Ampudia Castle

Ampudia, Spain

First built in the 13th century, but thoroughly altered in the 15th century, Ampudia Castle has a square plan with a gothic central courtyard and 4 towers on each corner. Half of the castle complex is surrounded by a barbican defended by cylindrical towers.

It belonged to different owners such as Juan Alfonso de Alburquerque, Sancho de Rojas and Pedro Garcia Herrera (Marsical of Castille) among others.

In 1521 it was assaulted and occupied by the Comuneros (Castillan independentists who fought against Charles I of Spain) headed by the belicious bishop Acuna. It was later retaken for the Crown by the Duke of Lerma.

Today Ampudia Castle is a private property, but its grounded departments can be visited on a guided tour. Other parts of the castle like the upper levels or the keep are not open for visit.

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Address

Calle Costanilla de Santiago 1, Ampudia, Spain
See all sites in Ampudia

Details

Founded: 13th century
Category: Castles and fortifications in Spain

More Information

www.everycastle.com
www.turismocastillayleon.com

Rating

4.4/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby


Plaza Mayor (29,4 km)
Valladolid Cathedral (29,4 km)
Santa María La Antigua (29,2 km)
Iglesia de San Pablo (28,8 km)
Museo Nacional de Escultura (28,9 km)
San Benito el Real (29,1 km)
Palencia Cathedral (23,1 km)
Royal Palace of Valladolid (28,9 km)
San Zoilo Monastery (49,6 km)

User Reviews

Ester Casas (2 years ago)
Muy bien conservado, interesante visitarlo por dentro, cañones, sala de botica, utensilios originales antiguos etc.
Ruben Arroyo (2 years ago)
Fundación Fontanería gran colección de arte de todo tipo.El castillo de los más bonitos y la visita muy interesante.
Juan Carlos Puga Ramallal (2 years ago)
Eran las 13:00 cuando llegamos ,fuimos a la oficina de turismo, una chica muy agradable y profesional que nos informó de todo. Salimoos y por la hora decidimos ir a comer.....Imposible. Ni un bocadillo.
Jesus lv (2 years ago)
Muy recomendable visita a un pueblecito de la provincia de Palencia si quieres ver un castillo medieval muy bien conservado. Por 4 € tienes una visita guiada de 45 minutos con explicaciones en la que puedes ver por diversas salas... animales disecados, sillas medievales que se usaban para parir o para la amputación, espadas, cubertería vajillas medievales, típico comedor, pistolas escopetas y revólveres de duelo, elementos religiosos, elementos de alquimia o farmacia de venta de cara al público medieval, juguetes y diversas armas antiguas desenterradas. Gran sitio.
Belén Boy (2 years ago)
El exterior del castillo está muy bien, aunque se ha derrumbado una torre. Bastante reconstruido. Tiene dos visitas, una general en la que el tema principal es ver las colecciones de objetos variados del último dueño y otra que no hecho y consiste en una visita mucho más detallada recorriendo la planta superior y las habitaciones. Para esta última hay que llamar con dos días de antelación y ser, al menos, 5 personas.
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Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

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Glimmingehus

Glimmingehus is the best preserved medieval stronghold in Scandinavia. It was built 1499-1506, during an era when Scania formed a vital part of Denmark, and contains many defensive arrangements of the era, such as parapets, false doors and dead-end corridors, 'murder-holes' for pouring boiling pitch over the attackers, moats, drawbridges and various other forms of death traps to surprise trespassers and protect the nobles against peasant uprisings. The lower part of the castle's stone walls are 2.4 meters (94 inches) thick and the upper part 1.8 meters (71 inches).

Construction was started in 1499 by the Danish knight Jens Holgersen Ulfstand and stone-cutter-mason and architect Adam van Düren, a North German master who also worked on Lund Cathedral. Construction was completed in 1506.

Ulfstand was a councillor, nobleman and admiral serving under John I of Denmark and many objects have been uncovered during archeological excavations that demonstrate the extravagant lifestyle of the knight's family at Glimmingehus up until Ulfstand's death in 1523. Some of the most expensive objects for sale in Europe during this period, such as Venetian glass, painted glass from the Rhine district and Spanish ceramics have been found here. Evidence of the family's wealth can also be seen inside the stone fortress, where everyday comforts for the knight's family included hot air channels in the walls and bench seats in the window recesses. Although considered comfortable for its period, it has also been argued that Glimmingehus was an expression of "Knighthood nostalgia" and not considered opulent or progressive enough even to the knight's contemporaries and especially not to later generations of the Scanian nobility. Glimmingehus is thought to have served as a residential castle for only a few generations before being transformed into a storage facility for grain.

An order from Charles XI to the administrators of the Swedish dominion of Scania in 1676 to demolish the castle, in order to ensure that it would not fall into the hands of the Danish king during the Scanian War, could not be executed. A first attempt, in which 20 Scanian farmers were ordered to assist, proved unsuccessful. An additional force of 130 men were sent to Glimmingehus to execute the order in a second attempt. However, before they could carry out the order, a Danish-Dutch naval division arrived in Ystad, and the Swedes had to abandon the demolition attempts. Throughout the 18th century the castle was used as deposit for agricultural produce and in 1924 it was donated to the Swedish state. Today it is administered by the Swedish National Heritage Board.

On site there is a museum, medieval kitchen, shop and restaurant and coffee house. During summer time there are several guided tours daily. In local folklore, the castle is described as haunted by multiple ghosts and the tradition of storytelling inspired by the castle is continued in the summer events at the castle called "Strange stories and terrifying tales".

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