San Juan Castle, locally known as Castillo de San Juan, lies on a ridge, next to the sea and above the town of Águilas, in the province of Murcia in Spain. It is also known as Castillo de San Juan de los Águilas to distinguish it from its namesake Castillo de San Juan de los Terreros, some 10 kilometers to the south in Almería. The settlement of Águilas was first mentioned in the 11th century, as being a harbor for the town of Lorca. The present castle was preceded by a watch tower, called San Juan Tower, which was built in 1579 for the defense of the harbor. In 1751 that tower had become so ruinous that it had to be demolished. It was replaced by San Juan Castle, which was finished in 1756, during the reign of Charles III of Spain. San Juan Castle was commisioned by Colonel Don Sebastián Feringan Cortes. It consisted of a horseshoe-shaped artillery fort for coastal defense and a battery on the other end of the ridge. Both were connected with each other by a protected walkway. In 1823, during the conflicts between royalists and constitutionalists the castle changed hands but without any combat, saving it from any damage. It wasn't saved from neglect and abandonement in later decades and so, by the end of the 20th century, it was nothing more than a ruin. In recent decades San Juan Castle was completely rebuilt. It now houses a small museum. At present San Juan Castle can be visited for a fee. A nice little castle on a beautiful location. http://www.castles.nl

El castillo de San Juan de las Águilas es una fortificación militar construida en el siglo XVIII que se encuentra situada sobre la actual población de Águilas (Murcia) España. En 1579, durante el reinado de Felipe II se levantó sobre el promontorio de las Águilas una torre vigía, denominada de San Juan, dentro del proyecto encomendado a Vespasiano I Gonzaga de defensa del litoral mediterráneo español contra los ataques de los piratas berberiscos. Dicha torre sería muy similar a la cercana Torre de Cope y serviría para avisar a las tropas de Lorca de ataques enemigos. Esta torre se vio afectada por un terremoto en 1596 y finalmente fue destruida por los ataques berberiscos en el año 1643. En este mismo año se le comunica a Felipe IV que la torre ha sido destruida y ya en el año 1652 el rey ordena al Concejo de Lorca que la reconstruya. Hacia 1751, reinando Fernando VI, Sebastián Feringán, ingeniero director de las obras del Arsenal de Cartagena informa de la ruina de esta torre al marqués de la Ensenada y presenta un proyecto de construcción de un nuevo castillo. Las obras de construcción del nuevo castillo de San Juan de las Águilas se inician en 1759 reinando ya Carlos III. En la actualidad el castillo se ha restaurado y es visitable.

Adulto: 2€ Niños GRATUITO Grupos: 1€ Estudiantes y Jubilados GRATUITO cultura@ayuntamientodeaguilas.org

-