2-370-133 - Samuel Magal/Sites & Photos/Heritage Images

Gate, citadel of Sagunto, Spain, 2007. The first fortifications on the hill above the town of Sagunto, north of Valencia, were built in the 5th century BC by the Celtic Iberians (Celtiberians). The fortress was extended by the Romans, Goths and Moors, and the walls seen today are almost a kilometre in length. Sagunto was besieged and captured by Hannibal in 219-218 BC, triggering the Second Punic War between Carthage and Rome. El Cid took it from the Moors in 1098 but it was soon recaptured and remained in Muslim hands until Jaime I of Aragon captured it in 1238. The citadel was declared a national monument in 1931.