[gothic-l] Visigothic castles

[Friþunanþs Ximeneiks]

Bertil Häggman wrote:

> F.X. and Alberto,
>
> Thanks for this interesting exchange on Visigothic castles. I went for
> my main source on this, Luis Monreal y Tejada's fine medieval Castles
> of Spain_. If I read the author right Spanish castles in general have
> no uniform architectural style. Closer inspection can show Iberian,
> Roman and Visigothic foundations (in the later case with ashlars
> icorporated in the masonry). Of course we have to differ between
> Visogothic influence and the later Gothic style influence from France.
>
> Can anybody provide a castle with predominating
> Visigothic foundations or walls?
>
> Visigothically
> Bertil

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Hello Bertil,

I side with Luís Monreál who agrees with the great majority of opinion,
when he says that there is no uniform standard layout to Spanish
castles. The latter is due to the fact that most fortifications in Spain
have always been under some sort of construction, re-construction or
alteration by a long succession of occupiers who had little or no
congress with one another as concerns a uniform standard in castle
construction. Thus, many castles today are the result of the succession
of such modifications and have very few cohesive elements.

As concerns the Visigoths:
The Visigoths built their own fortifications, and they also ( occupied,
built-over and/or modified existing ones), and that,  throughout the
Spanish Gothia. Thus, some were built (in-toto) by the Visigoths. Other
fortifications were built over existing Roman, Hispano/Roman or Celtic
structures. It became a matter of resourcefulness, strategy and economy-
etc..


There are a few castles that come to mind as concerns your question
about providing an example of a castle having a predominance of
Visigothic elements- that is, (foundations, walls etc...). I will cite
one having a predominance of Visigothic elements, then a variant, and
finally castles of Visigothic provenance having discernibly, no other
admixture.

The first is The Castle of the Priory of St. John, close to Toledo. It
was originally a Celtic stronghold, it then became a Roman possession
and underwent several modifications; thereafter, it was annexed by the
Visigoths who made (in light of my sources) extensive alterations and
additions (I believe they moved the entranceway to a more secure
position and expanded the site's volume); thereafter, it was defeated by
the invaders of 711. --- The latter event (and castle) is subsequently
mentioned in (Las Leyendas de la Pérdida de Espña), "The Legends of the
Loss of Spain". The site underwent  further alterations after the
Spanish Nobles defeated the stronghold and re-occupied it a few hundred
years later in their push southward during the Reconquest. At present,
it serves as a museum.
I am not certain if we can attach graphic files to our emails, but
should anyone want a photo, let me know. (((Perhaps Maþþaius can suggest
something here...)))

A variant:
The second example is Zorita Castle. It was built by the Occupying
Moorish forces after 711; the interesting thing is that in order to
build it they used stones from the structures of a nearby Visigothic
settlement (Recopolis) founded by the Visigothic King Leovigild. In this
case, an assessment of the stonework might have probably concluded that
Visigothic workmen were at work on some of the elements, leading to
incorrect conclusion. Luckily, the aforementioned documentation led to
the correct one.
I also have a photo of this castle.

In the case of more northerly castles, occupation by the invaders was
relatively brief, and it was sometimes only a matter of a few years
before the forces of the reconquest; [(interestingly) A majority of
Nobles directly related to the Visigothic Kings and minor nobles ]
re-took the fortresses and settled in. Thus, slowly The reconquest
gained back the prior holdings.

Castles in the extreme north were never breached by the attacks of  the
stated invaders, thus, the latter Castles tend to have undergone
relatively less or few alterations (if any). One in particular The
Castle of Loarre in Huesca, seems to have remained much the same as when
it was first built. Its origins "seem" to be Visigothic since it shows
elements of Visigothic-type Architecture; ashlar walls, multiple
ceilings and roofs, same volume of spaces, partitioning of spaces,
buttresses and other items found in the well documented Visigothic
architecture of Asturias. Unfortunately, no document has yet been able
to authenticate its origins. Its highest parts are the oldest and best
evidence its alleged Visigothic roots. It seems to have undergone only
minor additions along the bulwarks. This is one of the most visited
castles in Spain. Its emplacement is awe inspiring- high in the Sierra
de Loarre; its towers are over 22 meters high. Perhaps ongoing
excavations will decipher its origins.

There are other Castles of Visigothic origin in the extreme north, these
were never breached by the invading forces, and are obviously Visigothic
since they were
built by Visigothic nobles during the early years of the Asturian
Kingdom. --- Here are a few:
One is The Castle of Clavixo in Rioxa- under RamiroI. - Another is
Monzón de Campos in Palencia under Ramiro II. (This one is marginally
late) (1075-1157) - Yet another, is Castillo Del Rey in San Vicente de
la Barquera; of Celtic origin and later reinforced by Alfonso I Spanish
king of Asturias (739–757), son-in-law of the first Asturian king,
Pelayo-
I have photos for these also.


Cheers,
Friþunanþs. X.




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