The tower of the Lanzada corresponds to the remains of a castle of medieval origin , built by the Merinos of Iria Flavia in Salnés for the defense of the Archdiocese of Santiago de Compostela from Norman attacks.
It is next to the Hermitage of Nuestra Señora de La Lanzada the last vestige of a castle dating from the 10th century (around the year 960 ), built on the remains of an ancient Phoenician or Roman lighthouse . It was ordered to be built by Sisnando Menéndez for the defense of Compostela against Norman attacks . It served as a defensive outpost next to other fortresses of the Compostela miter and as a first contact against possible enemies, transmitting danger signals to the other defensive towers of the Arousa estuary , such as the Torre de San Sadurniño in Cambados and theWest towers in Catoira .
In 1121 , coinciding with the peace agreement between Queen Dona Urraca and Bishop Diego Gelmírez , it was decided that the castle should be handed over to the second; shortly after, it was attacked by Moorish pirates, who succeeded the Normans as a threat on the Galician coast. The castle is also cited in documents from the 13th century .
In 1467 it was besieged by the Irmandiños from the sea. After the defeat of the main Irmandi chiefs, Afonso de Lanzós and Pedro Osorio, the castle of La Lanzada became the last bastion of the rebels in the same ruins of the fortress destroyed by themselves, they resisted until, exhausted all the defense possibilities, were captured. After these events the castle was abandoned.
Today, only this tower and the Romanesque hermitage remain of the old castle . Some years ago works were carried out in the enclosure that seriously affected its integrity, losing the vestiges that remained of the wall and covering the old communication bridge with the castle, originally a drawbridge , with a new one .
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