Castillo de Jódar

Jódar, Spain, Spain

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Castillo de Jódar is a medieval fortress on the Cerro de San Cristóbal slopes in Jódar, Jaén province, Spain, with origins in the 9th century as a Moorish stronghold that controlled key Guadalquivir valley routes. Extensively remodeled in the second half of the 13th century with Almohad enhancements like octagonal bastions and recodo gates, it was rebuilt in 1328 by the Méndez de Sotomayor family, adding the Torre Nueva and surrounding walls amid ongoing Castilian-Nasrid border raids. Known as Carvajales Castle, this border bastion endured for centuries with Gothic-Isabeline updates, featuring robust tapial walls, seven estimated cube towers, and a main residence tower, though now largely ruined within the urban area.