Sanlúcar de Guadiana Castle, Sanlúcar de Guadiana, Spain

Sanlúcar de Guadiana castle dates back to the seventeenth century, around 1642 or so, when Jerónimo Ró decided to strengthen the village from the Portuguese troops. In 1666, the fort fell into Portuguese hands. In 1741, Ignacio Sala reformed the west crescent. Entirely constructed of stone and different finishes depending on times of renovation.

Castles and fortifications in Spain

Address

Extramuros Diseminados 2, Sanlúcar de Guadiana, Spain

See all sites in Sanlúcar de Guadiana

Details

Founded: c. 1642
Category: Castles and fortifications in Spain

Rating

4.4/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby

Castle of Los Zúñiga (34,5 km)

User Reviews

Felix Amez (13 months ago)
Muy bien restaurado y cuidado. Con buena iluminación y carteles explicativos. Algunos faltan pero parece que está de reforma por dentro y los acabarán poniendo. Vistas impresionantes. Muy recomendable

Jose Enrique Santos (17 months ago)
Es un castillo fronterizo que podría ser un lugar precioso pero que sufrió una terrible restauración que le ha dado un color excesivamente claro. Se diría que ha perdido toda su antigüedad. De todas formas vale la pena subir por las vistas que desde allí se contemplan.

Gonzalo Mariz (17 months ago)
Las vistas desde el mismo bien merecen por si mismas una visita, el acceso por carretera es fácil y hay un tramo final de pista, que bien podían asfaltada también...., cuando fui estaba cerrado por lo que no puedo opinar del interior, pero el exterior me parece descuidado....vegetación sin limpiar, pintura deteriorada, etc. Una pena que se cuide poco el patrimonio. Desde la orilla portuguesa su vista es impresionante, pero de cerca defrauda un poco.

camper van (20 months ago)
Supervue

pedro serrano (2 years ago)
Ok

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright Dan Lundberg

Historic Site of the week

Hagios Demetrios

The Church of Saint Demetrius, or Hagios Demetrios, is the main sanctuary dedicated to Saint Demetrius, the patron saint of Thessaloniki. It is part of the site Palaeochristian and Byzantine Monuments of Thessaloniki on the list of World Heritage Sites by UNESCO since 1988.

The first church on the spot was constructed in the early 4th century AD, replacing a Roman bath. A century later, a prefect named Leontios replaced the small oratory with a larger, three-aisled basilica. Repeatedly gutted by fires, the church eventually was reconstructed as a five-aisled basilica in 629–634. This was the surviving form of the church much as it is today. The most important shrine in the city, it was probably larger than the local cathedral. The historic location of the latter is now unknown.

The church had an unusual shrine called the ciborium, a hexagonal, roofed structure at one side of the nave. It was made of or covered with silver. The structure had doors and inside was a couch or bed. Unusually, it did not hold any physical relics of the saint. The ciborium seems to have been a symbolic tomb. It was rebuilt at least once.

The basilica is famous for six extant mosaic panels, dated to the period between the latest reconstruction and the inauguration of the Byzantine Iconoclasm in 730. These mosaics depict St. Demetrius with officials responsible for the restoration of the church (called the founders, ktetors) and with children. An inscription below one of the images glorifies heaven for saving the people of Thessalonica from a pagan Slavic raid in 615.

Thessaloniki became part of the Ottoman Empire in 1430. About 60 years later, during the reign of Bayezid II, the church was converted into a mosque, known as the Kasımiye Camii after the local Ottoman mayor, Cezeri Kasım Pasha. The symbolic tomb however was kept open for Christian veneration. Other magnificent mosaics, recorded as covering the church interior, were lost either during the four centuries when it functioned as a mosque (1493–1912) or in the Great Thessaloniki Fire of 1917 that destroyed much of the city. It also destroyed the roof and upper walls of the church. Black-and-white photographs and good watercolour versions give an idea of the early Byzantine craftsmanship lost during the fire.

Following the Great Fire of 1917, it took decades to restore the church. Tombstones from the city"s Jewish cemetery - destroyed by the Greek and Nazi German authorities - were used as building materials in these restoration efforts in the 1940s. Archeological excavations conducted in the 1930s and 1940s revealed interesting artifacts that may be seen in a museum situated inside the church"s crypt. The excavations also uncovered the ruins of a Roman bath, where St. Demetrius was said to have been held prisoner and executed. A Roman well was also discovered. Scholars believe this is where soldiers dropped the body of St. Demetrius after his execution. After restoration, the church was reconsecrated in 1949.

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Sanlúcar de Guadiana Castle