History
The oldest evidenced occupation of the municipal area dates back to somewhere between 2000 and 2500 BC, and can be traced in the Cueva de Aro. Further prehistoric references can be found on the hill of the Torre de la Cabeza, where remains from the Copper, Bronze, Iberian, Roman and Medieval periods have been unearthed. The first written reference to a population in Pegalajar is found in the tenth-century work of oriental geographer Al Muqadasi. The name Pegalajar is thought to have evolved from “Peña de la Vega”, referring to the orchards that stretch away from the town.
The human occupation of Pegalajar dates to prehistory. Although systematic archaeological studies have not yet been carried out, findings and research works allow a broad understanding of the area’s prehistory. Local cave art, registered as an Asset of Cultural Interest by the Andalusian Ministry of Culture, has characteristics typical of the schematic style; the red and brown colours, obtained from iron oxides, reveal various painting techniques including fine brushes and fingers. Although it is difficult to determine the exact motivation behind this art, it serves as a crucial connecting rod to prehistory. The paintings likely date from somewhere between the sixth and third millenniums BC, suggesting human occupation from at least the Advanced Ancient Neolithic period, through the Copper Age, marked by burial rituals.
During Roman times, many small rural settlements, factories and small villas of an agro-livestock nature were distributed throughout Pegalajar. In Puerto Alto, there are remains of a Roman habitat and necropolis, located along a route between Granada and the Loma de Úbeda.
In 1975, four milestones (miliarium) were discovered in La Cerradura, marking an important Roman road used for trade and communication through the Subbética mountain range. In the late Roman-Visigoth period, the many isolated Roman farmhouses in the area began to disappear.
The Muslim occupation in Pegalajar likely began around the natural fortress of Peña de los Buitres. In the Emiral period (9th–10th centuries), the high-altitude settlement near Peña de los Buitres became a hisn (fortified refuge) for the nearby population. This hisn and its farmhouses were part of the Iqlim of Mantisa (La Guardia de Jaén), an area where uprisings occurred during the Umayyad Emirate. In 913, ‘Abd al-Rahman III subdued these rebellions, likely leading to the abandonment of the Peña de los Buitres refuge. A new fortress area around La Peñuela was developed as the current Pegalajar, forming part of the Cora de Yayyan's (Jaén's) defensive line, including La Guardia, Cambil, and Huelma.
At this time, an important irrigation area was developed in the plain of the Fuente de la Reja or Fuente Vieja and in the Guadalbullón River, giving rise to plentiful cultivation of crops. A reservoir and network of ditches, and likely an artificial pond that collected the water from the spring, fed water to the flour mills, serving the needs of oil producers, and to the orchards.
Between 1225 and 1246, Ferdinand III’s Christian troops laid repeated siege to the city of Jaén and the surrounding Granada plain, capturing numerous fortresses and castles, including the Alcázar de Pegalhaiar in 1244, where Fernando himself stayed for two nights. In 1246, the city of Jaén was finally capitulated by the King of Granada, along with the castles and fortresses that surrounded it, including Pegalajar.
After 1246, Pegalajar’s proximity to the Muslim Kingdom of Granada made it a fundamental defender of the city of Jaén. Whilst the conquest of Granada in 1492 diminished the strategic importance of the castle, it maintained its economic value because of the orchards and olive trees at the foot of the fortress.
The population growth that took place in the Kingdom of Jaén in the sixteenth century also influenced Pegalajar, which, with 284 residents, began to seek legal independence from Jaén. Led by Luis García de Bailén, residents petitioned King Felipe II, who agreed to grant Pegalajar a royal privilege for civil and criminal independence in exchange for a payment per resident. This was calculated meticulously by Judge Álvaro de Paz, who conducted a detailed census of the town to determine the final cost that should be paid to the crown. In 1559, the town achieved its independence for the cost of 2,550,000 maravedis. The first mayors were Alonso Rodríguez Talavera and Juan Gómez de Herrera.