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Watchtower of Torrelodones

Torrelodones, Área Metropolitana, Madrid

1 Villages · 2 Monuments · 1 Curiosities · 1 Historical milestones

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Watchtower of Torrelodones

Monument · Torrelodones, Área Metropolitana, Madrid

The atalaya of Torrelodones, also called torre de los Lodones, is one of the best-preserved Islamic watchtowers in the Madrid region, erected during the Umayyad period of Al-Ándalus, between the ninth and eleventh centuries, to watch over one of the roads towards the north-western passes of the sierra de Guadarrama, within the defensive system of the Marca Media, centred on Toledo. It holds the status of Bien de Interés Cultural (Spain's highest level of heritage protection) and shows the alterations of a 1928 restoration, carried out after the partial collapse of its walls; it takes its name from the lodón, a tree abundant in the area, and gave its name to the hamlet that grew up at its foot. The painter Pier Maria Baldi depicted it in 1668, on his way to El Escorial, and in 1979 it suffered minor damage from a time-bomb attack.

Photo: Jesús Sánchez Tena (Public domain)

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