Villalonso Castle is one of the best conserved castles in the province of Zamora. The castle is a typical and notable example of 15th-century architecture; its construction may be attributed to Juan de Ulloa and his wife María de Sarmiento, whose coats of arms can be seen above the entrance gate. It played an important role during the siege of the queen Isabel the Catholic on Toro during her war against Juan 'La Beltraneja' and during the comunero rebelion against Carlos V.
In 1235 there was an earlier fortification at this site belonging to the Order of Alcántara. During the wars of the Catholic Kings against the King of Portugal, Villalonso Castle, along with other castles in the area, was in the hands of Pedro de Avendaño, in the name of the Portuguese king. At that time the count of Marialba, having fled the town of Toro, sought refuge in the castle shortly before the conquest of this city by the Castilian forces. The castle also played a role, although of small importance, in the War of the Communities.
The castle consisted of two enclosures and a wide moat still visible although mostly covered up.The outside enclosure has not been preserved. The interior one has been partially preserves. It is square and has cubes in the corners and a Tower of Homage, also square, in the centre of one of the sides, topped with a beautiful running crenellation.
References:Linderhof is the smallest of the three palaces built by King Ludwig II of Bavaria and the only one which he lived to see completed.
Ludwig II, who was crowned king in 1864, began his building activities in 1867-1868 by redesigning his rooms in the Munich Residenz and laying the foundation stone of Neuschwanstein Castle. In 1868 he was already making his first plans for Linderhof. However, neither the palace modelled on Versailles that was to be sited on the floor of the valley nor the large Byzantine palace envisaged by Ludwig II were ever built.
Instead, the new building developed around the forester's house belonging to his father Maximilian II, which was located in the open space in front of the present palace and was used by the king when crown prince on hunting expeditions with his father.