CASTLES BAENA

Torre del Montecillo, known locally as Torre Morana or Torre Morada, rises from a hill five kilometers from Baena in Córdoba at 687 meters elevation. This prismatic tower stands approximately thirteen meters high with a square base of five meters per side, dominating extensive vistas across the Andalusian landscape. Archaeological evidence reveals continuous habitation from the Bronze Age through the Andalusian period, with ceramic remains confirming the site's appeal to successive civilizations. Medieval records first mention the tower as "the head of Morana" in 1252, though construction likely dates to the fourteenth century. The fortress witnessed dramatic medieval history: attacked by Nasrids in 1408 and receiving news of Boabdil's invasion in 1485. Declared a national monument in 1949 and registered as a Bien de Interés Cultural, the tower remains a sentinel over Córdoba's storied past.

Castillo de Baena crowns the highest point of its municipality in Córdoba province, originating in the 9th century on Roman foundations after the settlement was destroyed by Omar Ibn Hafsun. The Almoravids and Almohads further developed the fortress, which once featured seven towers defending the frontier between Christian and Nasrí territories. Taken by Ferdinand III in 1241, it became one of Córdoba's most prominent southern outposts and was later granted to the influential House of Córdoba. The square fortress retains its original walls and three distinctive towers—El Secreto, Los Cascabeles, and Cinco Esquinas—meticulously restored between 2007 and 2015 and designated a Bien de Interés Cultural since 1985.