Santa Catalina Fortress, Cádiz, Spain

Santa Catalina Fortress was built on a rocky outcrop that reaches out to sea. La Caleta beach is on one side, protecting it to the northwest. Built in the 17th century, it has an Italian-style star-shaped floor-plan, and served as a military prison.

Castles and fortifications in Spain

User Reviews

Vladimir Balaz (2 months ago)
Small, but nice fort on the Cadiz beach.

Zoa Moz (6 months ago)
Free and pleasant place to walk around and enjoy the windy ocean. There's a little museum dedicated to a period of the || World War

mcdermc (6 months ago)
Located in the southwestern corner of the Iberian Peninsula, between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Sea, Cádiz is considered to be the oldest inhabited city in Europe and is certainly a city with a rich history. We were brought up on early TV tales of Sir Francis Drake and his many nautical forays against the Spanish, with Cádiz a favourite city to attack. So when we were holidaying nearby in southern Spain (circa 2010) we couldn't resist the opportunity to drive across to Cádiz in pilgrimage. Gazing out to sea from Castillo de Santa Catalina, it was well worth the journey too.

Olivier Vuursteen (7 months ago)
Pretty boring, you can skip this. I wouldn't call it a castle.

David L. Brooks (9 months ago)
An impressive seaside fortified castle in Cadiz , Castillo de Santa Catalina, probably has not changed much since it was built the 1500's. Cadiz was the port that Columbus used to set out on his voyages to the New World.

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Cesis Castle

German crusaders known as the Livonian Brothers of the Sword began construction of the Cēsis castle (Wenden) near the hill fort in 1209. When the castle was enlarged and fortified, it served as the residence for the Order's Master from 1237 till 1561, with periodic interruptions. Its ruins are some of the most majestic castle ruins in the Baltic states. Once the most important castle of the Livonian Order, it was the official residence for the masters of the order.

In 1577, during the Livonian War, the garrison destroyed the castle to prevent it from falling into the control of Ivan the Terrible, who was decisively defeated in the Battle of Wenden (1578).

In 1598 it was incorporated into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Wenden Voivodship was created here. In 1620 Wenden was conquered by Sweden. It was rebuilt afterwards, but was destroyed again in 1703 during the Great Northern War by the Russian army and left in a ruined state. Already from the end of the 16th century, the premises of the Order's castle were adjusted to the requirements of the Cēsis Castle estate. When in 1777 the Cēsis Castle estate was obtained by Count Carl Sievers, he had his new residence house built on the site of the eastern block of the castle, joining its end wall with the fortification tower.

Since 1949, the Cēsis History Museum has been located in this New Castle of the Cēsis Castle estate. The front yard of the New Castle is enclosed by a granary and a stable-coach house, which now houses the Exhibition Hall of the Museum. Beside the granary there is the oldest brewery in Latvia, Cēsu alus darītava, which was built in 1878 during the later Count Sievers' time, but its origins date back to the period of the Livonian Order. Further on, the Cēsis Castle park is situated, which was laid out in 1812. The park has the romantic characteristic of that time, with its winding footpaths, exotic plants, and the waters of the pond reflecting the castle's ruins. Nowadays also one of the towers is open for tourists.

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