List of castles in Spain information

The castles in Spain were built mainly for the country's defense, particularly with respect to fortification. During the Middle Ages, northern Christian kingdoms had to secure their borders with their Muslim southern neighbours, thus forcing both Christian and Muslim kings to grant border fiefs to their liege noblemen so as to keep and maintain defensive fortresses. When the Reconquista advanced, those border castles lost their initial purpose, and, as in the rest of medieval Europe, they were used as noble residences and fief-keeps. Sporadic threats of war maintained their initial military purposes as enemy invasions were common. In some locations, such as the Basque country, fiefdoms did not exist as such, and noble families could not afford nor did they need huge fortresses, giving rise to many tower houses. In Muslim Spain many castle-palaces were built: the petty taifa kingdoms that arose after the fall of the Caliphate of Córdoba were militarily weak thus castles began taking on a more aesthetic purpose. During the late Middle Ages, Christian kingdoms had secured and enriched themselves well enough to support a more courtly lifestyle, so more residential castles were built, such as the Alcázar of Segovia, which was used as the main residence of the kings of Castile, whereas the Castle of Olite, built in a luxurious gothic style, was the seat of the Kingdom of Navarre's royal court.

After the Conquest of Granada in 1492, the Catholic monarchs ordered all the castles in their realms to be handed over to the Crown. Although the order was not completely carried out, the War of the Germanias, a rebellion against king Charles V in the early 16th century, forced the new Spanish Habsburg dynasty to continue the process, and many castles were demolished as well. Most of the castles in Spain were successively abandoned and dismantled, Spanish kings fearing noble and peasant revolts, especially in the newly conquered lands. Accordingly, some of them are nowadays in a state of decay, and although some restoration work has been done, the number of former castles is so large that the Spanish government lacks both the resources and the will to restore them all.

List of castles in Spain information

and 28 Related for: List of castles in Spain information

List of castles in Spain

List of castles in Europe

List of castles

List of castles in England

List of castles in Germany

List of castles in Ireland

List of castles in Russia

List of castles by country

List of castles in Slovakia

List of castles in Africa

List of castles in Hungary

List of castles in Scotland

List of castles in Wales

List of castles in France

List of destroyed landmarks in Spain

List of castles in the Czech Republic

List of castles and palaces in Sweden

List of castles in Poland

List of castles and fortresses in Romania

List of castles in Italy

List of castles in Greece

List of castles in Lithuania

List of castles in Japan

List of castles in Austria

List of castles in Luxembourg

List of castles in Ukraine

List of castles in Norway

List of castles in Belarus