TurismoCG - La Web de Turismo del Campo de Gibraltar

Plaza Alta: 1807, redeveloped in 1930:

Built on the initiative of General Castañas, the square is paved throughout. It had eight entrances, each of them with large Etruscan urns bearing streetlamps. An equal number of benches were spread about the square. In the centre an obelisk was erected. Construction began on the 22nd February 1807 and it was inaugurated on the 12th May of the same year. During the 19th Century it underwent very few alterations to its structure or surroundings, not changing significantly until 1918 and 1926, when the obelisk was demolished and replaced by a redbrick-based streetlamp. The increase in vehicular traffic made it necessary to widen the adjacent streets and, as mayor, D. Emilio Morilla Salinas undertook the complete redevelopment of the square, replacing the old ceramic balustrade with an iron one. Since it was built the square has had various names:"Del Almirante", "De la Constitución", "De la República", etc…

"Ingeniero Torroja" Food Market 1935:

The original food market was to be found on calle Panadería, but it was moved to calle Sacramento in 1818. In 1821 work began on the marketplace’s stone stands, which were completed in earnest in 1827. Pitches were granted free of charge to anyone who applied for one. In 1928 an agreement was drawn up for the construction of a new market at a different site to today’s, but works were suspended in 1931. Construction began for the current market, designed by the engineer Eduardo Torroja, completed in 1935. A gigantic vault held up without the help of interior supports was an innovation that brought great fame to the market.

Iglesia Parroquial de Nuestra Señora de la Palma, 18th Century:

Alfonso XI conquered Algeciras on 28th March 1344 and ordered the consecration of the Great Mosque (Mezquita Mayor), devoting it to Santa Maria de La Palma. In the same year the diocese of Algeciras was created by order of Clement VI, endowing the church with a number of canons. Thus the old mosque was made into a cathedral.

Following the destruction of the city the Algeciras cathedral ceased to exist in 1369. With the arrival of Gibraltarian settlers however, the need arose for the construction of a new temple, and episcopal authorisation was granted in 1723. The cathedral was completed in 1736 and like the previous church it was dedicated to Nuestra Señora de la Palma. Its consecration was carried out in 1829 by the Bishop of Cadiz.

In 1931 it was sacked and pillaged and the Image of the Virgin suffered serious damage. The church was able to return to worship in 1934 following its restoration.

Capilla de Nuestra Señora de Europa, 18th Century:

In 1690 the building of a chapel at the Gálvez country estate was authorised and it was dedicated to San Bernardo. Following the loss of Gibraltar, the Image of Nuestra Señora de Europa was moved to this chapel.

The Lisbon earthquake of 1755 badly damaged the building. It was rebuilt around 1770 with its current form.

In 1864 the original Image of the Virgin was returned to Gibraltar and a replica remains in its place.

In 1936 the chapel was sold, but it was recovered in 1943 and restoration work began in 1947. An attached building collapsed, opening up a side door. The Brotherhood of Santo Cristo de la Columna was founded in 1954.

Subsequently, a bell was donated to the church bearing the names "Salud" and "José" as an inscription.

Its regrettable state of deterioration meant that extensive restoration work had to be carried out in the 1980s

Image: Capilla de Nuestra Señora de Europa

Murallas Meriníes, 13th - 14th Century.

Between April and October 1998 a section of the fortified grounds of the Villa Nueva was excavated. The fortification, known as al-Binya in Arabic sources, was built by the emir of the Benimerin, Abu-Yusuf-Yaqub between 1279 and 1285.

In the course of archaeological intervention 150m of the walls have been unearthed along with four flanking towers, the same length of barbican, a works pit, and the complex entrance system for the Gates of Gibraltar consisting of a large tower surrounded by the moat, which is accessed by a stone bridge and contains two baileys and three interior openings or gates. The bridge is one of the most impressive examples found in al-Andalus and, together with the walls, an example of the strength and impregnability of the Algeciran defences of the 13th and 14th Centuries. Proof of such is in the failed sieges by the kings of Castile Alfonso X and Fernando IV, as well as the long and terrible assault on the city from 1342 to 1344, in which king Alfonso XI was at no point able to breach the defences.

Currently the site is being fitted out in order to make it into an Archaeological Park, constituting, without doubt, what is currently Algeciras' most important monument.

Image: Yacimiento.

Capilla del Santo Cristo de la Alameda. .

Built in 1776 and dedicated to the Cristo de la Misericordia, this oratory was known popularly as "de la Alameda" due to its location on the street of that name. The chapel is greatly revered, particularly among seafaring people.

Neoclassical in style with an element of the Baroque, it consists of a single almost square-shaped floor, annexed by a chapel roofed with a dome perching on sea-shells. Outside the main façade gives on to one street and has two sections. The second section belongs to the belfry.

Following a process of reformation, the oratory houses the Museo Municipal de Arte Sacro.

Hospital de la Caridad and Capilla de San Antón. .

A prominent example of Algeciras civil architecture built between 1748 and 1768. It has a central courtyard and a large staircase giving access to the upper galleries.

