Palma - Castell de Bellver, Spain
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Bellver Castle - Wikipedia
Origins and evolution[edit]. External links[edit].
Bellver Castle [1] (Catalan, Castell de Bellver; Balearic Catalan pronunciation: [b@y’v@]) is a Gothic-style castle located on a hill three kilometers west of Palma, on the Island of Majorca. It can be found on the Balearic Islands in Spain. It was built for King James II in 14th century. It is one of few European circular castles. It was originally the residence of Kings of Majorca. After that, it was used for many years as a military prison. Now, it is under civilian control. [3]
The plan of the castle, which is a circular floor with attached towers, may have been inspired from the Herodion's upper complex, a hilltop palace built in 15 CE on the West Bank. It had a large principal tower as well as three smaller towers. The principal tower is attached to the castle's main one via a bridge over the moat.
Pere Salva was the architect of the main fortification. He also helped to build the Royal Palace of La Almudaina. The castle was built using rock from the hill. This eventually led to cracks.After the castle was built and artillery had been introduced, the battlements at the top of the barbican and on the barbican vanished. They were soon replaced by the ones in each tower. Loopholes were then built.
The castle was originally used to house the Kings of Mallorca when they were not on the mainland. It was then rarely used by viceroys in the 17th century. It was used as a fortification and resisted two sieges in the Middle Ages. The first occurred in 1343 during Peter IV of Aragon’s campaign to reintegrate the Majorcan territories to Crown of Aragon. The second occurred in 1391 during anti-semitic peasant rebellion. In its history, the castle was only once taken by the enemy. It fell in 1521 during the Majorcan Second Revolt of the Brotherhoods.