Órgiva History
Órgiva has been identified as the Greek colony of Exoche, mentioned by the geographer Ptolemy. The first written references to the town appear in the writings of al-Udri (11th century) and al-Idrisi (12th century), with the names yuz Aryuba and hisn Órgiva, respectively, as an administrative district and castle of the Cora de Elvira.
During the Nasrid period, it was the seat of a Taha and took the name of Albastch, which means "plain", and for several centuries it was called Albacete de Órgiva.
In 1492, the town was ceded by the Catholic Monarchs to Boabdil as a place of retreat, then it became the domain of the Great Captain, and finally it passed through the lordships of the Duke of Sessa, the Córdoba and Ayala families, the Marquis of Valenzuela and the Counts of Sástago, the latter of whom built a palace that served as a defence during the Rebellion of Las Alpujarras (1499-1501) and the Rebellion of Las Alpujarras (1568-1571).
It has been the capital of the region since 1839, by order of Queen Isabel II. During the Spanish Civil War, Órgiva suffered one of the most tragic events, as it is the site of a mass grave with the largest number of victims in Andalusia and probably the second largest in Spain, after that of the Valley of the Fallen, that of the Barranco del Carrizal, with around 5,000 victims, and is covered by the law of democratic history.