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Castle of Benizar

Moratalla, Noroeste, Murcia

1 Villages · 14 Monuments · 12 Nature · 1 Activities · 1 Curiosities · 2 Historical milestones · 1 Food and drink

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Castle of Benizar

Monument · Moratalla, Noroeste, Murcia

Image of Moratalla, not of the place itself.

The castillo de Benizar stands on a large rock overlooking the ravine of the Moratalla hamlet of Benizar, around which the four original population centres of the area were established: La Tercia, Cortijo Arriba, Cortijo Abajo and El Villar. Its keep stands out, of Almohad origin and dated to the 12th century. On 5 July 1243, the castle, then called Abeneyzor, was granted by Ferdinand III of Castile to the Order of Santiago together with other fortresses of the region, as a reward for its role in the Reconquest. Declared a Bien de Interés Cultural (Spain's highest level of heritage protection), the tower remains abandoned today, though its remains preserve their particular beauty after withstanding almost a thousand years of erosion by wind and rain.

Photo: Jcremolina (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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