Torres de Altamira, Brión, Spain

Torres de Altamira is a ruined castle in Brión, connected to powerful Moscoco family. It was built in the 9th century AD and rebuilt in 1471. In the 17th century it was in bad condition and today mainly towers remain.

User Reviews

Miguel Ángel López Sevillano (9 months ago)
Although there is not much left, it is a place to visit and enjoy for a while. Going down there is a path to the right that can be traveled perhaps in about fifteen or twenty minutes at a leisurely pace. It is worth the visit and the walk. The streets are narrowed by the towns as we get closer, careful with going fast

Francis Heybrook (14 months ago)
Good for the imagination

Anita (15 months ago)
Hauntingly enchanting

Burke Heather (3 years ago)
Not too far from Santiago are the ruins of this 800 year old castle. It does not take more than half an hour to explore the ruins but well worth the drive.

Víctor Turrado-Rodriguez (5 years ago)
Ancient ruins of a castle near Santiago de Compostela. Nice explanatory panels. From the top of the church tower there are some amazing views of the Mahia Valley even though it is forbidden to get up there (don't worry, no guards)

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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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