Santa Barbara Castle

The castle of Santa Bárbara, in Alicante

The castle of Santa Bárbara crowns the mount Benacantil, at one hundred and sixty-nine metres above Alicante, offering one of the finest views of the town. The Alicante audio-guided tour stops here to evoke this fortress founded in the Muslim era, taken in 1248 by the Christians, the scene of a thousand years of history, of sieges and of bombardments, become the symbol that dominates the bay.

The fortress that watches over the bay

Here you are at the top of the mount Benacantil, at one hundred and sixty-nine metres high, on the site of the famous castle of Santa Bárbara. Excavations have revealed objects of the Bronze Age and of the Roman era at the foot of the mountain, but the fortress dates from the ninth century, when the Iberian peninsula was under Muslim control. On the maps of the medieval Arab geographer Al-Idrisi, this mountain is called Banu-lQatil, that can be understood as the peak of Laquant, the Arabic name of Alicante. If the castle today bears the name of Santa Bárbara, it is because in 1248 it was taken from the Muslims by the troops of Alfonso of Castile on a 4th of December, the day of Saint Barbara. In 1296, it was the turn of the troops of Aragon to seize it, and James II of Aragon ordered a complete rebuilding that his successors continued. A key defensive position, the castle was then bombarded by the French in 1691, then occupied by the British during the war of Succession of Spain, and bombarded again in 1873. It is because of these successive wars that the town has lost almost all its medieval fabric. It is necessary to evoke here, with gravity, a dark page: having lost its military function, the castle served as a prison, and during the Spanish civil war it was used as a place of detention where political prisoners perished. Today you distinguish several tiered enclosures, of which the highest, the Macho del Castillo, keeps the oldest vestiges. A thousand-year-old fortress and a belvedere over the sea, the castle of Santa Bárbara is a fine stop of the discovery of Alicante.

What to see

Here you discover the fortress that crowns the mount Benacantil, at one hundred and sixty-nine metres above Alicante, founded in the Muslim era and taken by the Christians in 1248, on a day of Saint Barbara; rebuilt by the kings of Aragon, marked by a thousand years of sieges and bombardments, it unfolds several tiered enclosures of which the Macho del Castillo, and offers a magnificent view over the bay. The castle of Santa Bárbara dominates Alicante. It is a fine stop, to be explored on foot.

Practical information

The castle of Santa Bárbara crowns the mount Benacantil, above Alicante. You reach it on foot by a path, or by a lift dug into the rock, with a charge, from the seafront. The site of the castle is generally in free access; the opening hours vary according to the season, it is best to enquire before going up.

Why is the castle of Alicante called Santa Bárbara?

Because it was taken from the Muslims by the troops of Alfonso of Castile in 1248, on a 4th of December, the day of Saint Barbara; founded in the Muslim era on the mount Benacantil, the fortress was then rebuilt by the kings of Aragon and went through a thousand years of sieges and bombardments before becoming the symbol that dominates the bay of Alicante.

Where is the castle of Santa Bárbara in Alicante?

At the top of the mount Benacantil, at one hundred and sixty-nine metres above Alicante, in Spain.