Castrotorafe Castle, San Cebrian de Castro, Spain

The ruins of the ancient town of Castrotorafe, popularly known as Zamora la Vieja, are in San Cebrian de Castro, emplacement already located in the 12th century.

It was a medieval defensive site which appeared on the banks of Esla River. It keeps the walls built with slate masonry and mortar, and has 4.709 square meters, including the castle, the hermitage and the walls.

The best preserved is the castle, of two enclosures with irregular trapezoid shape. Inside of it, practically ruined, built with different materials and with a floor similar to the outside.

References:

Junta de Castilla y León

User Reviews

VCV (3 months ago)
For many they will simply be a pile of ruinous stones. But for me it is a piece of history in which there were experiences of people of the time. Added to the incomparable setting sighting the Esla river at the foot of its walls, it makes it a place from where spend a good time contemplating the flight of the swallows and the view that the unevenness of the valley allows us. Heritage should invest more in places like this which would be a boost for the county.

Erick-Manuel Sanchez (AMVsChannel) (4 months ago)
Little known, it is worth a quick visit.

Mercedes Cifuentes Díaz (12 months ago)
Another sad example of neglected heritage. Very interesting, the spectacular setting

Diego Ferreiro Alonso (14 months ago)
A very nice place. The path remains to be improved and the area cleared of brambles, thorns and thistles. Shade is also missing. Otherwise great.

Marian Herrero (14 months ago)
A beautiful landscape

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright joiseyshowaa

Historic Site of the week

Broch of Gurness

The Broch of Gurness is an Iron Age broch village. Settlement here began sometime between 500 and 200 BC. At the centre of the settlement is a stone tower or broch, which once probably reached a height of around 10 metres. Its interior is divided into sections by upright slabs. The tower features two skins of drystone walls, with stone-floored galleries in between. These are accessed by steps. Stone ledges suggest that there was once an upper storey with a timber floor. The roof would have been thatched, surrounded by a wall walk linked by stairs to the ground floor. The broch features two hearths and a subterranean stone cistern with steps leading down into it. It is thought to have some religious significance, relating to an Iron Age cult of the underground.

The remains of the central tower are up to 3.6 metres high, and the stone walls are up to 4.1 metres thick. The tower was likely inhabited by the principal family or clan of the area but also served as a last resort for the village in case of an attack.

The broch continued to be inhabited while it began to collapse and the original structures were altered. The cistern was filled in and the interior was repartitioned. The ruin visible today reflects this secondary phase of the broch's use.

The site is surrounded by three ditches cut out of the rock with stone ramparts, encircling an area of around 45 metres diameter. The remains of numerous small stone dwellings with small yards and sheds can be found between the inner ditch and the tower. These were built after the tower, but were a part of the settlement's initial conception. A 'main street' connects the outer entrance to the broch. The settlement is the best-preserved of all broch villages.

Pieces of a Roman amphora dating to before 60 AD were found here, lending weight to the record that a 'King of Orkney' submitted to Emperor Claudius at Colchester in 43 AD.

At some point after 100 AD the broch was abandoned and the ditches filled in. It is thought that settlement at the broch continued into the 5th century AD, the period known as Pictish times. By that time the broch was not used anymore and some of its stones were reused to build smaller dwellings on top of the earlier buildings. Until about the 8th century, the site was just a single farmstead.

In the 9th century, a Norse woman was buried at the site in a stone-lined grave with two bronze brooches and a sickle and knife made from iron. Other finds suggest that Norse men were buried here too.

Do you know an ancient castle or magnificent church near you?

Why not share it with other people interested in history? You can add your own historic sites and attractions to SpottingHistory.com.

It's absolutely free, easy, and doesn't even need registration!

Upload data

Castrotorafe Castle

Address

Details

More Information

Rating

Interesting Sites Nearby

User Reviews

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

House of the Dragon Filming Locations

Historic Landmarks of Sicily

Rhodes, The Island of Knights

Historic Site of the week

Broch of Gurness

Looks like you are a history fan!