Monuments

Ronda’s Arab Walls and City Gates

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City gates and defensive walls of Ronda in Andalusia
A secure city

Part of the reason Ronda is so important in the history of Andalucia directly relates to how secure the city was from attack.  The city walls in combination with the gorge and rio Guadalevin made Ronda’s Arab Walls and City Gates impervious from attack until the age of the cannon.

Whilst wooden palisades existed to protect neolithic communities and their successors before the constructions of the Roman castle, the reality is that most of the stone walls around Ronda directly owe their construction to the Islamic era, a period that spanned close to 800 years from 712 until 1485.

Read this article in Spanish here…

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Casa del Gigante in Ronda

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Casa de Gigante - Museum in Ronda

The House of the Giant, otherwise known as the Casa del Gigante in Ronda’s old city is one of the most complete examples of Nasrid architecture outside of Granada and definitely a destination that should be on your list of places to see in Ronda.

This house is located in a quiet plaza behind the Santa Maria La Mayor church, and directly across from the Museo Peinado. The Casa del Gigante is just 2 minutes walk from the Puente Nuevo and Plaza d’España, and not too far from the Mondragon Palace. A statue of Vincent Espinel is located directly in front of the entrance to the House of the Giant.

The palace was already more than 100 years old at the time of the fall of Ronda to Ferdinand’s army in 1485 and apart from some redecorating in the 17th century is still largely complete as a Moorish building.

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Felipe V Arch (Arco de Felipe V)

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Felipe V arch or Arco de Felipe V in Ronda

Probably every visitor to Ronda passes under the Felipe V Arch (Arco de Felipe V) on their way from “La Ciudad” and the Puente Nuevo (new bridge) into the Padre Jesus neighbourhood normally crossing the Puente Viejo (old bridge).

Back in the 18th century until the completion of the Puente Nuevo, the arch was the main entrance into La Ciudad, and was hurriedly built after the collapse of the old Arab gate in 1742.

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Eight Spout Fountain (Los Ocho Caños)

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Eight spout fountain or los ocho caños in Ronda

The eight spout fountain in front of the Church of our Father Jesus was built during the 1700s under the reign of Carlos III. Back in those days the Padre Jesus district of Ronda was its commercial centre. Many of the buildings around the church and fountain were home to bars and inns, and the fountain was considered an essential addition.

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