Castalla Castle

Although its origins are Arab, the current structure dates from mediaeval times. The Torre Grossa tower was added in the 16th century in order to keep a lookout for pirate raids from the Mediterranean Sea.  

Set atop a hill overlooking the town, the arrangements of its walls adapts to the lie of the terrain. It is basically built of masonry work and still has various sections of wall and cylindrical towers with battlements. On the interior, a large bailey containing the remains of various elements (particularly interesting is an Arab cistern dating from the 12th-13th centuries) separates the most important buildings located at each end. One of these contains the palace, a noble residence built in the 14th-15th centuries which was conceived as a small castle within the castle. At the other end stands the Torre Grossa tower, built in 1579 to guard against possible raids by Berber pirates approaching from the Mediterranean coast towards the interior of the region. It is made out of stone blocks and has three floors crowned with a walkway with battlements.