Murallas Medievales del Casco Antiguo

Calpe's old-town walls began going up between the 13th and 14th centuries to protect a stretch of coast that was especially exposed to Barbary pirate raids. The first solid documentary record dates to 1338, when King Pedro IV ordered the existing defences reinforced; in the 16th century, Charles V had them repaired again after repeated assaults.

A defence put to the test

The walls didn't always hold. In 1637, a lapse by the guards let pirates storm and sack the town, carrying off much of its population as captives; they weren't ransomed back until 1639. The lesson stuck: the walls were rebuilt more solidly, and in 1653 they repelled a new corsair attack. As part of this defensive system, a second wall was built enclosing the arrabal suburb and the original walled core, with towers such as the Torreó de la Peça watching over the most exposed points.

Once the pirate threat had passed, Calpe's residents opened gaps in the 18th-century wall to connect the old core with the arrabal more easily, including the one known as the Forat de la Mar. Today that layout survives in streets such as Sant Roc, Puchalt and Pescadores, with whitewashed façades and flower-filled balconies that still follow the medieval street plan.

A walk along the walls pairs easily with other stops in the historic quarter, including the Church of the Virgen de las Nieves, part of the same defensive belt, and a walk down to the Roman remains at Baños de la Reina by the sea. The whole area sits within Calpe's town centre.