Islamic Castles In Iberia Islamic Castles In Iberia Peter Burton 228 The Castle Studies Group Journal No 21: 2007-8 Islamic Castles In Iberia Islamic Castles In Iberia1 ods of cultivation of the land and a variety of new crops (e.g. lemons and other fruits, etc) Origins The military organisation required to When the invading Muslim army arrived in achieve such a rapid and complete conquest the Iberian Peninsula (modern day Spain was of the highest order. The use of fortifica- and Portugal) in AD 711 they found a coun- tions to hold territory gained and to garrison try largely ruled by Visigoths who had troops for onward conquest into new regions themselves occupied the area after the fall was an important factor in the colonisation. of the Roman Empire. It was a Christian land and even today substantial remains of The first Muslim colonisers of Iberia Visigothic churches, monasteries and reli- originated from Syria, Egypt and other east- gious artefacts can still be seen. ern areas displaced by internal political dis- cord within the Caliphate (leadership of all Of the military buildings of the Muslims in the Middle East) and settling in pre-Islamic period however, little now sur- North Africa. Eventually they would form a vives. What is clear though is that resistance new, breakaway Western Caliphate based in to the invading Muslim army was slight. Cordoba in Spain. Largely because of the fragmentation of a central authority in Iberia and the absence of This history brought the architectur- any co-ordinated response to the arrival of al and military traditions to Iberia via North the Muslims their initial success quickly Africa. spread throughout the peninsula. We should note before going further The speed with which the Muslims that the Muslim occupation of Iberia and from North Africa established both military therefore the story of Islamic Castles, is a long and economic dominance was spectacular. one. This period lasted almost 800 years, Within thirty years of their first landing on much longer than the period from the final Iberian soil (reputedly at the southern coast- reconquest of Spain by the Christians at the al port of Tarifa in Spain)2 they had spread end of the 15th century to the present day. virtually throughout the peninsula leaving The most significant period for the only the extreme northwest still under study of castles and fortifications of Iberia Christian lordship. In this early colonisation was during the periods of first the Almoravid stage the Pyrenees Mountains were hardly a and then Almohad invasions of Spain. These barrier and incursions and brief occupation two strong dynasties originated in the Berber of what is today southern France occurred. regions of southern Morocco and were mili- The political, social and economic tarily strong with powerful religious convic- situation of the time that made such an tion and were prodigious castle builders. astonishing conquest possible and the fac- The Almorovids ruled in Spain from tors that limited the expansion of the Mus- the mid 11th century to be replaced by force of lims northward is a fascinating story, but not arms by the Almohads from about the mid an area we will be exploring in the present 12th century. Under these powers some inno- 3 paper. An almost total dominance of the vative castles were created. area by Muslim lords inevitably meant that the Islamic religion and culture also became Clearly over such a lengthy period of the dominant drivers in local society. Settle- Muslim occupation the changes in social, cul- ment by agricultural workers and their fam- tural and architectural styles will be varied ilies from North Africa quickly followed the and complex and one only has to consider the th th military conquest bringing alternative meth- changes between the 8 and 15 century in The Castle Studies Group Journal No 22: 2008-9 229 Islamic Castles In Iberia one’s own country to consider how long that and especially by incorporating Roman ma- was. sonry (e.g. the keeps at Colchester and Chep- stow or the banded masonry at Caernarfon) Design and Construction can thereby assume all of the imperial conno- Remains of Islamic Castles are to be found tations for themselves. throughout Iberia save for the extreme north The Spanish examples of Roman west of Spain where Muslim occupation, site occupation do not appear to show any of interestingly, didn’t quite extend to the Celt- these deliberate imperial connotations and the ic land between the Cantabrian Mountains sites would seem to be reused because they and the sea. A common thread to the archi- were the best available and gave the Islamic tecture of these buildings was the use of builders a head start using the existing re- rammed clay, mud brick or ‘tapial’ in the mains as a basis. construction of the vast majority. Stone built and especially ashlar built