Castle of Alanís

Alanís Castle was built between the 14th and 15th centuries, when the conflicts that arose with the neighbouring kingdom of Portugal forced the Council of Seville to reinforce the northern border of its district by building numerous fortifications along the so-called ‘Banda Gallega’, a defensive belt that constituted the northern border of the Kingdom of Seville during these centuries.

The purpose of these enclaves was to safeguard the roads, protect the new settlers and consolidate the Crown of Castile in an area claimed by the Portuguese kingdom.

In this context, the importance of Alanís, in relation to the other fortresses, lies in its strategic position and visual control of the territory, which allowed it to control a large part of the sierra.

During the 15th century it played an important role in the noble struggles between the houses of Arcos and Medina-Sidonia, being occupied alternately by these dukedoms. Possibly as a result of the damage caused by these conflicts, reforms and new constructions were carried out that gave the building the formal characteristics with which we know it today.

From the next century onwards, having lost its military function, it entered an inexorable period of deterioration, falling into a state of ruin at the end of the 18th century. 

However, the fortress was the scene of a final episode of war, since at the beginning of the 19th century, during the War of Independence, it was rebuilt by the French, who established a garrison there.

The castle was the property of the Seville Town Council until it was ceded to the Town Council of Alanís at the end of the 20th century, the institution that owns it today.

The defensive complex consists of a small, irregular hexagonal-shaped enclosure that occupies an area of 2,200 m2. The only gateway to the inside of the enclosure is located in the centre of the north wall, facing the village. Its outer arch, now very deteriorated, would have been formed by a carved sandstone doorway with a semicircular arch. It still preserves the quiciarelas and open boxes in the wall for the bar that would have held the large wooden door closed. 

At the top of the doorway was a machicolation supported by four double-lobed corbels, which is another defensive element. 

A barrel-vaulted corridor leads to the parade ground from where we can see the inner doorway, a Mudejar brickwork consisting of a pointed arch framed by an alfiz. 

The sturdy walls that make up the fortress were built using masonry and carved ashlars at the corners, which made the construction more solid.

On the north wall, centred on the north wall and the gateway to the castle, is the double staircase that provides access to the patrol path. This path completely encircled the enclosure, thus allowing the control of all its flanks. 

Standing outwards, on the corner formed by the north and northwest walls, is the only keep. It is built on a semicircular massif that rises in a gentle slope to the height of the promenade, taking on an irregular nonagonal shape from this point onwards. Access to the tower is through a doorway located at the level of the promenade that leads to a rectangular chamber covered by a vaulted ceiling on trumpets. 

Attached to the west wall and on the same side as the doorway is the staircase, covered by a barrel vault, which leads to the last part of the tower: the roof or terrace. This section, nowadays very deteriorated, would have been crowned by a continuous balcony.

In the parade ground, also with a hexagonal floor plan, there were a series of rooms attached to the walls that were used to organise the life of the castle's inhabitants. Inside one of them was a bread oven that served to supply the garrison housed there, while other buildings were used as dwellings, storerooms, kitchens and stables. 

A paved path surrounded these buildings, thus facilitating the internal circulation of carts and animals, leaving an unpaved area in the centre where the rock was found.

DAZA PASTRANA, F. Intervención arqueológica puntual. Seguimiento arqueológico de demoliciones y control de movimientos de tierras en el Castillo de Alanís de la Sierra (Sevilla). Anuario Arqueológico de Andalucía. 2010.

RODRÍGUEZ ACHUTEGUI, C. N., LATORRE ENSELLEM, A. M. y FERNÁNDEZ NAVAS, P. Excavaciones arqueológicas en el Castillo de Alanís de la Sierra (Sevilla). Campaña de 1988. Anuario Arqueológico de Andalucía. 1988.

RODRÍGUEZ ACHUTEGUI, C. N. y POZO BLÁZQUEZ, F. Excavaciones arqueológicas en el Castillo de Alanís de la Sierra. Anuario Arqueológico de Andalucía. 1987.