Sagunto Castle ( es, Castillo de Sagunto; ca-valencia, Castell de Sagunt) is a fortress overlooking the town of

Sagunto Sagunto ( ca-valencia, Sagunt) is a municipality of Spain, located in the province of Valencia, Valencian Community. It belongs to the modern fertile ''comarca'' of Camp de Morvedre. It is located c. 30 km north of the city of Valencia, cl ...

, near

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. The site's history extends back over two thousand years and includes Iberian,

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

and

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

remains. During the Islamic period, the castle was known as ''Murbĩtar'' and ''Morvedre''. The castle was declared a National Monument in 1931.Agència Valenciana del Turisme 2016. The sacking of the Iberian settlement by

Hannibal Hannibal (; xpu, 𐤇𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋, ''Ḥannibaʿl''; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Puni ...

in 219 BC led to the outbreak of the

Second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of three wars fought between Carthage and Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For 17 years the two states struggled for supremacy, primarily in Ital ...

. The visible walls are largely Islamic in origin, with substantial modifications taking place after the end of Islamic rule, with the defences being strengthened and modernised. In 1811, during the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

, the French laid siege to the castle, and were ultimately successful in taking it, after which the defences were repaired.

Location

The castle is located north of Valencia, upon a flat-topped hill.Collins 1998, p. 229. The hill is the last upthrust of the

Sierra Calderona Serra Calderona (; es, Sierra Calderona), often referred to as La Calderona is a long mountain range in the Camp de Túria, Horta Nord and Alt Palància comarcas of the Valencian Community, between the provinces of Castelló and Valencia Spain ...

mountains, reaching an altitude of

above mean sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...

Etymology

The original Iberian name for the city was Arse.Baixauli i Bach 2013, p. 4. Sagunto was originally recorded as a Roman ''

municipium In ancient Rome, the Latin term (pl. ) referred to a town or city. Etymologically, the was a social contract among ("duty holders"), or citizens of the town. The duties () were a communal obligation assumed by the in exchange for the privi ...

'' in the middle of the 1st century BC, as the ''Municipium Saguntinum'', or simply Saguntum. During the reign of Wamba, king of the

Visigoths The Visigoths (; la, Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, Wisi) were an early Germanic people who, along with the Ostrogoths, constituted the two major political entities of the Goths within the Roman Empire in late antiquity, or what is ...

, the old Roman ''municipium'' became referred to as Sagunto, and it continued under this name until 711 AD, and the end of the Visigoth kingdom. During the Muslim domination of Spain, the

Mozarabs The Mozarabs ( es, mozárabes ; pt, moçárabes ; ca, mossàrabs ; from ar, مستعرب, musta‘rab, lit=Arabized) is a modern historical term for the Iberian Christians, including Christianized Iberian Jews, who lived under Muslim rule in A ...

referred to the town as Murum Veterum, the "old wall", a name already in use by the 11th century. In time this form was contracted and corrupted into forms such as Murvetrum, Morvedre, and Molvedre, and the Muslims modified this into Murbiter. Christian documents from the 11th century use the form Murus Vetulus.

Description

The site occupies a hilltop overlooking the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...

, and is surrounded by

defensive wall A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...

s. The castle is divided into seven main sections or plazas. The principal divisions are the Plaza de Armas, Plaza de Almenara, Plaza de los Nueve Pilares, Plaza de San Fernando, Plaza de los Estudiantes, Plaza de la Ciudadela and Plaza del Espolón.Centro Arqueológico Saguntino 1972, p. 35/67. The visible ruins are essentially those of the Muslim citadel, with later modifications under Christian rule, and finally by French engineers during the Peninsular War.

Curtain wall

The curtain wall mostly dates to the Islamic period; it descended from the castle to connect to a series of fortifications laid out around the town below. It underwent substantial modifications from the Christian period through to the Peninsular War, with

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

and

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

reworking of Muslim fortifications. A number of towers and

bastions A bastion or bulwark is a structure projecting outward from the curtain wall of a fortification, most commonly angular in shape and positioned at the corners of the fort. The fully developed bastion consists of two faces and two flanks, with fi ...

survive, mostly dating to the 18th century.Baixauli i Bach 2013, p. 8.

