Village
Municipality of the comarca of Sierra Morena, in the province of Ciudad Real, documented around 1157 as Viso del Puerto in the chronicles of Alfonso VII for its commanding position over the natural pass between La Mancha and Andalusia, traffic it lost when between 1767 and 1785 the royal road was traced anew through Despeñaperros. Its greatest monument is the Renaissance palace that the admiral Álvaro de Bazán, marquess of Santa Cruz and sailor of Lepanto, built between 1574 and 1588, declared a Monumento Nacional (Spain's heritage designation in force until 1931) in 1931 and covered in Italian Mannerist frescoes with mythological scenes and naval battles; it also preserves the church of la Asunción, of the fifteenth century, with a restored Flemish altarpiece.
Monument
The palace of the Marquis of Santa Cruz, built between 1574 and 1588 by the admiral Álvaro de Bazán, served as a residence midway between Madrid, seat of the court, and Seville, where he used to keep anchored the Armada of which he was admiral under Philip II. It came close to being destroyed by Austracist troops during the War of the Spanish Succession and suffered damage in the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, which brought down the ceiling of the hall where the fresco of the Battle of Lepanto had been painted and knocked the tops off its four towers; the French razed it during the Peninsular War and it went on to serve as a granary, school, stable, prison and hospital. Declared a Monumento Nacional (a historic heritage designation, predecessor of today's Bien de Interés Cultural) in 1931, it has been leased since 1948 to the Armada, which uses it as the General Archive of the Navy.
Monument
The Archivo General de la Marina Álvaro de Bazán is housed in the palace of the Marquis of Santa Cruz, in Viso del Marqués, and has held, since the 20th century, records of the Spanish Armada dating mostly from the 18th to the 20th century, with some holdings predating 1784: personnel files, ships, arsenals, factories, naval academies, maritime mail, submarines, artillery, aeronautics and fishing licences. It is a state-owned archive managed by the Ministry of Defence. The palace has been leased to the Armada since 1949 by its owners, the marquises of Santa Cruz, for a symbolic price: one period one-peseta note a year. In 1985 a documentary guide to the archive was published, its bundles of records being made available to researchers.
Monument
A 15th-century church in transition from Gothic to Renaissance style, dedicated to the Assumption of Our Lady, with a single nave offset from the chancel because it was built over an earlier structure. It preserves a restored Flemish altarpiece depicting the Crucifixion and sculpted motifs representing a wild boar hunt; among the curiosities kept in the church is a stuffed crocodile, already mentioned in Pascual Madoz's Diccionario geográfico.
Curiosity
A stuffed Nile crocodile some five metres long hangs in the parish church, brought back by the marquis Álvaro de Bazán. Local people popularly call it el lagarto del Viso, the Viso lizard.
Monument
A local museum with collections of Palaeozoic fossils (trilobites, corals, ferns), minerals, butterflies and zoological and botanical pieces. It also organises mycological exhibitions and field outings.
Monument
The burial niches of don Alonso de Bazán and doña María de Figueroa, designed in 1612 by Fray Alberto de la Madre de Dios. They come from a vanished convent and are preserved in the palace gardens.
Nature
A mountain chain in the south-west of the municipal district rising above 1,200 metres, covered in Mediterranean scrub. It forms part of the range that links up with Sierra Madrona.
Nature
A body of water on the Fresneda river, also called the Jorge, surrounded by dehesas and holm oak woods, which serves as a refuge for waterfowl and raptors from the Sierra Morena area. The reservoir lies in the north of the municipal area of Viso del Marqués, in the transition zone towards Campo de Calatrava, the least mountainous part of the municipality.
Curiosity
Micaela de Luján was born in Viso, an actress of the Golden Age and the companion of Lope de Vega between 1599 and 1608, whom the playwright celebrated under the pen names Camila Lucinda and Luscinda.
Curiosity
The town was called Viso del Puerto in the medieval chronicles of Alfonso VII. It came to be known as Viso del Marqués after the creation in 1611 of the title of Marquis of Viso for Álvaro de Bazán y Manrique de Lara.
Activity
The patronal fair and festivities in honour of Santiago Apóstol, held without a break since the early 20th century, with several days of celebrations and night-time events.
Activity
A celebration in honour of the patron saint of the town, with a procession and religious and popular events after the summer Cultural Week.
Historical milestone
The first documented name of the town, Viso del Puerto, appears around 1157 in the chronicles of Alfonso VII the Emperor. It alluded to its commanding position over the natural pass that linked La Mancha with Andalusia.
Historical milestone
First marquis of Santa Cruz and admiral to Felipe II, he commanded the reserve of the Christian fleet at Lepanto and won at Terceira. His father had bought the commandery of El Viso in 1539 and here he raised the palace where he rests.
Historical milestone
Between 1767 and 1785 the royal road of Andalusia was laid out anew through the Despeñaperros gorge. El Viso, which until then controlled the pass of the sierra, lost the muleteer and post traffic that sustained its economy.
Historical milestone
A native of El Viso, he led an armed band in the liberal movements that shook Spain around 1848. His figure remained in local memory as that of a bandit for some and a political insurgent for others.