Email: info@torija.com

Website: www.torija.com

Type of monument

Forts

History

The Castle of Torija is the city’s most emblematic building. What remains dates from 15th century and was recently rebuilt as it was blown up in the 19th century by the forces of El Empecinado. Along the walls, from tower to tower, there is a walkway high up on the parapet, edged with machicolations, from where they watched for the enemy.
It was owned by the Counts of Coruña.
And declared a monument in 1931.

Special trips

Large ancestral homes with coats of arms on their main façades and round arches, small squares with Castilian colonnades, the remain of ancient medieval walls, narrow streets.

Surroundings

Also pillories and churches such as that of Nuestra Señora de la Asunción, remains of the old wall and barbican make up the monumental heritage of this important Castilian town.

How to get there

Road transport

In the castle, whose history runs parallel to that of the municipality, one can make out its 15th century origins, the work of the Mendoza family, that were connected with Torija after their arrival in Castile.

A square base with three cylindrical cubes, the surprise for the visitor is its interior in which there is a bailey courtyard and above all the first museum dedicated to a book, that of “Viaje a la Alcarria” by Camilo José Cela located in the keep.

On display there are many personal possessions used by the Nobel Prize winner during his tour around Guadalajara in 1946, as well as singular examples of the publication, photographs from the period, maps and hand-crafted utensils. In addition, in the exhibition room located in the former castle dungeons, there are occasional displays of painting, photography and handicrafts by well-known artists.

Among the figures that stayed in the magnificent fortress, which ceased to be inhabited at the end of the 15th century, were Carlos V and Felipe II and, during the Peninsular War, the famous guerrilla Juan Martín “El Empecinado”, who ended up blowing up the walls so that they could not be used by the French troops. Later, following this event, the building was rebuilt in 1962.

Timetables

Winter: Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays from 11am to 2pm and 4pm to 7pm. Summer: Fridays from 4pm to 8pm. Saturdays and Sundays from 11am to 2pm and 4pm to 8pm.
Group visits: Contact the Diputación Provincial de Guadalajara (949887500).