Village
Aledo is a municipality in the Región de Murcia, situated at the foot of the southern slope of the Sierra Espuña, in the Bajo Guadalentín comarca, with a strategic setting on a steep massif bounded by the ravines of Borrazán and La Fontanilla and the rambla de los Molinos. It is dominated by a castle of Muslim origin built in the early Middle Ages which, in early 1087, was taken by the Castilian noble García Giménez, taking advantage of Muslim disarray after the fall of Toledo. The emir of Murcia, Ibn Rashiq, ended up collaborating with Alfonso VI of León for fear of a pact between Al-Mutamid of Seville and the Almoravids. Nearby, the forest replanting carried out by Ricardo Codorníu left extensive Aleppo pine woods. It has around 1,100 inhabitants.
Monument
Arab tower and remains of walls forming part of the historic-artistic ensemble of the medieval town of Aledo, perched among the mountains and cliffs of Sierra Espuña.
Monument
The church of Santa María la Real occupies, in the walled historic centre of Aledo, the site of a former single-nave mosque that, after the town's surrender to the Order of Santiago, became a Christian temple. The present building began construction in 1761 and, for lack of funds, was not completed until 1804, thanks to the financial support of the King of Etruria, Charles Louis of Bourbon; it combines features of late Baroque with strong Neoclassical influence. Inside is venerated the image of Santa María la Real, a 16th-century sculpture with clear Gothic influence that gives the church its name, together with the Virgen de la Aurora, made in 1775 by the Murcian sculptor Francisco Salzillo.
Monument
17th-century hermitage in the municipal district of Aledo, a town which, along with Totana, belonged from 1257 to the Order of Santiago, the promoter of devotion to Santa Eulalia in Sierra Espuña.
Activity
Festivities in honour of Santa María la Real and Saint Augustine, with processions, open-air dances and family activities through the streets of Aledo's walled historic centre. A papal bull authorizes the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar to be carried in procession on the Sunday closest to Saint Augustine's day, 28 August, coinciding with the patronal festivities. Among the most popular events is the Fiesta del Carro.
Activity
The Auto de los Reyes Magos of Aledo is a traditional performance more than two hundred years old, held every 6 January in the historic setting of the walled town. It is performed by local cuadrillas: the Cuadrilla de Ánimas plays Easter marches and songs included in the text, while King Herod reads out, from a balcony, the bombas, satirical verses about the year's events. After Mass, the cuadrillas parade through the streets to the meeting place, where masters of trovadorismo improvise verses to raise funds, and the day ends with a bidding dance and a communal paella.
Monument
The former symbol of the criminal jurisdiction of the town of Aledo, unique of its kind in the Region of Murcia, preserved in the historic centre.
Monument
A group of about ten historic flour mills along the Rambla de los Molinos in Aledo, among which the Molino Nuevo de Patalache stands out.
Activity
The Noche en Vela is held in early August in the Altoaledo, the historic centre of Aledo, which that night is lit entirely with candles and oil lamps, with no artificial light at all, recreating the atmosphere of other times; along its streets various themed corners are set up, prepared by the residents for the occasion.
Curiosity
The tradition of improvised poetry, or trovo, cultivated in Aledo by popular troubadours such as the historic Tío Juan Rita, and kept alive in local gatherings and competitions.
Curiosity
The economy of Aledo has traditionally centred on growing table grapes, as well as producing jallullo and mantellina, a traditional liqueur of anise and honey.
Historical milestone
The Almoravid emir Yusuf ibn Tashfin besieged for four months in 1088 the fortress that García Jiménez held for Alfonso VI; the disunity of the taifa kings and the march of the Castilian army to relieve the stronghold forced the siege to be lifted.
Historical milestone
Alfonso X organized in 1257 the commandery of Aledo, handed to the Order of Santiago, and gave rise to the suburb of Totana a league away; the two centers would share a council and a district for more than five centuries.
Historical milestone
After the lawsuit begun in 1784 before the Council of Orders, the king agreed in 1795 to Aledo's petitions and returned to it its own municipal government and district, closing two centuries of the displacement of power towards the old suburb.
Food and drink
A baked sweet that in Aledo is prepared for the feast of San Marcos and taken out to the countryside on the pilgrimage; it is one of the traditional baking recipes that the municipality preserves along with the jallullo and the mantellina.