda del Castillo, 40480 Coca, Spain. Get help with directions:

Coca Castle Map

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La Mota Castle is a fortress in Medina del Campo, in the province of Valladolid, Spain.

Castle of La Mota History

The origins of this castle, called ‘de la Mota’ because of its site on a small raised mound overlooking the town, go back to the 12th century, when it guarded a fortified town within the Kingdom of Castile, on the frontier with León.

Its present form, however, is the result of alterations carried out in the 15th century, from the reign of John II onwards.

Some records indicate that Master Fernando Carreño participated in work done on the castle in 1440. In the reign of Henry IV (reg 1454–74) the castle belonged to the Archbishop of Seville, Don Alonso de Fonseca, and was besieged by the townspeople. In 1475 it passed into the hands of the Catholic rulers Ferdinand and Isabella. During their reign, new work was carried out under the direction of Alonso Nieto with the collaboration of Moorish architects such as masters Abdallah and Alí de Lerma. In the 16th century, the fortress was converted into a state prison.

The deterioration of the castle already evident in 1592 was enough to cause concern about the security of the prisoners, and in 1646 some repairs were carried out by Master Manuel de Vega.

The irregular quadrilateral plan of La Mota Castle consists of an outer ward or enceinte and an inner ward concentric with the first. The most outstanding feature is the great keep inset in the northeast corner of the inner ward.

The castle was built with concrete walls faced with brick; on the outside of the building, the holes for the timber framing used in the construction of the concrete walls are still visible. Restorations were carried out on the castle after the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939), but some of the rooms were altered, making reconstruction of their original appearance difficult.

The monumental proportions of the keep, relate it to a series of majestic castles erected in Castile in the 15th century, like Torrelobatón Castle. In these castles, it was usual to enter the keep from the parapet of the inner ward, but that of La Mota is now entered from ground level. The enceinte is similar to that at Coca Castle, which also has a ditch.

La Mota Castle also belongs to a small group of 15th-century Castilian fortresses built of brick instead of the more usual ashlar. Included in this group, as well as Coca Castle, are Arévalo y Castronuevo (Avila) and Arroyomolinos (Madrid).

La Mota Castle Location

Castle of La Mota Address: Avenida Castillo, S/N, 47400 Medina del Campo, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

La Mota Castle Map

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Castilnovo Castle History

Probably built by Abdulrahman I, this Moorish castle was altered in the 14th and 16th centuries and later in the 19th and 20th centuries.

It has a square plan with six towers and it is a fine example of Spanish Moorish architecture.

The Castilnovo Castle hosted the Catholic kings and was later the prison for the sons of Francis I, the French king after being captured by the Spanish at the battle of Pavia in 1525. In the 19th century, it was the property of the Hohenzollern family.

Today Castilnovo is a private property and it is not open for visitors.

Official website: castilnovo.net
Phone: +34 921 53 11 33.

Castilnovo Castle Location

Address: Castillo de Castilnovo S/N, 40318 Condado de Castilnovo, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Castilnovo Castle Map

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Belmonte Castle History

Belmonte Castle was built in the 15th and 16th centuries over older remains. It consists of a 20 meters high keep, a gate with an adjacent tower, and scattered remains of the enclosure.

It was owned by Juan Manuel, counselor of Kind Henry IV in 1458, the following centuries passed to the Count of Onate and the Marquis of Montealegre.

The keep was enlarged in the early 16th century and it never saw any fighting.

The exterior of the Belmonte Castle is free to visit but access inside is hard.

Belmonte Castle Location

Address: Castillo de Belmonte, Calle de Eugenia Montijo, 1, 16640 Belmonte, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Belmonte Castle

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Ampudia Castle History

First built in the 13th century, but thoroughly altered in the 15th century, Ampudia Castle has a square plan with a Gothic central courtyard and 4 towers on each corner.

Half of the castle complex is surrounded by a barbican defended by cylindrical towers.

It belonged to different owners such as Juan Alfonso de Alburquerque, Sancho de Rojas, and Pedro Garcia Herrera (Marsical of Castille) among others.

In 1521 it was assaulted and occupied by the Comuneros (Castillan independentists who fought against Charles I of Spain) headed by the Belicious bishop Acuna. It was later retaken for the Crown by the Duke of Lerma.

Today Ampudia Castle is private property, but its grounded departments can be visited on a guided tour. Other parts of the castle like the upper levels or the keep are not open for visitors.

