Logbook · 6 places

What to see and do in Azaila

What to see and do in Azaila (Bajo Martín, Teruel): 6 places across monuments, nature, activities and curiosities, with a photo and a Google Maps location.

1 Villages · 1 Nature · 1 Activities · 1 Curiosities · 2 Historical milestones

How far each place is from the centre of Azaila

Cabezo de Alcalá 1.3 km

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Spain › Aragon › Teruel › Bajo Martín › Azaila

What to see and do in Azaila

Azaila
Village
Azaila is a municipality in the comarca of Bajo Martín, in the province of Teruel, situated on the right bank of the río Aguasvivas, at 276 metres above sea level, with 94 inhabitants. In its municipal area lies the Iberian site of Cabezo de Alcalá, inhabited from the 7th century BC, first by people of Central European origin and later, once Iberised and Romanised, until its destruction around 76-72 BC during the Sertorian Wars. Near the settlement a Christian medieval necropolis is also preserved, together with the remains of a small fortress from the 13th to the 16th centuries. The place name, of Arabic origin, means 'the plain'; in 1196 King Pedro II granted the town to Gastón de Castellote.
Iberian Settlement of Azaila
Nature
The Iberian settlement of Azaila, known as Cabezo de Alcalá, was inhabited from the 9th century BC, when an acropolis of the urnfield culture occupied the hill. After being destroyed in the Punic Wars, Iberian peoples, probably the Sedetani, rebuilt the city, which grew to 3000 inhabitants and expanded beyond the acropolis with a commercial quarter and agricultural dwellings. It had defensive towers, a cistern holding 660,000 litres, Roman-style baths from the 1st-2nd centuries BC, and a temple with bronze elements. In 75 or 76 BC, Pompey's troops besieged and razed it, raising a ramp from the materials of the outer houses to storm the wall. Discovered in 1885 by Pablo Gil y Gil, it was excavated by Juan Cabré Aguiló between 1919 and 1944.
Cabezo de Alcalá
Curiosity
Archaeological site near Azaila, in the Teruel region of Bajo Martín, one of the most important in Aragón, with overlapping Iberian, Celtic and Roman remains. The acropolis, on a hill beside the Aguasvivas river, was settled by Celts of the Urnfield culture around the 9th century BC, and destroyed in the Punic Wars around the 3rd century BC; over its remains an Iberian settlement was rebuilt, probably Sedetani, with around 3000 inhabitants. It was razed around the year 75 BC by the troops of Pompey during the Sertorian Wars, who built a ramp using materials from the houses of the outskirts in order to take it. Discovered in 1885, it was excavated by Juan Cabré Aguiló between 1919 and 1944; it is declared a Bien de Interés Cultural (Spain's highest level of heritage protection).
Festivities of invierno de Azaila
Activity
Azaila lights the bonfire of San Antón on 17 January, one of the year's three patronal festivals alongside San Isidro in spring and Santiago and Santa Ana in summer.
Destruction of the Iberian city in the Sertorian Wars
Historical milestone
The settlement of the Cabezo de Alcalá, inhabited since the seventh century before Christ, was razed around the years 76 to 72 before Christ during the Sertorian wars. Some researchers put the destruction back to the year 49, after the battle of Ilerda.
Azaila in the hands of Gastón de Castellote
Historical milestone
In 1196 King Pedro II granted the villa to Gastón de Castellote. In the late fourteenth century it passed to Gastón de Rueda and in 1610 to Pedro de Lanuza, until around 1834 the place obtained its own town council with the liberal reform.