History of Iznatoraf
Together with Villacarrillo, Villanueva del Arzobispo and Sorihuela del Guadalimar, Iznatoraf is one of the “four towns” that give their name to the mountains in the area. The settlement is estimated to date back to the third millennium BC, once serving as a control post of the road to the mining areas of the Sierra Morena. Human presence continued until the Iberian period in the form of a small watchtower, but no Roman remains appear, leading archeologists to assume that the area was deserted during that era.
The current name is of Arabic origin and alludes to its eleventh-century wall, which reinforces the hill occupied by the population. As in other cases in the province, it was not conquered by arms, but by the negotiations of Fernando III, who agreed with the inhabitants to abandon the fortress. Once repopulated, Iznatoraf was granted the jurisdiction of Cuenca. The town was therefore distinguished by its lands being declared as Royal rather than ceded to any Lord, military Order, or the Church.
In 1252, Alfonso X ceded the town to the Archbishopric of Toledo, which turned Iznatoraf, together with Cazorla and Quesada, into one of the first towns of the Cazorla Overtaking. With the advance of the Re-conquest, its position lost importance from the military point of view, but it gained strength as an economic centre, to such an extent that the population soon overflowed its walls and settled on the plain.
Surrounding towns started to grow, including La Moraleja (Villanueva del Arzobispo) in 1396. In 1450, Archbishop Alfonso Carrillo made the Tower of Mingo Priego independent, which took its name, Villacarrillo. The Archbishopric of Toledo reinforced its walls and built a castle, which has since disappeared because its function was more residential than defensive. In the sixteenth century, Iznatoraf was already the Head of the Archpriesthood and the construction of the Iglesia de la Asunción began. From that time, the history of Iznatoraf becomes that of an agricultural village, in particular its oil production in the mid-nineteenth century.