The history of Torre Abd el Aziz in Seville

Standing at the corner of Avenida de la Constitución and Calle Santo Tomás in Seville is Torre Abd el Aziz - a hexagonal Almohad tower that was one of the vertices of the city wall. It linked with the walls of the nearby palaces, such as the Real Alcázar. While it has been called Torre del Homenaje, this name comes from a legend rather than historical reality, claiming it was the first place where a banner was unfurled after the conquest of the city in 1248.

The tower's name originates from the emir Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa, who lived in Ishbiliya (Sevilla) from 714 to 719. It also receives the name Torre de Santo Tomás, as the old Dominican college of Santo Tomás de Aquino, built in 1516 by the archbishop Fray Diego de Deza, was originally located opposite it.

The city wall connected this tower with the Torre de la Plata and with the Postigo del Carbón, continuing west toward the Torre del Oro. While some may suggest it dates to the 13th century like the Torre del Oro, excavations in the early 2000s suggest that Torre Abd el Aziz was part of the military and defensive expansion of the Alcázar de Sevilla, and is believed to have been built in the mid-12th century.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons