Village
Illueca is the capital of the comarca of Aranda, in the province of Zaragoza, situated in the Iberian System at 599 m above sea level, in a tectonic trough run through by the río Aranda and flanked by the sierras de la Virgen and de la Camamila. It is the birthplace of the only Aragonese pope, Benedict XIII, Pope Luna, born in 1328 as Pedro de Luna y Gotor, son of María Pérez de Gotor and Juan Martínez de Luna, a lineage that ruled the castle of Illueca from the mid-14th century until the second half of the 17th. During the Middle Ages Christian, Muslim and Jewish communities lived together in the town, the latter documented since 1424; the Jalón valley was one of the areas of the Kingdom of Aragón with the highest proportion of Islamic population. It has 2,782 inhabitants (INE 2025).
Monument
A Mudéjar fortress of the 14th and 15th centuries, the family residence and birthplace of Benedict XIII, the only Aragonese pope, declared a Monumento Nacional (Spain's heritage designation in force until 1931) in 1931.
Activity
The feast of Saints Crispin and Crispinian is celebrated in Illueca on 25 October in honour of the patrons of shoemakers, a trade that has been the town's main economic activity since the 1940s. The saint is carried in procession from one of the local shoe factories, and an offering made of shoes is presented to him, recalling the link between the shoe industry and the life of the town.
Activity
The theatrical tours of the Comarca del Aranda are organised in August around the castles of Illueca (Papa Luna), Jarque and Mesones, as well as the convent of Gotor, with characters recreating their history and legends up to the final appearance of Pope Benedicto XIII himself. An individual ticket costs 5 euros, with combined passes for several visits.
Monument
The church of San Juan Bautista, next to the Papa Luna castle-palace in Illueca, is the parish of the archpriesthood of Bajo Jalón. It is a Mudejar temple built in the mid-15th century, with a single nave divided into three bays, a pentagonal chevet and chapels between the buttresses, covered by simple ribbed vaults with diagonal ribs. At its foot stands a tower similar to that of Torralba de Ribota, with a spiral staircase giving access to the roofs and geometric decoration. In the 17th century the architect Juan de la Marca transformed it profoundly, reversing its original orientation and adding a transept at the entrance with Mudejar plasterwork.
Activity
Celebrations of San Antón, Carnaval, San Juan and Christmas shared by the municipalities of the comarca of Aranda.
Activity
The patronal festival of Illueca, next to the Papa Luna castle-palace, is celebrated on 24 January in honour of San Babil: its events include the somerondones, traditional circle songs danced hand in hand around a bonfire. The town's festive calendar is completed by the feast of San Juan on 24 June and, on 25 October, that of San Crispín and San Crispiniano, patrons of shoemakers, with a procession that sets out from a local shoe factory carrying an offering of shoes.
Activity
Illueca's winter festival is held in the town where Pedro Martínez de Luna, the Papa Luna, was born in 1328, elected pontiff in Avignon in 1394 and deposed by the Council of Constance in 1417; its Mudéjar castle-palace, declared a Monumento Nacional in 1931, was the residence of the Luna lineage, lords of the Aranda.
Monument
Centre devoted to the traditional culture of the comarca of Aranda.
Monument
Hermitage in the municipal district of Illueca, a town where the Luna lineage governed the barony from the 14th to the 17th century and built the Mudéjar castle-palace, declared a Monumento Nacional in 1931.
Nature
Illueca, capital of the comarca of the Aranda, sits in the valley of the river Aranda amid the surrounding mountains, 89 km southwest of Zaragoza. The municipality, known for the castle-palace of the Papa Luna, preserves caves, old hermitages and several natural viewpoints offering wide views of the valley.
Monument
Historic bridge over the River Aranda at Illueca.
Historical milestone
Pedro Martínez de Luna was born in Illueca in 1328. Elected pope in Avignon in 1394 during the Western Schism, he was deposed by the council of Constance in 1417 and took refuge in Peñíscola, where he died without ever renouncing his status as pontiff.
Historical milestone
The Luna lineage governed the barony of Illueca from the fourteenth century to the seventeenth, having inherited it by marriage, and came to hold the title of counts of Morata. Under their lordship the castle-palace and much of the township were built.
Food and drink
Viticulture has been the main woody crop of the district of Illueca, with plots of garnacha on the slopes and family cellars dug out for fermentation and ageing. The wine was consumed in the valley itself and accompanied the festive meals.