The French have Versailles. The British, Buckingham Palace. And Spaniards, the Alhambra.

Not to be left out, New Yorkers have a castle of their own, too. Maybe not as grand or lavish or old. But still revered.

Belvedere Castle has risen above the meadows and woods of Central Park since 1872, like an aging sentry keeping watch over a swathe of Manhattan’s grandest and most coveted real estate. It was built not for royalty — there are no Belvedere aristocrats — but for anyone with the energy to climb up a rocky summit that is the second highest in the park.

Now, this fairy-tale lookout point has been restored to its original luster.

It reopened to the public recently after a $12-million, 15-month renovation by the Central Park Conservancy, which included rebuilding a wooden tower, replacing worn stones and opening up views that had been partially blocked by cloudy window panes and decorative grillwork.

The main selling point of the Belvedere — which means “beautiful view” in Italian — is its three layers of terraces, one higher than the next. The castle itself, totaling just 1,820 square feet, is really more of a mini castle. In fact, it did not even have doors or window panes in the beginning.