Onda Castle: A Historic Fortress in Spain

Visitor Information

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Official Website: www.ondaturismo.es

Country: Spain

Civilization: Unclassified

Remains: Military

History

Onda Castle is located in the town of Onda, Spain. Its origins date back to the 10th century when Muslim builders constructed the fortress during the caliphal period. This site was chosen for its strategic position atop an earlier settlement that had seen human occupation since prehistoric times, including Roman and Iberian presence.

During the medieval period, the castle became well known as the “castle of the 300 towers,” a name that reflected its large scale and its numerous defensive towers, reputedly equal in number to the days of the year. In 1238, the stronghold changed hands when Zayyan ibn Mardanix, the last Muslim ruler of Valencia, surrendered it to King James I of Aragon. This event marked the beginning of Christian control over the castle and the town.

After the Christian conquest, the castle and its revenues were granted to the Order of the Temple in 1249 following the issuance of the Carta Puebla, a document conferring legal and settlement rights. By 1319, stewardship passed to the Order of Montesa. Throughout the following centuries, Onda Castle played a critical military role. It was involved in major regional conflicts, such as the War with Castile from 1357 to 1365 and the War of the Germanías that occurred between 1519 and 1524. It also served as the headquarters for the Duke of Segorbe during the 1526 campaign to suppress the Mudéjar population in the nearby Sierra de Espadán mountains.

In the early 19th century, Napoleonic forces occupied the castle during their campaigns in Spain, specifically in 1812. Later in that century, the castle underwent significant restoration amid the Carlist Wars in 1839. The castle’s military importance persisted into the 20th century, seeing action during the Spanish Civil War in 1936. Recognizing its historical significance, the site was declared a Historic-Artistic Ensemble and a Cultural Interest Site in 1967. Today, restoration efforts continue alongside the operation of a museum showcasing Muslim plasterwork from a 13th-century palatial house connected to the castle’s past.

Remains

Onda Castle occupies a commanding hill 227 meters above sea level between the La Plana plain and the Sierra de Espadán mountain range, shaped by a series of defensive walls and enclosures reflecting centuries of construction and adaptation. The entrance to the castle is marked by a gate flanked by two cylindrical towers, leading into the albacar—a fortified outer enclosure that served dual purposes for defense and as a refuge for the local population and livestock during attacks.

Once inside the albacar, visitors reach the remains of the northern wall of the medina, or old town, including the Portal de Sant Pere. This city gate, last restored in 1578 as indicated by an inscription, provided access toward the Camino de Castellón and the town’s central area. Beneath the castle’s outer walls lies the buried original Muslim fortifications, which have been overlain by walls and structures added during later periods, particularly restored extensively in the 19th century during the Carlist Wars.

Ascending from the albacar leads to the Alcazaba, also called the celoquia, which was the military and administrative center of the fortress. This area housed the alcaid, or Muslim governor, and later served as the residence for commanders from the Order of Montesa and subsequent authorities. The Alcazaba is protected by a third set of walls, evidencing the layered defense strategy employed across centuries.

Additional defensive features include the mid-12th-century construction of the “Campanar dels Moros,” an albarrana tower—a detached tower connected to the main walls by a bridge—along with a rammed earth (known locally as tapial) wall built to strengthen the castle’s northern defenses. Among surviving buildings are a church and a school founded in the early 20th century by Carmelite friars; notably, the school incorporates the structure of the castle’s main cistern, known as the aljibe, into its construction.

Today, these elements collectively illustrate the castle’s complex history of continuous occupation, military adaptation, and religious presence, with structural layers telling the story of its evolution from an early Muslim fortress through to modern preservation and remembrance.