Castle Colomares
Colomares is a castle created in the resort town of Benalmadena in honor of the five hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America by Columbus. The architecture of the castle amazes even sophisticated travelers. In the castle, the author of the project wanted to combine the entire culture of medieval Spain: Gothic elements are visible, as well as Romanesque, Byzantine, and Moorish architecture.
Christopher Columbus hoped to open a short route to India by traveling to the west. To do this, he coordinated his plan with King Ferdinand of Aragon and his wife Isabella of Castile. Christopher repeatedly offered to sail to the west, but it was not until 1492 that he received the funds to make the journey. Columbus was also helped by Martin Alonso Pinson, who gave his ship "Pinta" and finances, and the third ship was prepared by Marrans (baptized Jews).
On August 3, 1492, three ships sailed from the port of Palos de la Frontera. On October 12, 1492 (the official date of the discovery of America), the crew of the ship "Pinta" saw overboard in the Caribbean Sea and named it San Salvador. The architect reflected this event by building a chapel. On December 6, 1492, they discovered the island of Haiti, which they named Hispaniola at that time, because they recognized their native Castile in the terrain. On December 25, 1492, the ship Santa Maria ran into underwater reefs and crashed. With the support of the local population, Columbus built a fort out of ship fragments. The fortification was named "La Navidad", which translates as Christmas. The castle of Colomares reflects the scenes of the sinking of the ship and the construction of the fort. There were 39 people left in the fortification, the rest sailed on January 4, 1493, aboard the ship Ninier to explore the coast of Haiti. On March 15, 1493, Pinta and Nigny returned to Spain. After that, Columbus equipped 3 more expeditions to America in 1493-1504, during which the colonization of the found lands began.
The architectural ensemble of Colomares became a symbol of this famous journey. In 1987, Dr. Esteban Martin and 2 assistants began construction. He recreated in stone the entire journey from Spain to America. The construction took 7 years and in 1994 (500 years since the discovery of America) the construction was completed.
Although Esteban knew history and architecture well, his work with construction had nothing to do with it, since he devoted his whole life to medicine. His workers used to be engaged only in bricklaying, but during construction they learned how to process marble, wood and stone. The castle is decorated with 3 ships that participated in the voyage. It is worth noting that Colomares was included in the Guinness Book of Records 2 times: the largest monument to Columbus, because the castle area is about 1,500 km2, besides, the castle houses the smallest chapel on the planet, with an area of 1.96 m2. In addition to the discovery of America, other important events are recorded in the castle. For example, the Fountain of Lovers represents the marital union of King Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile, who provided a ship and funds for the voyage of Columbus. The Unification Portal represents the merger of the Kingdom of Navarre and Spain. The East Tower traces the construction styles of Asian countries, and it embodies Columbus' dreams of a shortcut to India.
Some time after the completion of the castle Colomares was used for falconry, but the falcons began to exterminate the cats of the locals, and this idea was abandoned. Today it is a very popular attraction in Benalmadena, which will be interesting not only for children, but also for adults.