Ampudia Castle Location

Address: El Castillo de Ampudia, Oficina de Turismo de Ampudia, Plaza San Miguel, 2, 34191 Ampudia, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Ampudia Castle Map

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Alhambra Complex Architecture

The Alhambra is a palace complex in Granada, the last Muslim enclave of al-Andalus in southern Spain, which was built by the Nasrid dynasty over several centuries. It sits on a large rocky outcropping, or mountain spur, within the present-day city. Alhambra literally means “red castle”.

The oldest part, the Alcazaba, is a fortress overlooking the city, built by the Almohads in the 12th century. Several impressive gates and a wall remain from this period, but the living quarters for the administrative workers and barracks for soldiers are not visible. Most of the rest of the Muslim parts were built in the 14th and 15th centuries, during the era when the Nasrids held out against the rest of Christian Spain and were able to hire the best-remaining artisans from Islamic Spain.

The whole complex consists of several palaces, reception halls, a 14th-century tower, mosques, and courts that were linked as they were added. They are connected by a series of patios and arcaded courtyards usually graced with fountains and running water. The rooms are usually richly decorated with inscriptions, colorful tiles, wooden ceilings, and heavenly vaults formed of stucco supported by beautiful niches and bearing hanging stalactite ceilings.

The most impressive and famous courtyards are those called the Court of the Myrtles because of the myrtle bushes or shrubbery decorating them, and the Court of the Lions, which encloses a fountain spouting from the backs of carved lions. The divisions between internal and external space are not clearly defined, and light is dramatically employed nearly everywhere.

Farther up the hill is a 14th-century summer palace called the Generalife that is linked to the main complex by gardens re-created in the 20th century. The palace itself is entered by an elongated patio formed around a canal, the water source.

Alhambra is especially important because it is one of the few palaces to have survived from medieval Islamic times. It illustrates superbly a number of architectural concerns occasionally documented in literary references. It demonstrates a contrast between an unassuming exterior and a richly decorated interior to achieve an effect of a secluded or private place of repose.

The architectural decoration of the Alhambra was mostly of stucco. Some of it is flat. There, however, are extraordinarily complex cupolas appearing as upside-down crowns. Heavy, elaborately decorated ceilings are supported by frail columns. Walls are pierced with many windows with light spreading through almost every part of its large, domed halls. The poems and calligraphic ornamentation adorning the Alhambra suggest that its cupolas are the domes of heaven rotating around the prince sitting under them. The whole complex is a stunning exception to the general austerity of Muslim architecture existing in Spain.

Christian Renaissance: the palace of Charles V

Soon after Granada fell to the Christians in 1492, the emperor Charles V built a palace in the Renaissance style that required some demolition and now looms among the older palaces and fortress. The large Renaissance palace of Charles V adjoining the Patio de Comares was designed by Pedro Machuca. He built the Puerta de las Granádas as a formal Renaissance entrance to the Alhambra precinct. The construction of the palace began in 1533; the design was revised by Juan de Herrera, and work continued for over a century, but the palace was never completed. Perhaps the finest Renaissance palace in Spain, it has a square plan and a circular courtyard, the lower story of which has an arcade of Doric columns; the upper level has Ionic pilasters between the windows. The octagonal chapel in the eastern corner of the palace was intended to have a dome, but this was never built.

Gardens of the Alhambra

During the medieval period, Granada was an agriculturally rich region with two rivers providing abundant water for its famous farm estates, gardens, and orchards, which produced, among other crops, excellent figs. According to the historian Ibn al-Khatib, the Alhambra palace complex, like Granada, was densely planted with so many verdant gardens that the light-colored stone of the towers and belvederes of the palace appeared like bright stars in an evening sky of dark vegetation.

In the gardens of the Alhambra, there is a constant play between openness and closure. While enclosed spaces are defined and contained by architecture, they are also juxtaposed with miradors offering multi-leveled views onto the palace gardens situated on the lower slopes of the Alhambra, looking beyond to the Albaycín Hill and surrounding countryside, and views from the Generalife across the ravine to the Alhambra with the Sierra Nevada in the distance. Such cultivated vistas are often framed by arched poly lobed windows, as in the Salón de Comares or the elegant Cuarto Dorado.

From the latter, the view is north to the hills and streams of the ‘natural’, exterior landscape or in the opposite direction into an enclosed paved courtyard in which the only reference to nature is a fluted water basin in the center. The all-encompassing, sweeping vistas of garden and landscape at the Alhambra and Generalife belie the traditional concept of the Islamic garden as a self-contained, private space organized according to a simple, rigid geometry; instead, they show that different kinds of landscape experiences were incorporated into the garden design by manipulating the direction and distance of the gaze.

