Castillo-Ayuntamiento de Celadas
There are different stylistic classifications of the castle depending on the historians who have researched it. From a Gothic-Renaissance building to a castle-palace linked to the Order of Saint John (15th-16th century) or a castle-residence linked to different orders (Temple and Hospital).
The most likely period of its construction is the late 14th or early 15th century.
The castle is located in a small square in the upper part of the village. It is a work of ashlar masonry with lime and Aragonese-style eaves, which, together with the village church, is the most solidly constructed building, with a main doorway with a pointed arch on the outside and a lowered arch on the inside, flanked by two towers.
This leads us to think that perhaps the building is incomplete, and that it was originally conceived as a square building with towers at the corners, following the usual model of medieval castles, as these towers served as fortifications.
It is worth mentioning that King Peter IV of Aragon stayed here on 22 July 1348.
The building has been renovated and transformed several times. The most important intervention was after the Civil War, carried out by Regiones Devastadas (1942-1945); this restoration and fitting out of the castle is due to the Bilbilitano architect José María Lafuente Villalba, who restored the upper part of the towers, which ends in fine cornices on which the joists of the framework supporting the roof protrude slightly; also the lintels of the balconies and windows. There are two front windows on the ground floor and two stately balconies on the main floor.
The building is used to house the Town Hall, and has undergone renovations, especially to the old walls to adapt it to new needs (work carried out in 1988).
The main floor has a layout typical of a town hall, with the mayor’s office and secretaries. The ground floor has been fitted out for the doctor’s surgery, social assistance, adult education, library and computer room.