Castelo de Ribadavia

Ribadavia, Spain, Spain

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Castelo de Ribadavia is a ruined 15th-century medieval fortress overlooking the Avia River in Ribadavia, Ourense province, Galicia, Spain, originally built on the site of a pre-Romanesque chapel from the 9th-12th centuries that included a unique rock-carved necropolis.

Commissioned around 1471 by Pedro Ruiz Sarmiento, Count of Ribadavia, on earlier 12th-century tower foundations amid interruptions like the 1385 siege by the Duke of Lancaster, it featured defensive walls, gateways, towers, a parade ground, water tank, and wineries before abandonment in the 17th century when the counts relocated to their Baroque palace in the main square.

Declared an Asset of Cultural Interest within Ribadavia's historic-artistic ensemble since 1947, the remnants offer panoramic views and symbolize the town's feudal past tied to the powerful Sarmiento lineage and its thriving medieval wine trade.