Photos Fuengirola Castle 

Sohail Castle is on the beach perched on a hill 38 metres high and on the mouth of the River Fuengirola, in the town of Fuengirola, Málaga province. The area is part of the Costa del Sol and is of great interest to tourists.

The geographical conditions of the hill on which sits the castle of Sohail allowed since ancient times its continued settlement by the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, Muslims and Christians, but the building we see today is an Arab fortress dating from the early days of invasion of the Iberian peninsula, and was built over an earlier Roman fort. Most of what can be seen today is the time of Caliph Abderrahman III.

In 1485 it was conquered by the Christians in a battle against the Moorish kingdom of Granada, beginning a major adaptation of its architecture.

In 1513 establishing the Master's Degree and is awarded to Fuengirola Bartolomé de Briones, the Usher Juana I de Castilla, was confirmed in 1525 Sancho de Briones, the Usher of Emperor Charles I, son of the former.

In 1530 Sancho de Briones sold the Royal Decree of Captain Juan de Pacheco Vallejo I (Villasevil, c.1490 - c.1560). John was also warden of the Fort. The title is about 19 manor houses planned in the Castle and surrounding lands. To 1870 without interruption noble title was inherited by the descendants of Captain Juan de Pacheco Vallejo I.

In 1548 establishing the Pacheco Mayorazgo including the Lordship of Fuengirola and La Hacienda Pacheco, located halfway between the current towns of Mijas and Fuengirola.

In 1581 the Lordship over the village of Casares to Mayorazgo was created.

in 1628 began a lawsuit over ownership of the 19 houses, this case remains open until the end of the seventeenth century without trial. In 1789 he rehabilitates the lawsuit, which like the above does not end until mid-nineteenth century, when aristocratic titles legally disappear and there is the impossibility of solving the problem: The failure of the Crown of an agreement defaulted on leases by the Crown Family run since 1628.

Because of its proximity to the sea, the town of Fuengirola and its castle suffered multiple attacks of the legendary pirate Barbarossa, as King Charles I ordered the construction of the pit. It was also a victim of smuggling that experienced the area when the British occupied the area of Rock of Gibraltar, as the Count Montemar conducted a series of reforms.

In 1810 Napoleon's troops occupied the castle with a strong garrison, until in 1812 it was again occupied by Spanish troops.

In 1855, the Confiscation of Madoz, the state sells the entire castle and lands. After an initial award frustrated, revert to the state, who manages to sell it back to Manuel Cebrian, who in turn gave it to Doña Bárbara de la Puente and Obregón (Muriedas 1812 - Málaga, 1891, widow Countess of San Isidro) in 1870 . From 1870 to 1985 the whole castle was owned by the descendants of Oregon and Barbara de la Puente (Bolin Werner Leopold's great-grandmother). In 1985 it was sold poe sisters and heirs of Leopold Werner, with other lands, a known advocate of Fuengirola, who in turn sold the castle to the City, its current owner.

In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries housed the offices of the Guardia Civil with the permission of the family that owns the farm where he was the castle. At first, when it opened the road from Fuengirola to Marbella through expropriation, Werner Leopoldo Martínez del Campo (Paris, 1860 - Málaga, 1936) gave police permission for log cabins built on the foundations of the old houses of the castle . Years later they were replaced by the Guardia Civil, when the body disappeared from police. In addition to this post, there was another in what is now the restaurant building the Sheriff also was donated by Werner Leopold to the police. In exchange for the use of the castle, its owner managed to watch the entrance to their land on both sides of the road along the new road by unauthorized persons.

The enclosure has polygonal towers with tall and narrow in their corners. The building had several entrances, the most significant being a door-like tower, to access the inside of it. Before reaching this door, you have to climb a small ramp.

There are several tall, narrow towers, located on the corners but there is no having the characteristics of a tower. However, there is a tower that is at the center of the building and reaching a greater height. Another of the towers stands out for its battlements, built in the most recent stage.

The gate-tower has as main characteristic defensive structure. It can be reached after passing a ramp that makes the arrival building. This door is the one equipped with multiple defensive elements and is the largest. The building had several entrances but this is dated in the sixteenth century.

The pictures and photos of Fuengirola castle give some idea of the size of its construction.