Mijas information
Municipal area, which stretches from the sierra of the same name to the
sea, consisting in low ridges and rolling hills dotted with
houses. The city itself, typically Arabic in appearance,
is built like a balcony across the mountainside, its whitewashed
houses contrasting sharply with the green of the pine trees,
creating a picture postcard scene which is one of the coast
is most beautiful panoramas. Mijas is home to a number of
places of particular interest, such as the Virgen de la
Peña Chapel and the Bullring, as well as the area
comprising Immaculate Conception Church, the Auditorium
and the adjacent gardens. Mijas boasts all of the facilities
associated with sun and sand holidays, the coastal highlight
being Calaburras beach.
History
The rich mineral deposits in the surrounding area attracted the Phoenicians
and Greeks. The Romans called the village Tarnisa. During this period,
it enjoyed economic prosperity due to the export of marble from the quarry
in the Sierra de Mijas and to its proximity to the road that linked Malaga
and Cadiz. In 714, the village was affected by the Arab conquest of the
peninsula; a pact made with Abdalaziz, son of the Moslem leader Muza,
allowed its Hispano-Gothic inhabitants to conserve their customs and religion
in return for the payment of a tribute. Records tell us that in the 9th
and 10th centuries, the people of Mijas supported the rebellion led by
Omar Ben Hafsun agaibst the Caliphate of Cordoba, with some even joining
the ranks of the rebel army. While part of the Nazari kingdom of Granada,
its inhabitants offered stiff resistance to the attempts to capture the
village made by the Catholic Monarchs, refusing to surrender until the
fall of Malaga (19 August 1487). Such fierce opposition to the Christian
troops brought cruel reprisals, and a number of the Moslem defenders were
put to the sword, though the majority were sold as slaves. In 1494, the
village was repopulated by Old Christians, and its houses and land were
shared out among them. In return for its support of Emperor Charles V
in the War of the Communities, the village was declared exempt from sales
tax and granted independent village status in 1521. On 2 December 1831,
General Torrijos and 52 men came ashore on El Charcon Beach in an attempt
to instigate a rebellion against the absolutist régime of King
Ferdinand VII; they crossed the Sierra de Mijas and took refuge in a location
known as "La Alqueria" in Alhaurin de la Torre, where they were
taken prisoner by the governor of Malaga’s troops and shot on the
beach at San Andres on 11 December 1831.
Malaga province
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