Wall, Defensive wall in Sant Mateu, Spain
The Wall is a medieval defensive structure in Sant Mateu, in the Valencia region of eastern Spain, and forms part of what remains of the town's old fortifications. The surviving section runs along the right bank of the Palace River, built from stone with battlements at the top and a thickness designed to stop attackers.
The town walls were built between 1357 and 1380 under the direction of Pedro de Thous, replacing an earlier set of fortifications from the 13th century that once surrounded the original town center near Sant Pere church. Only small traces of those first walls survive today, mostly near the sacristy of Sant Pere.
The walls of Sant Mateu are known locally as the Montesian town walls, a name that ties them to the military order that once governed the region. Visitors can walk along the preserved section and see how the old stone follows the edge of the town near the river.
The preserved section of the wall sits along the riverbank and is easy to reach on foot from the town center. Wearing comfortable shoes is a good idea, as the ground near the wall can be uneven in places.
The original circuit of walls once had eight gates controlling the flow of people and goods in and out of the town. Many of the stones from the sections that no longer stand were reused over the centuries to build other structures nearby, so parts of the old wall live on in the surrounding buildings.
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