In this way, the grounds of the old castle become the scene of the unfortunate love between Macías and Doña Elvira. It is the residents of Arjonilla themselves who, with costumes and implements of the time, are in charge of reliving the misfortune of the two lovers. Tradition has it that the young troubadour, originally from the Galician town of Padrón and in the service of the Marqués de Villena, fell madly in love with Doña Elvira, one of the ladies of the marchioness's entourage, and married to a nobleman from a nearby town. The lovers were discovered when trying to flee and he, imprisoned in the castle until the despised husband decided to end the romance by throwing a spear that pierced his heart. The fateful story served as the inspiration for two of the greats of Spanish literature, Lope de Vega and Mariano José de Larra in their works "Porfiar until dying" and "El doncel de don Enrique el Doliente", respectively.

There is evidence of the primitive Islamic castle of Arjonilla due to the excavations made in the complex. In fact, the works carried out in 1988 revealed at one end of the parade ground the foundations of an important square tower that could correspond to the original fortification. After the Christian conquest, the Order of Calatrava endowed the complex with a remarkable tower-door, in whose upper room tradition indicates that Macías el Enamorado was imprisoned and died. It is at this time, in addition, when the hermitage of Santa Catalina was built, converted over time into a castle chapel and in which, until the 17th century, the tomb of the young troubadour still existed.

The enclosure had seven sides, of which three are preserved in relative good condition, and a square tower, in which is the access door to the castle, known as the Roofed Tower.

In addition to the castle, Arjonilla offers the traveler other interesting places to visit that are part of its monumental heritage. This is the case of the church of La Encarnación, in Gothic style, its old houses with exposed brick, the House of the Court or the Old Town Hall, the latter of a mannerist style.