It’s the 60th anniversary of the filming of the lavish blockbuster that changed the history of Peñíscola.
The slogan announced it would be “the most beautiful film in cinema history.”
There was a time when, by the grace of Hollywood, everything in Peñíscola changed.
Between December 1960 and February 1961—exactly 60 years ago—El Cid was filmed, directed by Anthony Mann (who was married to Sara Montiel at the time), produced by Samuel Bronston, and starring Charlton Heston and Sophia Loren.
In a matter of weeks, starting in November 1960, a mighty fortress—half real and half papier-mâché—emerged through the power of technology and the dollar. Locals themselves began to doubt whether it was solid rock or papier-mâché, and the press, caught up in the effervescent atmosphere, dubbed it a “modern Babel.”
The set was so grand that it earned a place in the Guinness Book of Records.
The filming was equally impressive, involving over 5,000 people, including around 2,000 soldiers brought in from as far away as Madrid, along with more than a hundred horses from the Mounted Police.
In Peñíscola, everyone worked on the film—men and women, young and old. Entire families took part, including grandparents, parents, and grandchildren, and in some cases, they even rented out their homes for lodging, their boats, or even their animals for the shoot.
The pay was well worth it; 100 pesetas a day was an extraordinarily generous amount in the black-and-white Spain of the early ’60s, a country accustomed to the meager returns of subsistence farming and fishing.
It was celluloid that would once again bring global fame to the Fortress City, which had already been in the world’s spotlight centuries earlier with the unshakable Pope Luna. El Cid would rediscover the unparalleled charm of the City in the Sea for the world.
Following the international notoriety it gained, Peñíscola reversed its historical trend, shifting from a constant source of emigrants to a magnet for new residents. The hotel industry began to take off, and our city started to be known as the “European Hollywood.”
No one forgot the filming in that Peñíscola. Not even him, Charlton Heston, El Cid.
One of the most charismatic actors in cinema history confessed decades later that El Cid was one of his favorite characters. In 1991, he fulfilled his wish by returning to the locations where his epic story was forged.
Today, 60 years later, Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar—El Cid—continues to fascinate us… and at the same time, stir up controversy. Proof of this is the recent release of a successful series based on his character. But who was El Cid, really?
To solve this and other mysteries, we’ve created a themed guided tour of the filming locations titled El Cid: Myth, History, and Cinema. A tour that won’t leave anyone indifferent.
