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.