Plaza del Refectorio

The Plaza del Refectorio is the smallest of the plazas, situated in the centre of the castle upon an elevation that also supports the Reina Gobernadora

battery Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...

. The Plaza del Refectorio takes its name from a number of vaulted arcades that were used as

refectories A refectory (also frater, frater house, fratery) is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries. The name derives from the L ...

. Its east side is formed by the refectory building; it is bordered on the south side by the curtain wall, on the west by a ruined double wall and a Roman tower, and on the north by a fortified wall. A corridor running between the Plaza del Refectorio and the battery links the Plaza de Armas with the Plaza de San Fernando.

Roman remains

The Plaza de Armas is accessed via an Islamic arch. Remains of the Iberian defensive wall are visible on the east side of the castle. The foundations of the Roman forum, together with those of some Iberian buildings, and those of a Roman temple or ''

capitolium A ''Capitolium'' (Latin) was an ancient Roman temple dedicated to the Capitoline Triad of gods Jupiter, Juno and Minerva. A capitolium was built on a prominent area in many cities in Italy and the Roman provinces, particularly during the Augus ...

'', are all located in the forum area of the castle, upon the hilltop.Collins 1998, p. 230. The ruins of the Roman buildings are laid out around a square measuring . The plaza was fronted on the west side by a

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its name ...

that measured . The east side of the square was lined by a row of ''

taberna A ''taberna'' (plural ''tabernae'') was a type of shop or stall in Ancient Rome. Originally meaning a single-room shop for the sale of goods and services, ''tabernae'' were often incorporated into domestic dwellings on the ground level flanking ...

e'' (shops). To the south of the plaza is a well-preserved cistern, and the base of the temple or ''capitolium'' are on the north side. The temple measured . A complex building was situated on the northeast side of the plaza; it has not been securely identified but it may have been a ''

curia Curia (Latin plural curiae) in ancient Rome referred to one of the original groupings of the citizenry, eventually numbering 30, and later every Roman citizen was presumed to belong to one. While they originally likely had wider powers, they came ...

'' (assembly or court building) or a temple of Augustus. Since it possessed two large parallel chambers, it may have served both functions. The remains of a

Roman theatre Roman theatres derive from and are part of the overall evolution of earlier Greek theatres. Indeed, much of the architectural influence the Romans came from the Greeks, and theatre structural design was no different from other buildings. However ...

stand some down the hillside to the northwest of the forum. The cistern is likely to have been built when the city was rebuilt after the Second Punic War. The Roman forum was excavated in 1985. The original forum dated to the Late Republican period, and was largely demolished in the Early Imperial period in order to build a new forum. The replacement was built during the reign of

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...

, and paid for by Gnaeus Baebius Geminus, a local aristocrat. The hilltop was levelled, and retaining walls reinforced by buttresses supported the artificial platform that served as a foundation for the forum. On the north side of the forum, the retaining walls and buttressing are still visible.

History

The site was apparently first settled by the Iberians in the early

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

. These early inhabitants belonged to the

Edetani The Edetani were an ancient Iberian (Pre-Roman) people of the Iberian peninsula (the Roman Hispania). They are believed to have spoken a form of the Iberian language. See also *Iberians * Edeta *Pre-Roman peoples of the Iberian Peninsula *Punta ...

tribe. As the

Carthaginian Empire Carthage () was a settlement in modern Tunisia that later became a city-state and then an empire. Founded by the Phoenicians in the ninth century BC, Carthage reached its height in the fourth century BC as one of the largest metropolises in t ...

expanded, the inhabitants formed a defensive alliance with

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. The Carthaginian general

sacked the Iberian settlement in 219 BC, an action that led to the outbreak of the

