Villaralto

Villaralto, Spain
city
Flag Seal
Country	Spain
Province	Córdoba
Municipality	Villaralto
Area
• Total	23 km2 (9 sq mi)
Elevation	585 m (1,919 ft)
Population  (2018)
• Total	1,154
• Density	50/km2 (130/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)

Villaralto is located in the province of Córdoba, Spain. According to the 2006 census (INE), the town had a population of 1350 inhabitants. Its area covers 24.07 km² and has a population density of 49.69 inhabitants per km². Its geographical coordinates are 38º 27' N, 4º 59' W and is located at an altitude of 585 metres and 80 kilometres from the provincial capital, Cordoba.

Villaralto is a municipality bordering El Viso, Hinojosa del Duque, Alcaracejos, Dos Torres and Villanueva del Duque. Its most emblematic building is in the parish of San Pedro Apóstol, with three naves and an 18th century tower. The best known festival is the pilgrimage of the Divine Pastora that takes place on the riverbanks of the Guadamatilla on the first Sunday in May. The economy is based on livestock, agriculture, some industry and various commercial establishments.

History

Prehistory and Antiquity

The town has several prehistoric, Roman, Arab and Visigoth settlements. Among the archaeological sites include the Rincon de Berrocoso, located to the northwest, where there are the remains of what is presumed to be a Roman camp or a Roman secondary road. There is an abundance of slate slabs, mineral slags, remains of pots and an Arabic silver coin that have been found in the town. The Ladrillar is an old lead mine, evidenced by the discovery of mineral slags from said metal. In Laguna del Prieto three millwheels with a radius of around 25 centimetres have been discovered and are now preserved in the City Hall. In Cerrocampo there are mineral slags and remains of pots, from an old settlements associated with copper or lead mining. However, the most noteworthy place is the so-called Casa de la Mora, located southeast of the town, in which there was a Roman villa, later occupied by the Arabs, linked with mining activity. Here the findings have been abundant, including the discovery of a treasure trove full of silver coins and a large number of Roman copper coins. Nowadays there are many fragments of ceramics, Roman tiles, mineral slags, etc. There are even remnants of a wall of lime and flint that must have belonged to an Arab construction. This site was the subject of an official visit of archaeologists in March 1985. In Villaralto there are also a large number of Visigoth granite sarcophagi, with a trapezoidal or anthropomorphic shape, which have been moved from their original location and have been used as drinking troughs for cattle. For this reason, most of them are close to wells, such as the three sarcophagi at Pozo de las Cadenas, Pozo de las Cinco Pilas, and Pozo de la Laguna de la Torrica, up to a total of about 20. They are mostly eroded and worn. There are also infant sarcophagi, one of which is preserved and has also been used in the same way. Many of them have disappeared as a result of pillaging and lack of interest in preserving them when various renovations have taken place in their locations.

Middle Ages and Modern History

The history of Villaralto as it is now known comes much later. The first document that refers to the town of Villaralto is from the year 1424 (at that time having some 3000 inhabitants) in which Juan Ruiz de Santofimia was eager to incorporate it into the Señorío de Santa Eufemia, an act that was unsuccessful. Villaralto emerged in the fifteenth century as a dependent village of Torremilano (now Dos Torres), belonging to the seven towns of Los Pedroches, a region that also incorporated Pozoblanco, Añora, Alcaracejos, Villanueva de Córdoba, Pedroche and Torrecampo. Los Pedroches was under royal jurisdiction in which the territory of all of them was shared and governed communally until the partition in the nineteenth century. In Villaralto, residents from that town are installed to closely monitor payments for vineyards and cattle. According to census information issued by the Diocese of Córdoba in 1587, Villaralto had 83 inhabitants and one font. Villaralto's dependency on Torremilano remained until 1633. On July 28, 1633, Villaralto was sold by King Felipe IV to Don Melchor Fernández Carreras, archdeacon of the Pedroches and Canon of Córdoba Cathedral (who had to first obtain a certificate of blood purity). The assigned price was 1,632,000 silver maravedis. On September 17, 1633, the first census of inhabitants of Villaralto is carried out, indicating the start of a municipal boundary. This gave rise to a serious and long dispute with Torremilano, who opposed the independence of Villaralto and were resistant to allowing the new town. Despite all the impediments, Melchor Fernández Carreras takes possession of the town on September 15 in the same year, thus constituting a new administrative entity, the Señorío de Villaralto, which remains until the abolition of the jurisdictional lordships in 1837. Torremilano sends a letter to the King and Queen of Spain claiming that Villaralto de Torremilano was not independent, and even less a boundary of the Seven Towns since according to the letter, the assigned boundary entered into the pasture of Peña Alta (communal lands of the Seven Towns). On December 20, 1638, the judges ruled in favour of Villaralto in whose documents Villaralto's independence was recognized and its own boundary permanently set while urging the Señorío de Villaralto to pay the sale of the town. In 1771, the town of Villaralto receives letters from the Treasury in which they urge payment of the taxes appropriate to the town as an independent for the first time amounting to 1,770 maravedis. Despite the confrontation with Torremilano, both peoples maintained communication, as evidenced by documents on various subjects: fines, taxes, communications, etc. Even Villaralto, in the distribution of goods produced by the communal lands of the Seven Towns, received part of them, though it was not yet established as a municipal town. This irritates Torremilano who continually denounces Villaralto for using the Public Property of the Seven Towns (extensive estates such as Navas del Emperador or the estate of la Jara) for livestock exploitation and, above all, for the limits of the municipality of Villaralto, with which Torremilano did not agree. These disputes continue throughout the 18th century. With regard to the economy, in 1752 Villaralto had 5 textile mills and two factories, one of baize and one of cloths.

Recent History

In 1812, the town's records show the following: 179 head of cattle, 156 sows, 555 goats and 148 mules among others. It has 259 top quality bushels for crops, second 631 and has 186 houses. In 1876, Villaralto had a population of 1853. There are many gaps in the history of this town due to the destruction of records in the Spanish Civil War. Information regarding Francoism and democracy, however, is preserved.

External links

• Villaralto - Sistema de Información Multiterritorial de Andalucía