Village
Corbera is a municipality in the Valencian Ribera Baixa, on the right bank of the Júcar and at the foot of the sierra de Corbera, whose summit, the Cavall Bernat, reaches 584 metres. Its castle, the former Muslim Qurbáyra, was conquered by James I in 1248, who granted privileges to the settlers and encouraged the building of houses around the fortress; it later belonged to Pedro de Jérica and to the Terranova and Carroç de Vilaragut families, who sold it in 1418 to Alfonso the Magnanimous. It preserves an Almohad albarrana tower considered one of the best preserved in Europe. The parish church of the Saints Vicente, built between 1940 and 1953 on top of another from 1596, venerates the image of the Mare de Déu del Castell, moved there from the castle chapel.
Monument
The ermita de Sant Miquel de Corbera stands on the hill known as de Sant Miquel, next to the town, and was built on an old Islamic watchtower. It is a reconquest-era hermitage, raised around 1273 or 1276 according to historians, by royal order of Jaime I. The site, a meeting point for the Christians of the scattered alquerías before the town of Corbera existed, also housed the Mare de Déu del Castell. Worship continued there until the late 19th century, later reduced to the feast of Sant Miquel. Today only remains of the side wall that served as the hermit's dwelling survive, on a rammed-earth base and an almost square plan of about 8 by 9.5 metres. Since 1996 it has been listed as a Bien de Interés Cultural (Spain's highest level of heritage protection).
Activity
The winter patronal festivities of Corbera, in the Ribera Baixa, are held from 20 to 23 January in honour of San Vicente Mártir and San Vicente Ferrer. The municipality also keeps another patronal festival, from 1 to 9 September, dedicated to the Virgen del Castillo.
Nature
The Sierra de Corbera is a mountain range of sharp, jagged peaks that extends about 20 kilometres around the banks of the Júcar river, between the municipalities of Alzira and Tavernes de la Valldigna, in the southeast of the province of Valencia. It belongs to the southern core of the Iberian System, and its highest peak, shared with the municipality of Llaurí, is the Cavall Bernat, at 584 metres, located within the municipality of Corbera. On its slopes, on the first alluvial terrace of the Júcar river, sit the towns of Alzira, Corbera, Llaurí and Favareta, while Tavernes de la Valldigna and la Barraca d'Aigües Vives lie already in the valleys of the Valldigna.
Monument
The main church of Corbera, one of the most venerated religious buildings in the municipality. Dedicated to the Santos Vicentes (San Vicente Mártir and San Vicente Ferrer), the present building was built between 1940 and 1953 to replace an earlier temple dating from 1596. It housed the venerated Mare de Déu del Castell, a wooden carving from the chapel of Corbera Castle, later moved to the hermitage of San Miguel.
Monument
Corbera Castle, whose name means nest of crows, is an 11th-century Muslim fortress built on Roman remains on a promontory overlooking the Ribera Baja and the coast. First mentioned in 1229, it was part of a defensive network together with the castles of Alzira and Cullera, and remained in Muslim hands until its conquest by James I in 1248. In June 1521, during the Guerra de las Germanías, it was besieged and occupied by agermanats from Alzira, who abandoned it at the end of the month as royalist troops approached, leaving it badly damaged; in 1640 Philip IV authorised local residents to use its materials for a street in the town. It retains its entrance, with an arch and barrel vault, and the sixteen-metre albarrana tower.
Activity
The winter patronal festivities of Corbera, in the comarca of the Ribera Baixa (Valencia), are dedicated to San Vicente Ferrer and San Vicente Mártir and are held from 20 to 23 January, in contrast to the town's summer main festival, dedicated to the Virgen del Castillo between 1 and 9 September.
Historical milestone
Conquered in 1248 and in the hands of the Vilaragut for generations, the barony was acquired by King Alfonso the Magnanimous in 1418 and incorporated into the royal patrimony. The castle above the sierra went on controlling the passage towards the south.
Food and drink
The irrigation of the Xúquer makes it possible to alternate in the district orange, rice, potato and vegetables in a small space. The orange groves of the sierra slope give fruit of staggered harvest that is packed in warehouses of the comarca itself.