Xiquena Castle

Lorca, Spain

The ruined castle of Xiquena is located in Fontanares, hamlet of the town of Lorca. Many authors argue that the name Xiquena comes from the Arabic Gikena or Gehenna and that it means 'hell'. On the other hand, others attribute a Roman origin to it due to a nearby farm.

Xiquena Castle was founded during Muslim rule over the area, certainly before the 13th century, but maybe even as early as the 10th century.

The incorporation of the Muslim Taifa of Murcia in 1243 into the Castilian kingdom, made these lands part of a large and hostile frontier area between the Kingdom of Castile and the Emirate of Granada. Xiquena Castle remained in Muslim hands and became a lonely sentinel in a virtual no man's land.

The castle, built on a small hill near the Corneros River, has an irregular plan and from it you can see the castles of Tirieza, Puentes, Vélez Rubio and Vélez Blanco.

References:

second.wiki

Address

Fontanares, Lorca, Spain

See all sites in Lorca

Details

Founded: 10th century AD
Category: Castles and fortifications in Spain

More Information

second.wiki
www.castles.nl

Rating

4.7/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

camavira camavira (17 months ago)
Abandoned castle that if rehabilitated could be visitable

Lucia Cruz (2 years ago)
Simple route to see the ruins of a castle that must have been imposing. Nice views. You have to come with a mini excursion. Ignoring the navigator, access is from the opposite slope.

Mark De Backer (3 years ago)
An ideal stopover on the way to Vélez-Rubio. High on the hill you can see the ruins from afar.

ramon ramon (3 years ago)
Nice place but very degraded and in a few years nothing will remain standing if they do not maintain it.

isabel martos (3 years ago)
Beautiful place to do a route. It is a pity that they do not preserve the ruins that remain, because if it continues like this it will deteriorate in a few years and will be irretrievable.

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Finest Norman castles in Italy

Exploring the History of Northern Poland

Discovering Slovenia's Historic Wonders

Photo from Flickr, copyright CONTROTONO

Historic Site of the week

Clementinum

The Clementinum is a historic complex of buildings in Prague. Until recently the complex hosted the National, University and Technical libraries, the City Library also being located nearby on Mariánské Náměstí. The Technical library and the Municipal library have moved to the Prague National Technical Library at Technická 6 since 2009. It is currently in use as the National Library of the Czech Republic.

Its history dates from the existence of a chapel dedicated to Saint Clement in the 11th century. A Dominican monastery was founded in the medieval period, which was transformed in 1556 to a Jesuit college. In 1622 the Jesuits transferred the library of Charles University to the Klementinum, and the college was merged with the University in 1654. The Jesuits remained until 1773, when the Klementinum was established as an observatory, library, and university by the Empress Maria Theresa of Austria.