Under the archway and into the old town of Castellar
It has to have one of the best entrances into any town in Europe. After trekking uphill from the newer and rather more bland town of Castellar, the rewards of walking under this medieval Moorish arch into the old castle grounds wherein lies the huddle of white houses that make up the old town are the breathtaking views and the feeling that for a short while you have a taste of what it might have been like all those centuries ago.
The old town of Castellar de la Frontera was built inside the grounds of the castle - higgeldy piggeldy white houses, leaning on each other for support as they keep an eye from the peak of the hill over the plains that stretch as far as the Bay. On a clear day, the Rock of Gibraltar is clearly visible. People have lived here since the dawn of history. Traces of the stone age peoples who sheltered on this hill have been found nearby, and the ancient remains of a watch-tower was eventually taken by the Romans who settled the area as part of a system of defences stretching from the Bay at Carteya through to the important city of Cordoba.
The town itself and the castle proper was built by the Moslem invaders of Spain as they entered Al Andalus and spread their reign northwards. Castellar, with its strategic fortification, was an instrumental town in the wars between the Christians and the Moslems until 1434, when D. Juan Arias de Saavedra conquered it for the Christian kings.
After that the town lived a sleepy, rural existence until more recent times, when the local area was developed in the 1960s and 1970s, and a new town was built at the base of the hill. The population of the old town was moved to the newer houses, and for many years the old medieval town was abandoned, until some more adventurous - some have said "hippie" people moved in. The little community gradually reawoke and now Castellar boasts homes to numerous artists, writers, pretty rural houses, at least one museum and a hotel.
Perched on a crag at the top of a hill, a little out of the way and surrounded with the greenery of the Alcornocales and the sapphire of the Mediterranean sky, Castellar de la Frontera is a little jewel of a place. Its cobblestone streets meander about the old castle grounds and occasionally open up into cosy squares scented with oranges from the many trees. The view is at once calming and magnificent and the air delightfully clear, which, for those of us living around the edge of the Bay of Gibraltar (or the Bay of Algeciras) depending which side of the border you're standing on) is a novelty and a rare treat to be savoured.
The old town of Castellar de la Frontera was built inside the grounds of the castle - higgeldy piggeldy white houses, leaning on each other for support as they keep an eye from the peak of the hill over the plains that stretch as far as the Bay. On a clear day, the Rock of Gibraltar is clearly visible. People have lived here since the dawn of history. Traces of the stone age peoples who sheltered on this hill have been found nearby, and the ancient remains of a watch-tower was eventually taken by the Romans who settled the area as part of a system of defences stretching from the Bay at Carteya through to the important city of Cordoba.
The town itself and the castle proper was built by the Moslem invaders of Spain as they entered Al Andalus and spread their reign northwards. Castellar, with its strategic fortification, was an instrumental town in the wars between the Christians and the Moslems until 1434, when D. Juan Arias de Saavedra conquered it for the Christian kings.
After that the town lived a sleepy, rural existence until more recent times, when the local area was developed in the 1960s and 1970s, and a new town was built at the base of the hill. The population of the old town was moved to the newer houses, and for many years the old medieval town was abandoned, until some more adventurous - some have said "hippie" people moved in. The little community gradually reawoke and now Castellar boasts homes to numerous artists, writers, pretty rural houses, at least one museum and a hotel.
Perched on a crag at the top of a hill, a little out of the way and surrounded with the greenery of the Alcornocales and the sapphire of the Mediterranean sky, Castellar de la Frontera is a little jewel of a place. Its cobblestone streets meander about the old castle grounds and occasionally open up into cosy squares scented with oranges from the many trees. The view is at once calming and magnificent and the air delightfully clear, which, for those of us living around the edge of the Bay of Gibraltar (or the Bay of Algeciras) depending which side of the border you're standing on) is a novelty and a rare treat to be savoured.
View from a terrace in the old town of Castellar
