Castillo de Alcaudete was built by the Arabs over the remains of a previous Roman fortification and taken by the Christians in 1085 during the reign of Alfonso VI. For almost three hundred years thereafter, the castle kept changing hands until 1340 when the Christians took it over.
The design is polygon in shape, adjusted to the terrain escarpments. The structure is surmounted by six towers, including the Tower of Homage, which has a door on the north side, guarded by two additional towers.
Today it has become a tourism-cultural space which houses the Interpretation Centre on the life of the Military Order of Calatrava. Visitors will go back to the 13th century to discover the construction of a castle on the border with the Nasrid Kingdom, the lifestyle and internal structure of the Order, the military armament used for the assault and defence of a fortress.
References:The Château du Lude is one of the many great châteaux of the Loire Valley in France. Le Lude is the most northerly château of the Loire Valley and one of the last important historic castles in France, still inhabited by the same family for the last 260 years. The château is testimony to four centuries of French architecture, as a stronghold transformed into an elegant house during the Renaissance and the 18th century. The monument is located in the valley of Le Loir. Its gardens have evolved throughout the centuries.