Castillo de Coca

Considered one of the most beautiful Spanish castles, Castillo de Coca is an excellent example of the majestic joint of the Gothic and Mudejar styles. The magnificent castle is located between Madrid and Valladolid, at 50 kilometers from the capital Segovia and 60 km from Valladolid. The castel is built of brick and stone, surrounded by a moat of 560 meters long which served to defend it.
Though the ancient city was founded by the Romans since antiquity, the castle was built in the 14th century.

Castillo de Coca was built by Don Alonso de Fonseca, and together with three other castles (Cuellar, Arevalo and Olmedo) formed a strategic square of Spain's military. In 1505 after the death of Don Alonso, his brother, Antonio de Fonseca seriously improved the defensive mechanisms of the castle, and this decision would prove to be providential. Attacked in 1521, the castle successfully withstood the siege, being only conquered in 1808 by the French under Napoleon Bonaparte.

The famous Castillo de Coca served as the official residence of the House of Alba, an important Spanish aristocratic dynasty. Today, his role is a tourist one, being added to the list of historical monuments of the utmost importance, since 1931.

In recent years, the castle was used as a school, and today offers guided tours within and outside of it, as well as into the castle museum. Less