. In 214 BC, the Romans took Sargunto from the Carthaginians. Between 175 and 100 BC, the Romans built a temple or ''capitolium'' on the hill. A water cistern was built close to the temple, and was later incorporated into the Imperial forum, in the 1st century AD. The history of the castle during the Islamic period is poorly studied, with Sagunto being overshadowed by Valencia during that time. It was during the Islamic period that the Albacar portion of the castle was built, as well as most of the outer wall.Baixauli i Bach 2013, p. 6. 8th century Arab records from the reign of Abd al-Rahman I (ruled 755–788 AD) indicate that Sagunto fell within the jurisdiction of

Tortosa Tortosa (; ) is the capital of the ''Catalonia/Comarques, comarca'' of Baix Ebre, in Catalonia, Spain. Tortosa is located at above sea level, by the Ebro river, protected on its northern side by the mountains of the Cardó Massif, of which Buin ...

at that time, rather than that of Valencia. Muslim historian

Ibn Hayyan Abū Marwān Ḥayyān ibn Khalaf ibn Ḥusayn ibn Ḥayyān al-Qurṭubī () (987–1075), usually known as Ibn Hayyan, was a Muslim historian from Al-Andalus. Born at Córdoba, his father was an important official at the court of the Andalusi ...

recorded that the castle was taken by force in 929–930, and mentions it again, under its Arab name, as submitting to the sultan

Abd-ar-Rahman III ʿAbd al-Rahmān ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn al-Ḥakam al-Rabdī ibn Hishām ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Dākhil () or ʿAbd al-Rahmān III (890 - 961), was the Umayyad Emir of Córdoba from 912 to 92 ...

in 933 AD. Sagunto Castle was used as a fortress by the Muslims to defend the regions of Catalonia and Valencia. It was seized and occupied by

El Cid Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (c. 1043 – 10 July 1099) was a Castilian knight and warlord in medieval Spain. Fighting with both Christian and Muslim armies during his lifetime, he earned the Arabic honorific ''al-sīd'', which would evolve into El ...

from 1098 to 1102, and was definitively removed from Muslim rule by Christian king

Jaume I James I the Conqueror ( es, Jaime el Conquistador, ca, Jaume el Conqueridor; 2 February 1208 – 27 July 1276) was King of Aragon and Lord of Montpellier from 1213 to 1276; King of Majorca from 1231 to 1276; and Valencia from 1238 to 127 ...

in 1238, who incorporated it into the

Kingdom of Valencia Kingdom commonly refers to: * A monarchy ruled by a king or queen * Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy Kingdom may also refer to: Arts and media Television * ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 2007 British television drama s ...

.Baixauli i Bach 2013, p. 5. By the mid-13th century, the castle was garrisoned by Christians, although the majority of the town's inhabitants were still Muslims. By the early 14th century, Sagunto (still known as Morvedre) had a growing

Jewish population As of 2020, the world's "core" Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewis ...

, resulting in the establishment of a Jewish cemetery under the castle walls in 1328.

Peter IV of Aragon Peter IV, ; an, Pero, ; es, Pedro, . In Catalan, he may also be nicknamed ''el del punyalet'': "he of the little dagger". (Catalan: ''Pere IV''; 5 September 1319 – 6 January 1387), called the Ceremonious (Catalan: ''el Cerimoniós''), w ...

reinforced the castle defences in the 14th century. In 1363, King

Peter of Castile Peter ( es, Pedro; 30 August 133423 March 1369), called the Cruel () or the Just (), was King of Castile and León from 1350 to 1369. Peter was the last ruler of the main branch of the House of Ivrea. He was excommunicated by Pope Urban V for ...

took the castle after laying siege to it. In 1562, Juan Bautista Antonelli was commissioned by King

Philip II of Spain Philip II) in Spain, while in Portugal and his Italian kingdoms he ruled as Philip I ( pt, Filipe I). (21 May 152713 September 1598), also known as Philip the Prudent ( es, Felipe el Prudente), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from ...

to improve and modernise the castle's defences; it was at this time that the castle precinct was divided into seven plazas. During the

Spanish War of Succession Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

, in the early 18th century, the castle was surrendered to the

Archduke of Austria This is a list of people who have ruled either the Margraviate of Austria, the Duchy of Austria or the Archduchy of Austria. From 976 until 1246, the margraviate and its successor, the duchy, was ruled by the House of Babenberg. At that time, t ...