The belvederes and pavilions in the middle of each of the galleried sides contain small water jets or rivulets that flow toward the Lion Fountain and create an axial organization that suggests a miniature, ‘four-plot’ garden. A visitor in 1602 observed six orange trees in each quadrant; thus the garden in the Patio de los Leones was probably planted with orange trees, vegetation, and flowers, the surface of the soil a half meter or more below the level of the pavement.

Several gardens in Alhambra were refashioned after the Christian conquest of 1492. The Patio de Lindaraja in its original state was an open Islamic garden with an overlook provided by the projecting Mirador de Lindaraja, which was subsequently enclosed when converted into private apartments for Emperor Charles V. The Torre de las Damas in the Palacio del Partal is also of the Nasrid period, functioning as a mirador with ground-floor windows and a tower on the left side providing expansive views toward the Albaycín Hill; the gardens of the Partal, however, are 20th-century restorations with modern designs and types of plants.

When the Patio de la Acequia was excavated and restored in 1959 following a fire, a 13th-century quadripartite, Islamic garden was discovered. The original soil level was half a meter below the surrounding pavements, and the original irrigation system was intact, although neither was retained in the restoration. Two tall pavilions mark the ends of the garden, which is organized along a central axial watercourse, the water for which is supplied from the mountains via the same aqueduct that supplies the Alhambra.

The water channel is bordered by planted beds and intersected by a short, narrow walkway. Although the garden is enclosed on four sides, the west wall is pierced by arches and a projecting mirador, which looks over the lower gardens and across to the Alhambra. Above and to the northeast are other water channels, pools, and gardens, redesigned in later centuries after the Christian conquest.

The highest is reached via a stairway ascending through verdant vegetation; the coping of the low walls of the stairs is hollowed to conduct refreshing and decorative trickles of water while water jets adorn each landing. Elsewhere the 18th-century avenue of cypress trees leads to the modern entrance of the Generalife.

Alhambra Visitor Info

Today the Alhambra is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Spain. Thus, it is advised to reserve the ticket beforehand as the entrance is limited to a number of people.

Alhambra Tickets
It is best to get a day ticket to be able to see the whole complex and the gardens. Night visits of the Nasrid palaces are also possible but they are limited to a maximum of 400 persons, so make sure you reserve them in advance. For more information about tickets visit http://www.alhambra.org/eng/index.asp?secc=/alhambra/tickets_sale

Granada is easily reachable by any form of transport. The Alhambra complex is located up on a hill, and you can take a walk there, but buses or taxis are also available.

Alhambra – Granada Location

Alhambra Palace Address: Plaza Arquitecto Garcia de Paredes, 1, 18009 Granada, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Alhambra – Granada Map

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The Vélez Blanco castle is a Spanish castle situated in Almería.

It is one of a series of fortresses built at the beginning of the 16th century by Pedro Fajardo y Chacón, the first Marqués de los Vélez and Governor of the kingdom of Murcia.

The fortress has an elongated ground plan and is crowned on the north front by a keep.

Vélez Blanco History

According to an inscription in the courtyard, the castle was built between 1506 and 1515 after Fajardo received the lordship of the town from Ferdinand II and Isabella, took up residence there and was given the title of Marqués (1507) by Ferdinand, who was then regent. The heraldry of the principal areas of the castle, including the coat of arms of his second wife, Mencía de la Cueva, belongs to this period.

The fortified areas of the castle, particularly the defenses and the Late Gothic east gallery of the courtyard, are examples of late 15th-century Spanish art.

Attempts have been made to link this building with the chapel of the Vélez family in Murcia Cathedral (completed in 1507), which is also Gothic. By contrast, the three other galleries of the courtyard have columns, arches, and windows with Italian Renaissance detailing and sculpture.

The Velez Blanco Castle was one of the first buildings in Spain to present this style, which reflected the Italianate education of the Marqués de los Vérez (a disciple of the humanist Pietro Martire d’Anghiera), who is portrayed in a frieze as accompanying Emperor Titus on his triumphal entry into Rome.

All of these elements were carved in local marble, and each of the three decorated galleries has a different composition. The gallery at the south entrance, beside the staircase which leads up two flights, has two levels of arcading.

