Castillo-Fortaleza de Santa Pola

The Castillo-Fortaleza de Santa Pola is a square Renaissance fortress built in the mid-16th century to defend the coast from Barbary pirate raids, many of them launched from the nearby island of Tabarca. It was designed in 1553 by the Italian engineer Juan Bautista Antonelli, as part of a wider plan ordered by the Crown to strengthen defences along the whole coastline.

From fortress to museum

The fortress combines bastions and towers built to withstand sieges, with a parade ground and a cistern inside. It also houses the Chapel of the Virgen de Loreto, Santa Pola's patron saint, whose devotion is still alive in the town. Once it lost its military role, the building was put to very different uses over time, including a bullring, before becoming the cultural space it is today.

Since 1982, the castle has been home to the Museo del Mar, with rooms devoted to the area's prehistory, its Iberian period, the Roman-era port and the fortress's own history, alongside a section on fishing. The complex was declared a Bien de Interés Cultural, with monument status, in 1993.

The castle stands in the centre of Santa Pola, close to the harbour where boats leave for the island of Tabarca, and a short walk from other sights in the municipality such as the Torre Atalayola and the Santa Pola salt flats.