Aulencia Castle

Aulencia Castle is located at the top of a little hill where the Aulencia river joins the Guadarrama river. From there, one can see a beautiful landscape, composed of the Aulencia river brook’s vegetation on one side, and the European Space Astronomy Centre on the other.

As it is for the history of this beautiful and original example of a Spanish noble mudejar castle, it is said that the Arabian feudal king who ruled this region resided here, and to him, every near townsperson paid homage and realty in order be allowed to live there. This castle is similar to many others of its time, all which still exist in different areas of Castilla, especially Jadraque (Guadalajara).

In the 14th century, it passed into the hands of García Fernández; and in the 15th century Álvarez de Toledo, a member of the court of John II of Castille, took possession of the castle. At this time, the descendants of Álvarez de Toledo, the Núñez de Toledo, raised walls around the castle in order to prevent possible attacks. During the Spanish Civil War in the 20thcentury, it was used as a fortress in the Battle of Brunete.

The majestic and slender Aulencia Castle is made up of a tower surrounded by a double wall. The exterior part is made up of six cylindrical towers united by a 1.4 m wide and 6 m high wall. The enclosure is rectangular and its longest side is 25 m long. The highest tower is up 20 m high. The territory inside the enclosure was thought to harbour simple rooms without any ornamentation. Nowadays, only ruins remain.

References:

• ayto-villacanada.es

Address

Calle Manuel de Falla, Villanueva de la Cañada, Spain

Details

Founded: 14th century
Category: Castles and fortifications in Spain