The castle itself has been implausibly attributed to Lorenzo Vázquez de Segovia on the grounds that both La Calahorra Castle and Vélez Blanco Castle derive from models in the Codex Escurialensis, but Vázquez de Segovia’s use of Italianate elements in La Calahorra differs considerably from Velez Blanco.

At La Calahorra the detailing of the windows and the incorrect moldings and curves of the arches indicate the presence of Italian craftsmen working under a Spanish architect unused to the contemporary forms of architecture in Rome.

Like La Calahorra Castle, though less perfect, Vélez Blanco Castle is a good example of the early application of Italian stylistic elements in Spain at the beginning of the 16th century. They are subordinated here to Spanish structural traditions without really transforming them, at the instance of a member of the Spanish nobility with humanist and antiquarian interests.

Velez Blanco Location

Address: C/ Corredera, 38, 04830 Vélez-Blanco, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Velez Blanco Map

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Loarre castle is a fortress in Loarre, in the Huesca province, Aragon, Spain.

It commands a magnificent situation in the foothills of the Pyrenees overlooking the vast plains of Sotonera south to Huesca and beyond.

Loarre Castle History

The Loarre Castle complex was built largely during the 11th and 12th centuries when its position on the frontier between Christian and Muslim lands gave it its strategic importance.

The first of the two major building programs began around 1020 when Sancho el Mayor (1063–194) reconquered the surrounding lands from the Muslims. At least three towers, two of which survive, the Torre del Homenaje and the Torre de la Reina, as well as a chapel dedicated to S María de Valverde and connecting walls, are attributed to this campaign.

The Torre del Homenaje was built in an isolated position in front of the fortifications, to which it was connected by a wooden bridge. It contained a basement and five floors.

The Torre de la Reina, comprising a basement and three floors, is particularly noteworthy for three sets of twin-arched windows, with columns of exaggerated entasis and trapezoidal capitals that have been related to both Lombard and Mozarabic architectural forms. The chapel is composed of a single-cell nave with an eastern apse covered by a semicircular vault. The original timber roof of the nave was replaced by a vault at the end of the 11th century.

After 1070 Loarre became increasingly important. In 1073 King Sancho installed a community of Augustinian canons, and it was from Loarre that he prepared for the conquest of Huesca in 1094. In 1097, however, his successor, Peter I, donated all the goods of Loarre to a new royal monastery at Montearagon.

This evidence suggests that the second major construction program was undertaken between 1073 and 1097, and much building evidently does date from this period. By comparison with other monuments, however, it is also clear that the building and decorative program continued into the 12th century.

The outermost walls of Loarre Castle and its eight towers were erected in the 13th or 14th century. The church and castle have been the subject of numerous restorations, a major one in 1913 and subsequent ones, particularly during the 1970s, have resulted in the rebuilding of many walls and towers that had fallen into disrepair.

Loarre Castle Church
The most impressive monument of the second building campaign is the castle church, built to the east of the chapel and dedicated to the Saviour and St Peter.

It was built over and it defines a new entrance to the castle complex, and it has a fortified appearance, with walls rising dramatically to the level of the fortifications.

On the south a portal provides access to an impressive barrel-vaulted stairway that runs under the width of the church, leading to a doorway in its north flank. To the left of this long passage is a chamber, probably a guards’ room, and to the right, the crypt of the church. The crypt is vaulted and decorated by a wall arcade supported by columns with carved capitals. Two stairways give direct access to the church.

The Loarre Castle’s church is composed of a single-cell nave of two bays, one barrel vaulted and the other covered by a cupola rising above double squinches.

The impression of great height is accentuated by the addition of four oculi placed above the arches supporting the dome. There is little evidence to suggest that the unique double squinches are not an original feature, and their only purpose seems to be a means of increasing the sensation of height, although some scholars have interpreted their architectural form as a reflection of the elaborate vaulted and domed coverings of the Muslim architecture of Spain. The vaulted apse is decorated with arcading: an upper row of five arches and a lower of thirteen.

The decorative repertory of the church, in the general use of the torus around doors and windows articulated with billet bands, suggests a connection to Jaca Cathedral, a link that is confirmed by such sculptural details as the use of a feathered projection on the edges of some capitals; there is also a clear parallel between an impost block of the apse arcade and one from the chapter house of Jaca.

Loarre Castle Location

Address: Castillo de Loarre, Carretera, 4, 22809 Loarre, Spain. Get help with directions using the map provided below:

Loarre Castle Map

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