, but soon afterwards it passed under the control of King

Philip V of Spain Philip V ( es, Felipe; 19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746) was King of Spain from 1 November 1700 to 14 January 1724, and again from 6 September 1724 to his death in 1746. His total reign of 45 years is the longest in the history of the Spanish mon ...

. In 1811, during the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...

, Brigadier Andriani defended the castle against French troops commanded by

General Suchet Louis-Gabriel Suchet (2 March 1770 – 3 January 1826), Duke of Albufera (french: Duc d'Albuféra), was a French Marshal of the Empire and one of the most successful commanders of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. He is regarded ...

, who laid siege to the fortress on 23 September of that year.Gates 1986, 2001, p. 472. Andriani withstood the siege and several assaults,Chabret 1901, 2008, p. 24. although Suchet was ultimately victorious.Gates 1986, 2001, p. 326. After taking the castle, Suchet ordered it to be repaired and strengthened the defences. These modifications were overseen by Andriani. In 1932, M. González Simancas excavated the general area of the Roman remains in the Plaza de Armas,Aranegui Gascó 1984, p. 195. but left few records of his investigations.Aranegui Gascó 1984, p. 202.

Notes

References

*Agència Valenciana del Turisme (2016).
Castillo de Sagunto
'. Valencia, Spain:

Generalitat Valenciana The Generalitat Valenciana is the generic name covering the different self-government institutions under which the Spanish autonomous community of Valencia is politically organized. It consists of seven institutions including the ''Corts Valen ...

. Archived fro
the original
on 2016-09-06. Retrieved 2017-03-28. *Aranegui Gascó, Carmen (1984)
La cisterna del flanco septentrional del foro de Saguntum
''SAGVNTVM'', 18, pp. 195–203. Valencia, Spain: Departament de Prehistòria i Arqueologia de la Universitat de València. . . *Baixauli i Bach, Vicent (2013).
Alberg per a estudiosos i viatgers al Castell de Sagunt
'' Valencia, Spain: Escola Tècnica Superior d’Arquitectura de València, Universitat Politècnica de València *Carruana Martínez, José Ángel; Manuel Civera i Gómez (2000)
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''Revista ARSE'', 34, pp. 17–30. Sagunto, Spain: Centro Arqueológico Saguntino. *Centro Arqueológico Saguntino (1972)
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901 __NOTOC__ Year 901 ( CMI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * February – King Louis III (the Blind) is crowned as Holy Roman Emperor by ...

br>Sagunto. Nomenclator de las calles, plazas y puertas antiguas y modernas de la ciudad
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Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

. . *Franco Sánchez, Francisco (2006)
Sagunto/Murbĩtar en el período islámico: Su historia a través de los textos
''De Murbiter a Morvedre''. Valencia and Alicante, Spain: Fundación Bancaja and Universidad de Alicante. . *Gates, David (2001)

986 Year 986 (Roman numerals, CMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * August 17 – Battle of the Gates of Trajan: Emperor Basil ...

br>The Spanish Ulcer: A History of the Peninsular War
Cambridge, Massachusetts, US: Da Capo Press. . *Mateu y Llopis, Felipe (1983)
Del Municipium Saguntinum al Morvedre mozárabe
''Revista ARSE'', 18, pp. 23–28/361-366. Sagunto, Spain: Centro Arqueológico Saguntino. *Meyerson, Mark D. (2004).
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'. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill. . . *Tourist Info Sagunto.
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'. Sagunto, Spain: Oficina de Turismo. Retrieved 2017-03-30.