Puerta del Cambron

The Puerta del Cambrón

The Toledo audio-guided tour has you pass the Puerta del Cambrón, one of the oldest gates of the city, listed as a site of cultural interest.

From the Gate of the Jews to the Cambrón

The origins of the gate probably go back to the Visigothic wall; it was rebuilt in the 1570s in a Renaissance style. Until the fifteenth century, it was called the Gate of the Jews, because of its proximity to the Jewish quarter, or Gate of Santa Leocadia, after the patron saint of Toledo. Its present name would come from a large thorn bush (cambrón) that grew at the top of one of its towers. The gate has two façades, one towards the city, the other towards the outside, separated by a courtyard; on the upper floor was the guard's room. The exterior façade, adorned with a large royal coat of arms framed by two Gothic kings, opens onto a park offering fine views over the valley of the Tagus.

What there is to see

The Puerta del Cambrón charms with its two façades, its inner courtyard and its large royal coat of arms framed by Gothic figures. A witness of the defensive past and the history of the districts of Toledo, it opens onto a park with fine views over the Tagus. To be crossed entirely to appreciate all its richness, along the walk.

Practical information

The Puerta del Cambrón is to the west of the old town of Toledo, near the former juderia. It can be crossed freely on foot at all hours and opens onto a park overlooking the valley of the Tagus.

Why was the Puerta del Cambrón called the Gate of the Jews?

Because of its proximity to the Jewish quarter of Toledo, until the fifteenth century.

Where does the name Cambrón come from?

From a large thorn bush, the cambrón, that grew at the top of one of the towers of the gate.