It was such a large fortress – its walls stretched for 1.2 kilometers and were flanked by 28 large towers – that its inhabitants decided in the 14th century to build a smaller castle inside, since they did not have the entire defensive area could cover. The surprising fortress of Gormaz (Soria), the largest of the fortresses built in Europe in the 10th century, has come under the microscope of experts Manuel Ángel Hervás (Baraka archaeologists) and Manuel Retuerce (Complutense University of Madrid), who in the study The An archaeological intervention of 2022 published by the magazine Mantua on the parade ground of the Gormaz fortress has revealed completely unknown aspects of this stone mass, built by the Caliph Abd al-Rahman III. was built to defend the northern border of Al-Andalus. For example, they found that despite being built on a 130-meter-high, steep hill, the defenses were extremely complicated given its gigantic dimensions. Since numerous troops were needed inside to cover the entire perimeter, it was taken one by one by Christians and Andalusians. The excavations also led to the discovery of numerous military objects and objects from the daily life of successive inhabitants, including medieval Christian coins, a 14th or 15th century brigantine (cuirass) and Islamic ceramics.
More information
The impressive military building of Gormaz stands on a long and narrow plateau hill. Due to its height, the Duero River can be distinguished to the south, west and north. Thanks to its exceptional location, on a clear day you can see the entire region in the distance, including Moncayo, the Picos de Urbión and the central system. It was built on the first imperial earthen fortifications and became the “bridgehead” and epicenter of border defense against the flourishing kingdoms of Navarre and Castile. It is essentially characterized by its particular configuration, which adapts precisely to the abrupt irregular topography of the hill. It can be visited – it preserves the citadel, towers, gates of the Caliphate and walls more than 10 meters high – and at its feet there is a small Romanesque interpretation center, since this entire part of the province of Soria has numerous churches from this period. historical.
Caliphate gate of the fortress. In the background the Duero plain. Ana Núñez Agudo
It experienced one of its greatest heydays under Caliph Al-Hakam II (915-976). But between 940 and 965 it was occupied by the Christians, who then lost it to the Muslim troops of General Galib. In 1047 it was conquered again by Ferdinand I of Castile. Its first overseer was Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, El Cid Campeador (1081). In the 14th century, due to the civil wars between Pedro I and his brothers, various areas were reinforced and prismatic battlements were added. It became a prison under the Catholic Monarchs.
Last year, archaeologists analyzed 114 square meters of its surface, sinking to 1.91 meters in the central part of the fortress, the area between the parade ground and the fortress. The results have confirmed both the emiral earth building phase and the masonry and ashlar caliphal phase, as well as a third phase extending within the fortress and corresponding to another smaller, square castle built by the Christians.
View of the castle from the access road to Gormaz.Ana Núñez Agudo
“The new archaeological intervention has documented significant changes to the defensive structure of the complex that were made in the context of the Castilian civil wars of the 14th century,” the study says. “These reforms are legible not only within the excavated area but also in the remains of the surrounding wall, as several reforms have been identified, both in the access system to the interior of the fortress from the south and in the internal distribution. the central sector, with new defensive buildings within the walls and with a large internal tower,” explains Manuel Retuerce.
View of the castle’s weapons room from one of the towers.Ana Núñez Agudo
All these buildings form a quadrangle about 60 meters long and about 30 meters wide with two towers, one in the southeast and one in the northeast, “which underlines its defensive function”. A wall closed off the entire room. “As a working hypothesis to be tested in future interventions, we propose the possibility that these structures correspond to internal defenses, as shortcuts built in the 14th century to facilitate the defense of the square during one of the civil wars fought at that time. “It is possible that the troops stationed inside were not numerous enough to ensure the defense of the entire walled perimeter alone and that the decision was therefore made to sector the space within the walls through smaller internal defensive enclosures,” explains Retuerce .
In addition, during excavations, the archaeologists found, among other things, the edge of a Celtiberian urn – which testifies to two thousand years of settlement on the hill – an ataifor (plate) from the caliph period, casseroles and a coin minted from the time of Ferdinand IV (1295-1312). in Cuenca, another by Alfonso, lids, watering cans, jugs, jugs and bowls of Christian culture (13th and 14th centuries), as well as crossbow arrows, nails, pins and iron plates. In addition to all these materials, as experts point out, two panels of a brigantine dated between the 14th and 15th centuries were recovered.
Coin from the reign of Alfonso
Of the 393 ceramic items inventoried, the vast majority (305, 77.6% of the total) show a late medieval chronology from the 14th or 15th century. Before this period, five Bronze Age fragments (1.27%), one Iron Age (0.25%), 24 Celtiberian fragments (6.10%), one Hispanic Terra Sigillata fragment (0.25%), another possibly from the Visigothic period (0.25%), 13 Andalusian and 43 from the 13th and 14th centuries.
In summary, the study concludes that it was possible to document within the fortress “the eastern facade of a large defensive building constructed in the 14th century within the walls of the preceding Islamic complex as an abbreviation or sectorization of the latter, and of There has been no evidence of this so far.” Since the castle was so large, its residents thought that it would be better defended with a smaller castle. And they achieved the goal. Nobody took it back.
All the culture that goes with it awaits you here.
Subscribe to
Babelia
The literary news analyzed by the best critics in our weekly newsletter
GET IT
Subscribe to continue reading
Read without limits
_