Vandal Tries To Destroy Medieval Castle Battlements

This is the shocking moment a man tears apart medieval battlements that had stood for nearly 1,000 years, sending chunks of masonry crashing down towards people below.

The footage was obtained from the Regional Government of Andalusia and shows the incident in the town of Niebla, in the Spanish province of Huelva, on 9th August.

The images show the suspect standing atop one of the towers and using brute force to wrench the stonework apart as shocked onlookers reportedly gathered below as pieces of the battlements, understood to be some 900 years old, were destroyed.

Fragments dropped down the outer face of the wall close to passers-by, putting them at risk of injury.

Most of what stands today was raised in the 12th century under Moorish rule, and the enclosure is regarded as the largest and best preserved example of its kind in Spain, running for around 2 kilometres (1.2 miles) with towers reaching 16 metres (52 feet).

Its defences proved so formidable that Alfonso X of Castile needed a nine-month blockade in 1262 to force the town into surrender.

The damaged tower stands beside the Puerta del Socorro, part of a complex listed as an Asset of Cultural Interest.

Residents and passers-by filmed the scene and raised the alarm, and the recordings spread rapidly online, causing considerable public alarm.

Once the town hall reported the matter, the Huelva office of the Regional Ministry of Culture, Historical Heritage and Sport passed the case to the National Police Unit Attached to the Autonomous Community of Andalusia (UPA), which opened an inquiry.

The circulating video and other lines of enquiry allowed officers to identify and trace the man, who was detained on suspicion of an offence of damage against historical heritage and placed at the disposal of the judicial authorities.

The UPA acted alongside the Local Police of Niebla while emergency crews were stretched by a wildfire burning in the town and elsewhere in the province.

The Regional Government of Andalusia said in a statement: “The coordination between the National Police Unit Attached to the Autonomous Community of Andalusia and the Local Police of Niebla has made it possible to offer a rapid response to events that affected one of the most important medieval complexes in Andalusia.

“The protection of Andalusian historical heritage constitutes a priority for the public administrations.

“The institutional response to these events has the aim of clarifying what happened, determining possible responsibilities, facilitating the repair of the damage and preserving a cultural legacy that is essential to the collective identity of Andalusia.”