The Castillo de Don Mario in Archena
An abandoned modernist monument in Archena with an interesting history!
One of the most eye-catching buildings in Archena is unfortunately not open to visitors, and is the “Castillo de Don Mario” in the district which lies in the eastern outskirts of the town, on the “other” side of the River Segura.
This curious modernist building in fact started life as a rather grand dovecote belonging to the Fontes family, one of the wealthiest in Murcia, but was given as a gift to the family of Mario Spreáfico, a doctor who was much loved in Archena on account of his efforts to help the poor. When Dr Spreáfico was named a favourite son of the town he was referred to as “a magnificent doctor and an excellent person”, and although he was not strictly speaking a native of Archena, having been born in Algeria in 1883, he lived much of his life here before passing away in 1866.
The association with Archena began when Mario’s father, Juan, also a doctor, was employed at the Balneario thermal spa resort.
His grandfather was sentenced to death in Italy for supporting Garibaldi during the political turbulence of the 19th century, and Mario Spreáfico was also a man of controversial political convictions. At the local election of 1931 in Archena he stood as republican candidate and received more votes than any other, and when he stood down from the council three years later it was to move onto higher things in the political world. By 1936 he had been named president of the Confederación Hidrográfica del Segura (CHS), the body in charge of water supply infrastructures in the Segura basin.
But the Civil War effectively ended his political career, and he paid for his political allegiances with a lengthy prison sentence.
In the early years of this century the “Palacio de Don Mario” was converted into office premises, but it now stands empty on its hilltop in the outskirts of Archena, alongside the MU-522 road to the east of the town centre and the River Segura.
See further information about the history of Archena
Click for further information about the Archena municipality
