Burgalimar Castle () is a historic castle in the town of

Baños de la Encina Baños de la Encina is a city located in the province of Jaén, Spain. According to 2024 INE figures, the city had a population of 2563 inhabitants. The 10th-century Burgalimar Castle is located on the southern edge of the town. See also * Lis ...

, Jaén Province,

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. It was built in the 10th century under the rule of the Umayyad Caliphate of Córdoba.

History

A marble inscription plaque found at the entrance of the castle records the date of its construction as 967 AD (357 AH), during the reign of the

caliph A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

Al-Hakam II Al-Hakam II, also known as Abū al-ʿĀṣ al-Mustanṣir bi-Llāh al-Hakam b. ʿAbd al-Raḥmān (; 13 January 915 – 1 October 976), was the Caliph of Córdoba. He was the second Umayyad Caliph of Córdoba in Al-Andalus, and son of Abd-al-R ...

, who is also named in the inscription. The marble plaque is now kept at the National Archaeological Museum in Madrid. The castle was built as a military base and garrison to defend the valley of the

Guadalquivir River The Guadalquivir (, also , , ) is the fifth-longest river in the Iberian Peninsula and the second-longest river with its entire length in Spain. The Guadalquivir is the only major navigability, navigable river in Spain. Currently it is navigable ...

and the roads to and from the capital city of Córdoba. In the 12th and 13th centuries, during the ''

Reconquista The ''Reconquista'' (Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese for ) or the fall of al-Andalus was a series of military and cultural campaigns that European Christian Reconquista#Northern Christian realms, kingdoms waged ag ...

'', the castle changed hands multiple times between the

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

rulers of

Al-Andalus Al-Andalus () was the Muslim-ruled area of the Iberian Peninsula. The name refers to the different Muslim states that controlled these territories at various times between 711 and 1492. At its greatest geographical extent, it occupied most o ...

and the

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

kingdoms to the north.

Alfonso VII Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century ( Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic Kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula. ...

captured it in 1147 but it returned to Muslim control after his death in 1157.

Alfonso VIII Alfonso VIII (11 November 11555 October 1214), called the Noble (El Noble) or the one of Las Navas (el de las Navas), was King of Castile from 1158 to his death and King of Toledo. After having suffered a great defeat with his own army at Alarc ...

and

Alfonso IX Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic Kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula. I ...

together captured it again for a time in 1189. It was captured by the

Kingdom of Castile The Kingdom of Castile (; : ) was a polity in the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages. It traces its origins to the 9th-century County of Castile (, ), as an eastern frontier lordship of the Kingdom of León. During the 10th century, the Ca ...

in 1212, shortly before the

Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa The Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa, known in Islamic history as the Battle of Al-Uqab (), took place on 16 July 1212 and was an important turning point in the ''Reconquista'' and the Spain in the Middle Ages, medieval history of Spain. The Christian ...

, but returned to

Almohad The Almohad Caliphate (; or or from ) or Almohad Empire was a North African Berber Muslim empire founded in the 12th century. At its height, it controlled much of the Iberian Peninsula (Al-Andalus) and North Africa (the Maghreb). The Almohad ...

control three days after the battle. The castle was definitively conquered by Castile in 1225, when it conquered the surrounding region. The Castilians later added a keep tower called the ''Torre del Homenaje'' ("Tower of Homage") in 1466. It was designated a

National Monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a sp ...

of Spain in 1931.

Description

The castle consists of a large walled enclosure, of elongated but irregular shape, measuring roughly 100 meters long and 50 meters wide. Fifteen towers stand at close intervals around the perimeter. All the towers have a square or rectangular base, which was typical of caliphal fortresses in the 10th century, except for the northernmost tower, the 15th-century ''Torre del Homenaje'', which is larger and has a semi-round profile. There are two entrance gates: one in the north and one in the south/southeast. The more important southern gate consists of a straight passage (instead of the bent entrance common in later fortifications) with horseshoe arches, set between two towers. Chambers were located above the passage with slots in the floor where missiles could be thrown down onto attackers. Inside the castle today are the remains of a

cistern A cistern (; , ; ) is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. To prevent leakage, the interior of the cistern is often lined with hydraulic plaster. Cisterns are disti ...

and the foundations of later buildings. File:Baños de la Encina - 021 (30105873984).jpg, Exterior view of the walls File:Castillo Baños de la Encina - Entrada de cerca.jpg, The southern gate of the castle File:Baños de la Encina - 017 (30105877914).jpg, The ''Torre del Homenaje'' File:Castillo de Burgalimar K35.jpg, The castle's interior, with remains of some later structures

References

{{Coord, 38, 10, 12.6, N, 3, 46, 31.8, W, region:ES-AN_type:landmark_source:dewiki, display=title Military history of al-Andalus Castles in Andalusia Buildings and structures in the Province of Jaén (Spain) Moorish architecture in Spain Architecture of the Caliphate of Córdoba