Torres de Albanchez
Torres de Albánchez is situated within the Sierras de Cazorla, Segura y las Villas Natural Park where visitors can enjoy a very attractive mountain landscape, with a mix of olive groves, cereal crops, orchards and mountain areas. It has about 750 inhabitants.
HISTORY
The origin of Torres de Albánchez is in one of the numerous castle-fortresses that in Islamic times populated the Sierra de Segura de la Yedra, around which the villages scattered throughout its area gathered in times of danger. The lands that the town currently occupies belonged to the Iqlim of Saqura, initially dependent on the Cora of Yayyan (Jaén), and which since the eleventh century was an independent manor, although closely linked to the Cora of Tudmir (Murcia). More>
THINGS TO SEE
Torre del Homenaje
The imposing Torre del Homenaje is preserved in the town centre, built with masonry carved in small courses and with the corners reinforced by pieces of ashlar arranged with rope, as was common in the military constructions of the Commandery of Santiago in the first half of the fourteenth century. The outer enclosure, made up of a wall and four solid cubes that protect the corners, is an addition from the fifteenth century, already thinking about the necessities imposed by the recent improvement of artillery. Inside, its stone is more careful and is structured in three floors: on the lowest there is a cistern and in the upper ones its floor plan is divided by a central wall into two halves covered by pointed and very low barrel vaults. You ascend to the successive floors through an internal staircase that surrounds the tower. It is possible that it had a third floor of which only some traces remain. This keep of the old castle was declared a Site of Cultural Interest in 1985. Located in Plaza Iglesia.
Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Presentación
The parish church whose construction began to be built in the sixteenth century stands in the main square of the town. Its plan is rectangular, with a single nave divided into four sections that cover half-barrel vaults with pseudo-faxon arches. The choir is located high, at the foot, protected by a carved wooden railing. A central semicircular arch indicates access to the sacristy, located on the Gospel side. The head, with a square base, was added in the seventeenth century. The exterior is dominated by masonry, except for the buttresses. The façade is constructed of stonework from the sixteenth century and is framed by stylised columns on bases, crowned by Renaissance capitals, which support a moulding that acts as a cornice and separates it from the roof. The tower, built in the twentieth century, is the least valuable and is not integrated into the church complex. Located in Plaza Iglesia.
Arco del Mayorazgo
Stately mansions of cultural interest have been gradually lost in the town, such as the so-called Casa del Mayorazgo, located on a hillock on Calle Virgen del Campo, of which its Renaissance façade and characteristic ironwork have been preserved. The house dates to the second half of the sixteenth century. Inside it has a cave with a barrel vault for refuge during times of danger.
THINGS TO SEE OUTSIDE THE TOWN
Castillo de la Yedra
The primitive Torres de Albánchez is situated on a nearby mound defended by the Castillo de la Yedra, already demolished but of which some vestiges are preserved. It was conquered by the Christian troops of Fernando III, who ceded it in 1235 to the Order of Santiago. This ancient settlement still preserves remains of masonry walls, defensive structures and cisterns, excavated in the same rock, which were built at different times. Possibly its origin can be related to the settlement of a Hispano-Visigoth community, which after leaving the plains of the Guadalimar River between the fifth and seventh centuries, settled in this strategic point of the Sierra de Torres de Albánchez, defined by a very rugged orography which facilitated its defense. After the Muslim conquest, this settlement was used as a castle-refuge by the residents of various farmhouses or villages that inhabited the lowlands of the Guadalimar valley. However, once integrated into the lordship of the Order of Santiago, it entered into crisis, especially when the order itself favoured and promoted the development and settlement of another nucleus located in a less rugged area, the current Torres de Aláanchez, which was immediately endowed with a solid fortress. Declared a Site of Cultural Interest in 1985. Located north of the town.
Ermita Virgen del Campo
Oral tradition says that the Virgin appeared to a shepherd of the town, at the foot of an oak tree located in this very spot. Locals baptised her as the Virgen del Campo. In honour of that apparition, they erected this chapel, as recorded in a document dated in the town of Torres on December 6, 1575. The current chapel, dedicated to the veneration of the Virgen del Campo, was built in 1957, attached to an emblematic spring, one of which the town has been nourished by, La Fuente de La Ermita, for more than 400 years.
NATURAL AREAS
Sierras de Cazorla, Segura y Las Villas
With a total surface area of 209,920Ha and covering almost a fifth of Jaén province, this is Spain’s largest protected area and one of its most extensive forested zones. Located in eastern Jaen province, it connects the Sierra Morena and the Subbética mountain ranges. The highest peak in this immense park is Pico Empanada at 2,107m and the entire park is higher than 600m.
Recognising its exceptional ecological importance, it was designated a UNESCO biosphere reserve in 1983 and it was deemed a natural park in 1989. First impressions of the park may consist of barren rocky crests and vast pine forests, but the area’s botanical importance within Andalusia is matched only by the Sierra Nevada, with a fifth of the vascular plants in the Iberian peninsula being found in the Sierra de Cazorla Natural Park. It is also home to 51 species of mammals, 185 birds, 21 reptiles (including an endemic lizard), 12 amphibians, 11 fish and one of the highest number of butterfly species in the Iberian peninsula, with 112 varieties found here.
Fuentefría
The Fuentefría fountain is a water spring situated at the foot of Mount La Cuerda, west of the town, in the heart of the Cazorla, Segura and Las Villas Natural Park.
GASTRONOMY
Visitors to Torres de Albánchez can try traditional dishes such as ajo de harina con guiscanos (savoury porridge made with potato and wild ceps), migas de harina (fried breadcrumbs with sardines), andrajos (pasta stew), pipirrana (tomato and pepper salad served with boiled eggs, tuna or cod) and ajo atao (mashed potato). Sweet treats include hornazos (sweet pastry), flores (aniseed pastries) and panetes (sweet dumplings served with syrup).
BUS SERVICE
There is a bus service from Torres de Albánchez to Puente de Génave, Siles, Orcera, Sevilla, Puerta de Segura, Granada, Úbeda and Jaén. More>
FESTIVALS
Popular festivals in Torres de Albánchez are Fiestas de San Marcos, Romería de la Virgen del Campo, San Antón and Fiestas Patronales. More>
WEATHER FORECAST
The weather forecast for the next few days for Torres de Albánchez. More>
TOURIST OFFICE
The tourist office of Torres de Albánchez is located in the Town Hall. More>
NEARBY PLACES
The neighbouring villages to Torres de Albánchez are Siles, La Puerta de Segura and Villarrodrigo.