It is not unreasonable to assume that the Moorish occupation of the Iberian Peninsula, which lasted for 8 centuries, was spear-headed from Gibraltar in 711 AD. The building of the original castle began, it is said, at his time when the Arab leader, tarik-ibn-zeyad, conquered Gibraltar and named it after himself Gibel Tarik – or Tarik’s mountain.

As a crucial military base, the rock changed hands many times during the following eight centuries of arab occupation in Spain. As a result Gibraltar’s natural defenses were improved year by year with the development of a Moorish town and castle at the northern end. It dates primarily from 1333AD, when abu’l hassan recaptured Gibraltar from the Spanish.

There are many stories concerning this castle. On one occasion the count Niebla attacked the castle, was captured by the Moorish defenders and his body suspended from the walls in a barcina, or net used for carrying straw until the unfortunate count died due to exposure and starvation. The tower of homage proudly displays the battle scars inflicted during the 10 sieges of the 14th and 15th centuries. The indentations made by catapult missiles, can still be seen today on the east facing wall.

Within this tower a Spanish governor held out for five months against the duke of medina Sedonia who took Gibraltar from his own sovereign, Queen Isabella of Spain. In 1540, hundreds of people found safety inside the castle when Turkish pirates sacked Gibraltar.

The tower of homage has been carefully refurbished to its original state and offers an insight into the culture and way of life of the moors, which inhabited this part of the world for eight centuries. The views from the roof terrace are particularly spectacular enabling the visitor to understand why over one thousand years ago a Moorish leader chose this spot to establish his first stronghold in Europe at the start of one of history’s most influential chapters, the Moorish occupation of southern Europe.