Alcazaba de Guadix
Castle · Granada
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The Alcazaba de Guadix is a Moorish fortress begun in the 10th-11th century under the Zirí dynasty, built in rammed earth reinforced with lime and stone, then expanded under the Nasrids. Its square tower of homage still stands, crowned with rectangular battlements. Abandoned after the 1489 Christian conquest and damaged during the Napoleonic siege, it was declared a national monument in 1931 and restored.
The fortress was raised to defend Guadix against Christian incursions during the unrest of the Taifa period, when the city belonged to the Taifa of Granada under the Ziri dynasty. Much of its interior rooms were lost to a partial demolition in the 16th century. Below the walls spreads Guadix's troglodyte quarter, one of the largest cave-dwelling districts in Europe, still inhabited by around 2,000 people today. Archaeological digs in 2009 opened a stretch of the alcazaba to study, but the plan to turn it into a full public archaeological park has stalled since.
What you see
The tapial walls take on a reddish hue, and from the ramparts the view reaches across Guadix's rooftops to the Sierra Nevada.
Practical
Visits are by free guided tour only, arranged through the Guadix tourism office, while the fortress remains under restoration.
moorish fortressviewpointtroglodyte quarterhistory