The 13th-century Castillo de Alhabar in Jaén

Stand on the crest of the Alhabar outcrop, and you are in a historical landscape. The castillo de Alhabar was possibly built in the 13th century, though it is unlikely it existed during the conquests of Fernando III - it may date to the structuring of the first Nasrid frontier in 1246. The castle occupies the top of the outcrop, which features a steep slope and natural walls that enclose the major sides of a rectangular area.

The castle's rectangular shape and crude interior work, made of small stones and abundant lime mortar, reflect its construction. In the 12th century, Qanbil and Alhabar were first mentioned in relation to a water problem, indicating that two small villages (Cambil and Alhabar) existed at the time, each protected by a small castle. The castle appears in the "Crónica de Alfonso XI" in the mid-14th century, when it was conquered by the Infante Don Pedro.

After this conquest, the castle became the subject of various attacks, particularly by the Condestable Don Miguel Lucas de Iranzo in 1462 and 1471, which failed. In 1485, the Reyes Católicos, who were focused on the definitive conquest of Granada, took Cambil and Alhabar. This was achieved in only 12 days of siege using heavy artillery concentrated in front of the fortress with the help of an army of miners. Its fall to the Castilians caused the immediate abandonment of the nearby fortress of Arenas.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons