Olivenza Castle

Olivenza, Spain

Olivenza Castle was built by Knights Templar in the 13th century. It was enlarged by Portuguese 1488. The castle belonged to Portugal, Spain and French during history. Today the main tower is 40m high and can be visited. The castle is surrounded by high curtain walls. In 1975 it was restored and turned into the town's ethnographic museum.

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Details

Founded: 13th century
Category: Castles and fortifications in Spain

More Information

www.turismoextremadura.com

Rating

4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Lidia Maquedano (2 years ago)
Brilliant. The entrance costs €2.50 and includes the climb to the castle and the ethnographic museum. The latter, one of the best I've seen, has all the details and everything is well organized and clean. It is very worth visiting. We left delighted. The climb to the castle tower is quite comfortable, since it does not have steps.
Rafael Moreno (3 years ago)
It is worth visiting. The entrance costs €2.5, includes the Tower of Homage and the ethnological museum. The Tower is curious to see, but the museum is incredible with the amount of items it has. It's big and you can spend a lot of time, it depends on how curious you are. There are old objects of all kinds and they are very well grouped by theme. There is a model of the old Olivenza fortification, made with copper wires, impressive.
Santiago Manuel Barjola García (Sanman) (3 years ago)
To access it you have to pay a €2.5 entrance fee, but you also have access to the ethnographic museum. Very curious tower because you go up the interior ramp corridor and you have two rooms, an exterior battlement and a terrace. It is very cool, views of the fortified complex, church and Olivenza town.
ClÁsico (4 years ago)
to know more.... Despite the historical ups and downs that it has had passing from Portuguese to Spanish hands and vice versa, the state in which the building is located is good. During the 19th century. In 1975, its restoration was undertaken to achieve the image it had had in the past and to convert it into the city museum. The building's walls are made of masonry and the angles are well-worked and perfectly squared ashlars; this allows us to clearly distinguish one part from the other. The material used is stone; however, in some parts of the building, this material alternates with brick, which is clearly reminiscent of Arabic. As defensive elements, its enormous and strong towers with hardly any openings and with small loopholes from which the arrows were shot stand out. The wall, from the 14th century, protected from external threats. Its walls are characterized by their enormous thickness and height. There are no battlements on the walls but there are defensive machicolations on its towers. The tower of homage was ordered to be built by Juan II. It is 36 m long and 18 m on a side. It is accessed by means of 17 ramps with a vaulted ceiling. It has three floors, of which the last one stands out for its decoration with capitals and for its architectural ornaments. At the top is the terrace with machicolations. This construction had three doors. The Alconchel door stands out, which is made up of two circular towers that frame a door with a vaulted semicircular arch; there are no decorative elements. Another door is that of Calvario, which has a semicircular arch and is finished off with a split pediment in its central part to house ornamental elements. In 1228, the castle was recovered by the Templars from Muslim hands. Throughout the 13th century, it alternated stages of Portuguese and Spanish domination. In the 16th century, due to the growth experienced by the population, its perimeter was expanded. In 1801, it became a Spanish town and, in 1811, the French took it over, but it was reconquered again: first by the Anglo-Portuguese and then by the Spanish. The inscription that appears to us on a tombstone placed today in the Town Hall is curious. This inscription arose with the Portuguese king Don Dionis after the square was abandoned by the Knights Templar in 1306. It refers to the date the castle was built and the name of the person who ordered it built.
Juan Martin (7 years ago)
Medieval Tower good for a walk-up and as an observation place of the whole area. Interesting for local history and Spain-Portugal relationships​. There is an ethnographic and historical museum in the annex building.
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