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History of Castellar de la Frontera |
Castellar de la Frontera is comprised of three urban nuclei: the old and the new, both of which share the same name but are found in different areas, in addition to the Barriada Almoraima. The old settlement is constructed on the summit of a hill at 248 metres above sea level, from where one can make out new Castellar, which is located in the lower area of the town and is the result of colonial development.
Castellar’s strategic and commercial value was confirmed by the different settlements which reached the Region of Gibraltar throughout history, despite the fact that no population nucleus is actually recorded until the arrival of the Muslims. At this point it was known as Al-Qasr.
During the 13th and 14th Centuries there would be various attempts to conquer Al-Qars and on at least three occasions it would become part of the Christian empire (1255, 1434 y 1450) only to be lost back into the hands of the Muslims. The fall of the Kingdom of Granada in 1492 marked the definitive inclusion of Castellar under the Castilian monarchy.
In 1434 following its conquest by Juan de Saavedra, governor of Jimena, a series of privileges were received from the monarchy which culminated in Castellar being placed under noble rule, dependent on its proprietors, the conqueror’s inheritors, known as the Counts of Castellar since 1539.
Castellar’s economy is based on agriculture, using techniques inherited from the Moors which remain popular in the village to the present day, mainly with regard to the cultivation of crops, woodland exploitation and livestock.
An important event characterised the 17th Century, namely the expulsion of the Moors in 1609, whose disappearance seriously damaged the municipality’s social and economic status. In the 18th Century the inhabitants of Castellar would assist in the reclaiming of Gibraltar through the provision of food and troops.
The small village of Castellar which had found itself unable to grow due to the fortification of its urban perimeter was to experience an improvement in the quality of life of its two hundred odd inhabitants, as a result of the division of land between day labourers and ploughmen in addition to the widespread repair of paths and streets.
The arrival of the 20th Century brought light, water, the telephone and the telegraph in the thirties. However, the day labourers’ struggle to improve their working conditions was to continue. Following the difficulties of the Civil War and post-war years the people of Castellar moved to new Castellar, constructed on lands expropriated from the Casa de Medinacelli, the village’s last nobles. The town was inaugurated on the 26th of July 1971.
Districts: Barriada Almoraima.