Castle of Peñarroya

Spain, Spain

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Castle of Peñarroya, located in Argamasilla de Alba near Ciudad Real province, Spain, is a 12th-century medieval fortress originally built as a Muslim stronghold on a strategic cliff overlooking the Guadiana River and modern Peñarroya reservoir.

Captured by Christians under captain Alonso Pérez de Sanabria on September 8, 1198, it passed to the Order of Saint John in 1215—with aid from the Order of Santiago—serving as their key economic hub for pasture leases, tax collection, and secure storage while protecting local settlers.

 Featuring double northern walls, a dry moat, natural defenses on southern cliffs, and a Churrigueresque chapel housing the revered Virgin of Peñarroya image discovered post-conquest, recent digs revealed an Islamic necropolis and silos amid its atmospheric ruins.