{{short description|Mountain in Spain}} {{Infobox mountain | name = Gibralfaro | image = Viviendas de El Ejido.jpg | image_caption = Mount Gibralfaro with the Castle on top | elevation_m = 130 | elevation_ref = | prominence = | location = Málaga province, {{flagcountry|Andalusia}} | range = Montes de Málaga | map = Spain | coordinates = {{coord|36|43|24|N|04|24|39|W|type:mountain_scale:100000|format=dms|display=inline,title}} | topo = | type = Limestone | age = | first_ascent = | easiest_route = From Málaga }} Mount '''Gibralfaro''' ({{langx|es|Monte Gibralfaro}} {{IPA|es|ˈmonte xiβɾalˈfaɾo|}}) is a hill located in Málaga in the south of Spain. It is a 130 m high foothill of the Montes de Málaga, part of the Cordillera Penibética.<ref>[http://www.ayto-malaga.es/urbanismo_nuevo/temp2/DOC_458.out Plan Especial de Protección del Monte Gibralfaro - Ayuntamiento de Málaga]</ref>
At the top of the hill stands the Castle of Gibralfaro overlooking Málaga city and the Mediterranean Sea, and connected by a walled corridor to the Alcazaba of Málaga.
==History== Gibralfaro has been the site of fortifications since the Phoenician foundation of Málaga city, circa 770 BC.{{Citation needed|date=July 2022}} The location was fortified by Caliph Abd-al-Rahman III in 929 CE. At the beginning of the 14th century, Yusuf I of the Kingdom of Granada expanded the fortifications within the Phoenician lighthouse enclosure and erected a double wall to the Alcazaba. The name is said to be derived from Arabic, ''Jabal (''{{Langx|ar|جَبَل|links=no}}) the word for mountain, and Greek the word for light, meaning "rock of the lighthouse".<ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-11-25 |title=Gibralfaro Castle, Malaga |url=https://www.andalucia.com/cities/malaga/gibralfaro.htm |access-date=2022-07-15 |website=Andalucia.com |language=en}}</ref> In Arabic it is called ''Jabal Fārū (''{{Langx|ar|جبل فارو|links=no}}) or ''Jabal Al-Fārū (''{{Langx|ar|جبل الفارو|links=no}}). The castle is famous for its three-month siege in 1487 by the Catholic monarchs, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, which ended when hunger forced the Moors to surrender.
thumb|left|Restored double walled ''coracha terrestre'' to Castle of Gibralfaro from Alcazaba [[File:Malaga view from gibralfaro.jpg|thumb|Málaga from the ramparts of Gibralfaro, looking towards the Alcazaba (visible below)]] The most visible remains of the Castle today are the solid ramparts rising above the pines In the ''Centro de Interpretación de Gibralfaro'' (Gibralfaro Interpretation Center) in the former gunpowder arsenal of the Castle is a little museum that shows the castle's history over the centuries since the Reconquest. The castle was used as a military base until 1925.{{Citation needed|date=July 2022}}
At the end of 2005, a thick forest of pines and eucalyptus trees were planted on the hill. On its outskirts are the historical buildings of the seminary and the Alcazaba, the ''Jardines de Puerta Oscura'' (Dark Gate Gardens), as well as a Parador.<ref>''Conocer España por la ruta de los paradores'', Ediciones Gaesa, page 90</ref>
Currently pending approval is a project intended to safeguard the mount and its surroundings from any urban intervention and promote it as a space for public recreation. Another project is planned to build a cable car linking the city center with the Gibralfaro castle.<ref>[http://www.malagahoy.es/article/malaga/61502/impulso/plan/para/proteger/monte/gibralfaro/y/potenciar/su/uso/cultural.html Impulso al plan para proteger el Monte Gibralfaro y potenciar su uso cultural - Málaga Hoy]</ref>{{wide image|Panoramic Malaga.jpg|700px|Panoramic Málaga from Gibralfaro}} {{clear}}
==Geology== Gibralfaro is part of the southern foothills of the Montes de Málaga, a mountain range of the Cordillera Penibética, formed of materials from the Maláguide complex of the Baetic Cordillera.
==References== {{reflist}} :''This article incorporates information from the equivalent article on the Spanish Wikipedia''
==External links== *[http://www.andalucia.com/cities/malaga/gibralfaro.htm Malaga City - Gibralfaro Castle]
Category:Penibaetic System Category:Landforms of Andalusia Category:Hills of Spain