Castillo de Baños de la Encina (Jaén, España)

The castle of Baños de la Encina is located in the old town of its homonymous city. It was built in the Almohad period, in the 12th-13th century, with lime stabilised rammed earth, whose reddish aggregate gives it a characteristic colour. It consists of a wall in which 15 towers are embedded, including the Keep, built by the Christians and taller than the rest. It is square, but one of its outer fronts is round. At the time it was built, artillery had already been introduced, hence the round shapes, which are more effective than square towers, whose corners turned out to be more fragile against this kind of attacks. The fortress is accessed through a large gate finished with a horseshoe arch built with ashlars and masonry, bound with lime mortar. The last archeological excavations revealed remains of streets, houses, yards, storehouses and a water tank, with the latter being in the centre of the main square.


REFERENCES

Ruta de los Castillos y las Batallas. Diputación Provincial de Jaén. http://castillosybatallas.com/es/castillo-de-banos-de-la-encina-2/