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Ávila de los Caballeros (Latin: Abila and Óbila) is a town in the south of Old Castile, the capital of the province of the same name, now part of the autonomous community of Castile and León, Spain

The medieval city walls of Ávila, constructed of brown granite in 1090, and surmounted by a breastwork, with eighty-eight towers and nine gateways, are still in excellent repair; but a large part of the city lies beyond their circuit. Ávila is the seat of a bishop and contains several ecclesiastical buildings of high interest. The Gothic cathedral, built between the 12th and 14th centuries, has the appearance of a fortress, with embattled walls and two solid towers. It contains many interesting sculptures and paintings, besides one especially fine silver pyx, the work of Juan de Arphe, dating from 1571.


Alcázar's gateThe churches of San Vicente, San Pedro and San Segundo are, in their main features, Romanesque of the 12th century. In the Gothic Monastery of Santo Tomás, erected by the Catholic Queen Isabella in 1482, is especially noteworthy the marble monument, carved by the 15th-century Florentine sculptor Domenico Fancelli, over the tomb of Prince John, the only son of Ferdinand and Isabella.

The town is renowned for Teresa of Ávila, the Carmelite reformer who lived there. Another prominent native was Tomás Luis de Victoria. The convent and church of Santa Teresa mark the supposed birthplace of the saint whose name they bear (c. 1515-1582). Avila also possesses an old castle (alcazar). From 1482 to 1807 it was also the seat of a university