Charles V Wall

The Charles V Wall was built in the sixteenth century after a raid on Gibraltar, running from the sea up the steep western face of the Rock to close off the southern approach, and a long flight of steps runs alongside it. It was rebuilt and extended over the following centuries. The climb up beside it is steep but it gives the clearest sense of how the Rock's defences worked with the terrain.

History

After a corsair force under Piali Hamet, one of Barbarossa's captains, plundered the town in September 1540 and carried off many of its leading citizens, the Muralla de San Benito, St Benedict's Wall, was built that year to close the southern approach. From around 1552 the Italian engineer Giovanni Battista Calvi improved it under Charles V, with a straight wall running about 280 metres from the coast to a precipice and a zigzag wall up to the crest of the Rock; under Philip II, Giacomo Paleari Fratino wanted the zigzag pulled down, but the chief engineer Tibúrcio Spanucchi kept building it, and it was finished in 1599 as the upper part of the wall. The South and Flat Bastions of the lower section stood by 1627. In October 1704, during a Spanish attempt to retake Gibraltar, 500 volunteers led by the local goatherd Simón Susarte climbed the wall but were all killed or captured. The upper section has recently been restored by the Bonita Trust with the Government of Gibraltar and lies within the Upper Rock Nature Reserve, set up in 1993 (Wikipedia, Charles V Wall).

Highlights

• The wall line - the defence running from the sea up the steep face.
• The steps - the long flight climbing alongside the wall.
• The sixteenth-century work - built after a raid on the town.
• The terrain logic - defences using the slope rather than fighting it.

When to go

April to October is the mild season. The climb is hard in summer heat. Mornings are cooler for the steps.

Good to know

The steps are steep and there are a lot of them. The upper section has been restored and has a handrail, but the climb beside it is long. There is little interpretation on the ground.

Nearby

The Botanic Gardens are below, and the Apes' Den is above.

Key facts