Castle of Villapadierna (León)

South view of the castle

The castle of Villapadierna dates back to the mid-15th century, approximately 1449, since in a documentsigned by King John II of Castile, the castle was occupied by a warden and a garrison. Built by order of Fadrique Enríquez, Admiral of Castile, it passed to the House of Alba through the marriage of Doña María Enríquez, daughter of the admiral, with the first Duke of Alba. At the end of the 18th century it belonged to the Marchioness of Villafranca. It is small, Gothic in style and made up of a square tower surrounded by a double enclosure. Little of the outer barrier remains, half-ruined and its sections are very worn. The castle was surrounded by a water moat that took water from the nearby Esla River through a tunnel two kilometers long.

Main facade on the south wall of the castle

Opening in the south wall, possibly the access to the indoor of the castle

Hallway or guardhouse behind the entrance gate to the castle separated from
the rest of the castle by a wall

Indoor of the wall that separated the hallway or guardhouse 

from the parade groung of castle

Indoor of the west wall of the castle

Scaffolding holes indoor the west wall

South-west view of the homage tower

Pointed arch window on the south side of the homage tower

Possible entrance at the base of the homage tower to the two-kilometer tunnel,
hich connected the outer water ditch with the nearby Esla River

North-west corner opening of the castle

Double embrasure at ground level inside the north wall

Indoor of the north wall of the castle

North esplanade of the parade ground

North-east view of the homage tower

Reconstruction of the entrance to the homage tower above ground level

Entrance gate to the homage tower