The building is currently the seat of the Fundación Municipal de Cultura "José Luis Cano".

The building is annexed by a chapel known commonly as Capilla de San Antón, which was inaugurated in 1754.

The chapel’s exterior is characteristic of Algeciran religious architecture, composed of a façade flanked by two pilasters and finished off with an oculus and a belfry. Inside there is a single nave with a choir stall at its base. At its head there is a Baroque altarpiece that enthrones the Virgen del Carmen, greatly revered in the city.

Image : Capilla de San Antón

Casa Consistorial.

Built between 1887 and 1897 and designed by the architect Amadeo Rodríguez. The Casa Consistorial (City Hall) is in the style of eclectic architecture, so-called due to the incorporation in its façade of decorative elements from various historical styles.

The building has exterior walls on three streets and two floors with broad windows. Standing out on the façade facing the central street are the windows to the Salón de Plenos (assembly hall) with "Casa Consistorial" inscribed above and crowned with the coat of arms of the city.

The interior is accessed by crossing a hallway that opens up to a central courtyard surrounded by the municipal offices. A wide staircase leads to the upper floor, the highlight of which is the Salón de Plenos where the Conferencia Internacional sobre Marruecos (The International Conference on Morrocco) took place in 1906. The hall was remodelled in 1930, covering the walls in Seville style tiling which illustrate places and events of the city, such as Algeciras viewed from the Arcos del Cobre, a view of the La Miel river, La Chorrera, Plaza Alta and a session from the Conferencia Internacional sobre Marruecos.

A clock has recently been incorporated into the façade in accordance with the original design for the building.

Image: Casa Consistorial

Hotel Reina Cristina and around. .

Inaugurated in 1902, the hotel was used as lodging for the delegations from countries that took part in the Conference of 1906. It is an example of architecture of English influence as are other nearby buildings such as the Conservatorio Paco de Lucia (Paco de Lucia Music Academy) or the Cruz Blanca (White Cross) and the Villa Smith. These buildings and their gardens are now used by departments of the Mancomunidad de Municipios del Campo de Gibraltar (the Municipal Community Association for the Campo de Gibraltar region), the Museo Histórico Municipal (Municipal Museum of History) and Parque Municipal de Las Acacias (the Acacias Municipal Park).

Image: Conservatorio de Música "Paco de Lucía".

Plaza de Toros de “Las Palomas”.

When the Feria was moved to its current site, in front of the "La Reconquista" district, in order to maintain the traditional harmony between the Real and the bull ring, it was decided that a new one would be built. Work on the new bull ring began in 1966 and it was inaugurated on 14th June 1969, replacing the now non-existent Plaza de la Perseverancia from 1866.

Image: Plaza  de Toros de "Las Palomas" 

Baños Meriníes (13th and 14th Century).

The Baños Reales de al-Binya (the Royal Baths of al-Binya) and the palatial Merin city of Algeciras were constructed by the emir Abu-Yusuf-Yaqub between 1279 and 1285.

Part of the structure was still standing in 1724 and was illustrated in the plans of the Algeciran Arabic ruins, commissioned by military engineer Jorge Próspero de Verboon. They were situated at the confluence of Regino Martínez and Rocha streets. In 1999 the Excmo. Ayuntamiento de Algeciras (Algeciras City Council) moved the remains of the hamman (or baths) to the Parque María Cristina (María Cristina Park), where they were restored with the addition of a replica waterwheel to retrieve water from the well.

Image: Replica de la Noria

Museo Municipal.

The Museo Municipal de Algeciras (The Algeciras Municipal Museum) is situated in the area of the city known as La Villa Vieja (The Old Villa), next to Parque de Las Acacias and at the confluence of Ortega and Gasset y Goya streets.

The building is a large late 19th Century house, known by the name of "Casa de los Guardeses". Its interior was completely renovated in 1995 to so that it could fulfil its new function as a museum.

The museum is on two floors. The lower floor has four galleries and the upper floor has three. On the lower floor artefacts, information panels and scale models relating to the prehistoric, ancient and medieval periods are exhibited.

The upper floor contains artefacts related to historical events that occurred in Algeciras and it’s Bay from the 17th to the 20th Century.

Image: Museo Municipal

Monumento al Escopetero de Getares.

The Escopeteros de Getares (The Getares Riflemen) unit was created in 1705 on the initiative of the Marqués de Villadarias. They were a hybrid unit of militia and police, given that there function as armed militia was combined with guarding the coast and counteracting contraband and banditry. Their area of activity covered the coastline of the Algeciras Bay and the shores of the Straights from Estepona to Tarifa.

During the Peninsular War (know as the War of Independence in Spain) they went into action from their base at Getares beach, under orders from General Ballesteros, opposing the occupation of the area by French troops.

Acueducto de Los Arcos del Cobre (1784).

The aqueduct is a work of hydraulic engineering from 1784 that was carried out as part of the urban devolvement plans from the time of Carlos III. It crosses the districts of El Cobre and La Bajadilla and channels the water from the Cobre Sierras to different fountains located within the city (Fuente Nueva, Plaza Alta, Plaza Baja and La Marina).