Spain · 9th century
The Castle of Medinaceli is a medieval fortress in Medinaceli (Province of Soria, Castile and León, Spain). It was built in the 9th century and rebuilt in the 15th century. Almanzor died here in 1002.
Medinaceli is located at the southern end of the province of Soria, on an elevated site and crossroads that was already significant since pre-Roman times. The Arabic name highlights its importance to the Muslims, who defended it even after the fall of Toledo to Christian forces.
Enrique II of Trastámara granted it as a Lordship to Bernal de Foix, 1st Count of Medinaceli, who was married to Isabel de la Cerda. Their descendants adopted the surname de la Cerda. Luis de la Cerda was elevated to the rank of Duke of Medinaceli by the Catholic Monarchs in 1479, and he was responsible for various reforms in the town and the construction of the Ducal Palace. The Dukes of Medinaceli resided in the castle before the construction of the Palace.
Under Don Luis de la Cerda y de la Vega, the 1st Duke of Medinaceli, Don Diego López de Medrano from Soria, who died before 1482, was appointed as the alcaide (governor) of the castle of Medinaceli.
Text adapted from “Castle of Medinaceli” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Castillo de Medinaceli ranks #8,046 of 9,079 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #448 of the 607 mapped in Spain. Founded c. 850, it is older than 94% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 88 atlas entries founded in the 9th century. 4 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Guadalajara, 86 km away. See how Spain compares in the castle statistics.
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