Torre de Rio Real, Marbella
The Rio Real watchtower is located near the south-western bank of the Rio Real, on raised ground. This land is now a bend in the A-7 coastal road. A few metres away, on its southern side, there were abandoned Civil Guard barracks.
It has a circular floor plan and a truncated conical profile with a slight entasis (convex shape for aesthetic reasons), resting on a square base. It is 10.85 metres high, with a diameter of 7 metres at the base and 5.25 metres at the top. Its entrance is about 6.5 metres above the ground.
It has a solid lower body and an inner chamber, the entrance to which is on the north side at a height of 6.50 m above the ground. The chamber has a small rectangular opening on the south side.
An internal staircase leads to the roof, which has a parapet that is lowered on the south side. The machicolations are visible and fairly well preserved, especially the one covering the entrance to the tower. Three of the four symmetrically arranged machicolations have survived.
It is made of cut and dressed stone blocks, and no masonry is visible.
Hostory of the tower
This tower was built in 1574. At the time of the Reconquest of Marbella in 1485, there was no documentation of a tower. The survey made by Antonio de Berrio and Luis Machuca in 1571 noted the great distance between the towers on either side: Punta del Real and Torre de Ladrones, and they recommended the construction of a tower. A report from 1575 states that the Torre de la Boca del Río del Real de Zaragoza had been built.
A few years later, it is documented that the mason Miguel Pabón collected 195,500 maravedís for the construction of the Torre del Río del Real in four instalments in 1574 and 1575. In Texeira's description of 1634, the tower is called Torre del Realexo.
In 1726, repairs were needed. Bartolomé Amphoux, in a report, stated that the Torre del Real needed a concrete floor and external plastering, all of which was estimated at 470 reales de vellón.
In 1762, Antonio María Bucarelli carried out a survey of the coastal towers with the aim of transforming them from watch towers to defence towers. He noted that the Torre del Río Real was in average condition and could hold two four-pound cannons. He reported that two infantrymen and a cavalryman from the coast were stationed there. Two years later, in the Regulations of 1764, the Torre del Río Real was manned by a corporal and three lighthouse keepers.
Three years later, in 1765, the budget for the necessary strengthening of the gun was reported. Esteban Aymerick noted that the Torre del Río Real needed to be equipped with two four-pound cannons, the construction of an over-vault, a common place, the relocation of the staircase to the opposite side from where it was and other repairs, which were budgeted at 1700 reales de vellón.
Two years later, in 1767, the General Plan of Works drawn up by José Crame indicated that the Torre del Río Real needed to renew the concrete of its platform, lower the parapet to the level of the Barbeta and move the staircase to accommodate the two 4-pounder cannons of its endowment, as well as other repairs, which were budgeted at 2000 reales de vellón.
The work was carried out and in 1774 the report by Francisco Gozar stated that the Torre del Río Real was adapted for two 4-pound cannons and was in good condition.
In the following years there were many reports of repairs that needed to be carried out. The next important addition was a Carabinieri guardhouse, which is noted in an 1873 itinerary.
About the Coastal Watchtowers
About 200 watchtowers or forts have been built along the coast of Southern Spain, whether by Islamic or Christian forces, to look out for invaders arriving from across the sea. Some of the watchtowers seen today have Moorish origins, mainly constructed by the Nasrid dynasty of Granada after 1250. However most of them were constructed (or reconstructed) in around 1575, as part of the major coastal defence programme of King Felipe II.
After 1518, attacks increased by Barbary pirates, (also known as Barbary corsairs, or Ottoman corsairs) based in North Africa and acting on behalf of the Ottoman Sultan. Initially the pirate raids concentrated on shipping, but later escalated to territorial incursions. They were slave-hunters, and their methods were ferocious, capturing young people for the Ottoman slave trade.
Over half of the towers constructed have lasted to the present day; due to their remarkably solid construction and also due to being occupied, and therefore maintained, right up to the middle of the 20th century. Estepona alone has seven watchtowers, and there are a total of 41 in Malaga province
There are about 10 different architectural construction types. The towers that are Moorish can be identified by their shape: rectangular or cylindrical with vertical walls; the majority, which are are slightly conical in shape, are from the later, 16th- century Christian era. More >
The Six Watchtowers of the Marbella Coastline
Main sites and things to see and do in Marbella
Opening Hours
On public land, the exterior can be viewed.
Location
Reo Real Marbella
