Castillo de Cartaya

Cartaya, Spain, Spain

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Castillo de Cartaya, also known as Castillo de los Zúñiga, is a 15th-century Gothic fortress in Cartaya, Huelva province, Spain, built between 1417 and 1428 by Pedro de Zúñiga under royal license to defend the Río Piedras crossing against pirates, Normans, and rival lords like those of Lepe and Gibraleón. Constructed over an earlier Andalusí alcazaba with two circular towers, an almenara beacon, and a defensive moat or falsabraga, it later gained 17th-century baluartes during wars with Portugal and served diverse roles as noble residence, bullring, cemetery, warehouse, and even coal deposit. Well-preserved despite reutilization of materials, this strategic coastal sentinel reflects Andalusia's turbulent frontier history and now stands as a key historic monument.