Arena is small village located at the heart of the
Axarquia mountains among olives, almond trees and
vines. Of Arabic origin, the village grew around Bentomiz
Caslte, remains of which are still visible, and its
architecture is typical, consisting of steep streets
of white, stepped houses, dominated by the Mudejar
church of Saint Catherine.
History
It was formerly known as Arenas del Rey, as, according
to local tradition, King Ferdinand the Catholic set
up camp here to prepare for the siege and conquest
of Velez-Malaga. Village, which still conserves part
of its original Arabic design, is known as El Arenal
- The Sands - , as the fine sands carried by the River
Seco were extracted from the area. Located north of
the hill on which Bentomiz Castle stands, the area’s
first human inhabitants must have settled in this
natural watchtower, 709 metres high, which overlooks
a large area of the Axarquia region and, to the south,
the coast. This fortress village was initially an
Iberian settlement. Phoenicians and Greeks left their
mark here. It was subsequently a Carthaginian military
site and, after the Punic Wars, a Roman village. The
Arabs rebuilt and extended the castle, turning it
into a magnificent fortress. The importance of this
defensive bastion was evidenced by a long chain of
historic events, the most significant of which was
probably its role in the conquest of Velez by Christian
troops on April 1487, when El Gibs, governor of Bentomiz
Castle, joined the army of the Catholic Monarchs against
the besieged town of Velez, making it impossible for
the reinforcements sent by the Nazari kingdom of Granada
to participate in its defence.. However, after the
conquest, the lives of the moriscos - Moslem converts
to Christianity - who stayed on in the area became
ever harder, eventually inciting them to rebel in
1569, an uprising which soon spread to the rest of
the Axarquia region, where the morisco community were
also discontented. After the rebellion was crushed,
the defeated moriscos suffered a variety of fates:
some were condemned to death, others imprisoned and
the rest expelled from the lands on which they had
lived for centuries. By the end of the 16th century,
the area which now lies within the boundaries of Arenas
was semi-abandoned; little by little, it was resettled
by Old Christians. The 19th century saw another military
confrontation which once again proved the strategic
importance of this location. When the Napoleonic invasion
and subsequent discontentment of the local population
triggered the War of Independence, French troops stationed
in Arenas were decimated in March 1812 by a guerrilla
unit led by the priest of Riogordo, an attack which
seriously undermined French military power. The village
and its municipal area were affected by the major
tremor known as the Andalusian Earthquake on Christmas
Eve 1884; extensive material damage was suffered.
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