A place like Segura de la Sierra, which was declared a historic-artistic site almost fifty years ago, is a place where beauty is expected before visiting it. And, of course, we confirm this. But besides, this town in Jaén has a quite peculiar past that has been giving it the looks that we can see today. You'll see…
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A place like Segura de la Sierra, which was declared a historic-artistic site almost fifty years ago, is a place where beauty is expected before visiting it. And, of course, we confirm this. But besides, this town in Jaén has a quite peculiar past that has been giving it the looks that we can see today. You'll see…
There are many points in the Hispanic geography that have Roman traces, but the Greeks were also here, who called the mountain where Segura is located Orospeda. Of course, as an Andalusian town, its memory is much more linked to the Arabs.
Under the Muslim rule since the eighth century, Saqura enjoyed times of splendour, it was surrounded by walls and built what today is still its most symbolic work, the Mudejar castle. This must have been an almost impregnable fortress, but it was linked to the fate and vicissitudes of al-Andalus. Between internal problems, Taifa kingdoms and inter-clan conflicts, it ended up falling.
And who went on to control the village then? Yes, the Christians, and more specifically the members of the Order of Santiago, who administered all their possessions in the region from here. One of their commanders was called Rodrigo Manrique, and maybe you have heard of him thanks to his son, a famous Castilian poet, who wrote the well known Coplas a la muerte de su padre (Verses on the death of his Father). Well, that father was Rodrigo, and the name of the writer was Jorge Manrique, who was probably born in Segura de la Sierra around 1440.
Also, the young Carlos V passed by here, in whose honour a Renaissance fountain was built next to the Church of Nuestra Señora del Collado, showing the coat of arms of the one from Habsburg. In the same century, the sixteenth, the Jesuits arrived in the village and built another church that they would use for just under two hundred years, the time it took them to be expelled by Carlos III because of their manoeuvres against the monarch.
But if you want to see something impressive, go to the town's bullring. It is an old quadrangular parade ground located on the side of a mountain, whose slope serves as a grandstand. This means that when there is a show, everyone can see it for free. The square is also attached to a Tower which is one of the few remains still standing of the ancient walls.
