|
This village enjoys a privileged location in the Guadalhorce
Valley, which it overlooks from the north, standing
atop a small hill. As well as its vegetable gardens,
orchards and citrus trees, it also boasts interesting
areas nearby, such as Los Gaitanes Pass - which it
shares with Ardales and Antequera - , La Sierra de
Huma and La Sierra de Aguas. Its urban layout, of
Arabic origin, gives it a special charm, which must
be enjoyed without haste, due to the steep nature
of its streets, which lead up to the symbol of the
village: the castle, made even more curious by the
fact that it is now used as a cemetery.
The highlight of Alora’s buildings
is La Iglesia de Nuestra Señora.
History
Within the town boundary, at a spot known as Hoyo
del Conde, prehistoric remains are to be found. Turdetans
and, later, the Phoenicians found the Guadalhorce
Valley the ideal place to set up colonies to exploit
the natural riches of the plains which would also
become strategic locations on the natural routes leading
inland. The foundations of Alora Castle were laid
by Phoenician settlers. In Roman times, it was known
as Iluro, while the Arabs called it Alura. Alora was
an important Roman town between 81 andl 96 A.D., as
witnessed by the archaeological remains found here
pertaining to the period, particularly a monolith
-which today stands in the patio of the parish church-
from the time of the emperor Domicianus, on which
the words "Municipium Iluritanum" can be
read. The town, linked to the Roman region of Betica,
was, according to the historian Columela, an important
trading centre for wheat, barley, honey, wine and
oil, all easily obtained from the area’s land;
its prosperity was such that Alora even minted its
own coins. It was conquered by the Vandals in the
5th century. Remains from the Visigoth period can
be found in the fortress located atop Las Torres mount.
During the Moslem occupation, its privileged strategic
location -the castle overlooks the whole of the Malaga
basin- it was besieged by the Christian kings on numerous
occasions. Alfonso VIII attacked in 1184. In 1319,
Alfonso XI also tried to conquer the town. Later,
John II, 1434, and Enrique IV, 1455 also attempted
its capture. It must also have played a key role in
the 11th century rebellion led by the muladi - Christian
convert to Islam - chief Omar Ben Hafsun against the
Caliphate of Cordoba, due to its proximity to Bobastro,
where Omar gathered his forces. Its reputation as
an impregnable fortress gave rise to one of the most
beautiful of the frontier ballads: the Ballad of Alora,
which refers to the town as “the well besieged"
and which can be seen reproduced on a tablet embedded
in the castle walls. The town finally fell into Christian
hands on 10 June 1484. The attacking troops, who bore
the banner of the Catholic Monarchs, were led by Captain
Don Luis Fernandez Portocarrero. After the Christian
conquest, the town’s inhabitants continued to
live inside the fortress, and the original parish
church, now the cemetery chapel, was built on the
foundations of a former mosque. With the passage of
time, the town began to spread to the foot of the
hill. A decree issued by Philip IV in 1628 saw Alora
cease to belong to the city of Malaga "for evermore",
according to the exact wording of the document. An
earthquake left the original church in ruins in 1680,
as well as destroying the older districts of the town.
The Castle, witness to so many deaths in attempts
to capture and defend it, later became the town cemetery. Back to: malaga
car rental spain
|
