Alcázar of Segovia (Spain)

Alcazar of Segovia (alcázar) is a palace and fortress of the king of Spain, in the historic district of the city of Segovia, Spain. The castle is situated on a cliff, which is located at the confluence of the rivers Eresma and Klamores, near the mountains of Guadarrama (part of the Cordillera Central). The Alcázar is one of the most distinctive castle-palaces in Spain by virtue of its shape - like the bow of a ship.

E 'it was originally built as a fortress but has served as a royal palace, a state prison, a Royal Artillery College and a military academy since then. The castle is one of the inspirations for Walt Disney Cinderella Castello.risalente the period of Arab domination (XI - beginning of XII century, but perhaps of Roman origin), enlarged in the fifteenth century and almost completely rebuilt in 1862, situated on a hill situated at edge of the Sierra de Guadarrama in the Spanish city of Segovia (Castile and León, central Spain), city of which is - along with the Roman Aqueduct - one of the most famous monuments.

The Alcázar was the royal residence, military academy and the state prison. It is considered a monument of historical and artistic interest (since 1931).

The fortress is located in the Plaza de la Reina Victoria Eugenia, between Paseo Don Juan II and the Camino de la Cuesta de los Hoyos, in the western part of the historic center, near the confluence of the rivers Eresma and Clamores.

The building rises about 80 meters on a spur roccioso.La shape and form of the Alcázar was not known until the reign of King Alfonso VIII (1155-1214), the documentation soon anyway said a fence wooden fence. One can conclude that, before the reign of Alfonso VIII, was no more than a wooden fortress built above the ancient Roman foundations. Alfonso VIII and his wife, Eleanor of Plantagenet made this Alcázar their principal residence and much work has been done to erect the beginnings of stone fortification we see today. Undoubtedly, the gallery on the north side belongs to this period, it consists of a large room (called the Great Hall), flanked on both sides by private rooms in oriental style.