Torre Nueva de Guadiaro

The New Tower of Guadiaro is a watchtower located in the Andalusian town of San Roque next to the mouth of the Guadiaro River built for the surveillance of the adjacent stretch of coast in the presence of Barbary pirates. It shares characteristics with other fortified towers in the region built at the same time and, like these, it became part of the system of fortifications of the Campo de Gibraltar after the loss of Gibraltar.

The tower was built after 1516 when, by Royal Decree, the need for surveillance of these coasts became evident because the only tower located nearby, the one currently known as Torre Quebrada de Guadiaro, had been destroyed by lightning. It has a circular ground plan with a diameter of 14 metres and a truncated cone-shaped elevation of 16 metres, 4 of which correspond to the escarpment. Its walls are composed by ashlars in horizontal rows joined with mortar that delimit two rooms with vault and communicated between them by means of a staircase attached to the walls. In the interior of the rooms there was a chimney destined to the body of guard present in the construction. The access door to the rooms is several metres above the ground and was accessible by means of a rope ladder. It is not known what the original roof looked like, as later alterations to create a solid platform for artillery changed its appearance.