Founded on a peninsula facing the Bay of Alghero early in the 12th century, and taken from the Genoese Dorias by the Aragonese in 1353, Alghero was peopled by settlers from Barcelona and Valencia.
Its original occupants, Ligurians and Sardinians, were expelled with such thoroughness that today the Catalan language and culture is enjoyning a revival and the look of old Alghero is consistently Spanish.
Filled with labyrinthine alleys and cobbled streets, the lively port of old alghero is flanked by battlemented walls and defensive towers on all but the landward section.
Facing the Giardino Pubblico is the massive 16th century Torre di Porta Terra, also known as the Jewish Tower after its builders.