Castell de Santueri - medieval hilltop castle, Felantix

The Castell de Santueri is a ruined fortress in the southeast of Mallorca, which stands on the top of the table mountain, Puig de Santueri. A visit to the complex can be perfectly combined with a detour to the monastery of Santuari de Sant Salvador - historic monastary on Mallorca, which rises on the neighbouring ridge.

Castell de Santueri - a fortified citadel dating back to the 14th century

Castell de Santueri fortress is a relic from the Middle Ages on the Southeast coast Mallorca . It rises on the plateau of a 400 m high table mountain in the Serra de Llevant mountain range just a few kilometers from the small town of Felantix. The entire complex is surrounded by a massive fortress wall. Fortified watch towers stand tall at irregular intervals in the walls of the outer fortification.

As part of extensive restoration work that lasted until 2014, the remains of the structure and the cellar vaults were restored behind the fortress wall. The mountain castle was built of light limestone and stands out clearly from a great distance. The entrance fee is a few euros. Once inside, you can move freely throughout the entire facility and take a closer look at the ruins.

History of the castle

The strategic importance of this exposed location on the summit of Puig de Santueri table mountain was quickly recognised by the Romans who built the first fortress on this site in the first century BC. After the Moorish conquest of Mallorca in the early 10th century, the defences were expanded and served as a military base.

When the Mallorcan King Jaume I of Aragon started to evict the occupiers from 1229, the fortress was successfully defended by the Moors for a year before finally being felled and demolished. The subsequent reconstruction took place in the 14th century with the principle aim of repelling pirate attacks. From the 18th century, the building lost its protective function, was abandoned and started to slowly decay. In clear Weather in Mallorca there are spectacular views of the entire southeast coast of Mallorca from the fortress.