Islamic castles The early castles from the 8th & 9th are far from being the norm but stone was century onwards were purely military struc- used, sometimes on an immense scale where tures. Their general purpose was to create an it was available and where the prestige, the enclosure of strong walls to house a garrison, strength or simply the need to impress was their horses and equipment and accommoda- greatest. tion for the commander or lord. Tapial as a form of masonry was The construction of fortifications at traditional in the Arabic speaking world, this period as purely military establishments originating as it did, from areas where tim- is reflected in other parts of the Muslim world ber was not plentiful and might it be consid- (e.g. Syria).4 The administrative and residen- ered as the common method of construction, tial centres of the regions were usually in comparable in some respects to the wide- separate palaces, themselves often fortified. spread use of timber construction techniques A good example of an early castle is used in northern European architecture. to be found at Banos de la Encina and dates (photo 01) from the 9th century. This castle is in Andalu- There are many examples of Islam- sia north of Jaen. The curtain walls are of ic castle construction using a combination of Tapial construction with evenly spaced Tapial and stone with the latter being used square, open backed, interval towers. The for structural details such as doorways, wall entrance gateway is a simple horseshoe junctions, towers etc. shaped opening. The survival of this building with little in the way of later alteration is A surprising number of Islamic remarkable. castles were built upon Roman fortress foundations suggesting that military consid- One of the largest enclosure castles erations of defensive position was para- in Spain is that of Gormaz near the Duero mount in the siting of the castles. River frontier area of Castile, an area that remained an active border between Muslim As a point of interest, there is a and Christian from 10th to the 12th century. good deal of discussion in UK castle studies The castle itself was founded in the mid 10th on the reoccupation of Roman sites for the century. construction of castles from the time of the Norman Conquest and later. These discus- Gormaz is built on a high ridge, sions tend to follow a theory of the castle visible for miles around and dominating the builders invoking memories of the imperial surrounding landscape. It has walls of 1200 Roman past and by reusing the same sites metres circumference around a great enclo- 230 The Castle Studies Group Journal No 21: 2007-8 Islamic Castles In Iberia Photo 01. Tabernas Castle, SE Spain nr. Almeria. Tapial construction on hilltop site. Photo 02. Fortaleza de Gormaz, Spain. Huge enclosure castle The Castle Studies Group Journal No 22: 2008-9 231 Islamic Castles In Iberia sure within. A castle on this scale not only was able to house a consider- able army but also the lo- cal inhabitants and their livestock in the event of border warfare. (photo 02 & 03) Gormaz is built of stone and ashlar con- struction with 26 square interval towers, crenellat- ed parapets and an inner citadel with its own de- fended walls and original- ly separated by a dry moat. These early cas- tles had simple gateways into the enclosure, some of elaborate Moorish horseshoe shape others more simple arched open- ing but no sophisticated gateways were construct- ed at this early period. The doors, although strong and well made of wood were barred internally but little else to add strength, beyond the location and external defences. (photo Photo 04. Forteleza de Gormaz. Double horseshoe entrance gate. 04) Islamic castles were usually provi- and long access staircases. Other types were sioned with elaborate and often very large above ground in specially constructed build- water storage cisterns. The use of water ings. The use and management of water re- within the Muslim world beyond simply its sources for agricultural purposes of the period life sustaining properties is well known and are renowned in the Muslim world and this the builders of many castles went to great applied to water management within castles lengths to collect and retain water. The ter- too. (photo 05) rain and position of many Islamic castles As settlement became more perma- meant wells were often not practical so nent the castles were places of safety and cisterns were constructed. refuges for the local village that inevitably These were usually contained sprang up below the walls. As with castles of within the curtain walls and could be deep the Christian countries there was no one size underground with linked storage chambers fits all as each castle had its unique position 232 The Castle Studies Group Journal No 21: 2007-8 Islamic Castles In Iberia Photo 03.