Castle of Paderne in the Algarve, located in the city and parish of the same name, municipality of Albufeira, Faro in Portugal.

It stands in a dominant position over the stream of Quarteira, about two kilometers south of the city. One of the seven castles represented on the flag of Portugal, its ruins, reddish in color, is one of the most significant examples of Muslim military architecture in the Iberian Peninsula, highlighting the landscape as a warning of arrival at the Algarve to anyone entering the Via do Infante, coming from A2. The scenic effect is multiplied at night thanks to lighting installed by the Algarve Tourist Board.

The castle was erected in mud by the Almohad between the eleventh century and the twelfth century, during the last phase of the Muslim occupation of the peninsula by controlling the ancient Roman road that crossed the river by a bridge of Quarteira the Southeast. During this period, the progress of the Christian Reconquista led to the building of an integrated defensive line for medium-sized fortifications and rural character of the region, of which this is one of the best examples.

The oldest reference of the castle dates back to 1189, when it was won in a bitter night assault by the forces of King Sancho I (1185-1211), with the aid of a squadron of English crusaders. This domain, however, was short-lived, since as early as 1191, was recovered by the Almohads forces under Caliph Abu Yusuf Ya’qub command al-Mansur.

Your definiva possession for the Portuguese crown would only come under the reign of King Afonso III (1248-1279) with the conquest by the Master of the Order of Santiago, D. Palo Peres Correia, in 1248, beginning the repopulation of the area.