History - Torres de Albánchez
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).
In 1235 the town was conquered by the Knights of Santiago under the command of Master Pelay Pérez Correa and became part of the extensive Lordship of the Order based in Segura de la Sierra. The donation to the Order by Fernando III is dated in the same year in Malagón, on May 1.
After the conquest, the population moved from the Yedra castle to its current location, where the Christians built a walled enclosure in the fourteenth century. The enclosure was formed by the Torre del Homenaje, which still stands in the centre of the town, surrounded by a belt of walls built in the fifteenth century due to the great advances in artillery.
Torres de Albánchez experienced a rapid increase in population as witnessed by the foundation of a hospital in the town. The sixteenth century was a time of economic and social expansion for the town. In the middle of the century, Felipe II granted it the title of independent town of Segura, although it maintained its ties with the Encomienda until the nineteenth century.
In 1575 the Duke of Feria was commander of the town. Torres de Albánchez sent attorneys to the meetings called at the Monastery of Nuestra Señora de la Peña in Orcera on forest ordinances, whose purpose was to save, conserve and administer the mountains of Segura. In 1744 the Maritime Province of Segura de la Sierra was created, its mountains being occupied by the Ministry of the Navy whose headquarters and minister resided in Orcera.