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History of Villanueva de la Concepción

Diputación de Málaga
Villanueva de la Concepción. Torcal1

History of Villanueva de la Concepción

Primitive settlements around the town were already known prior to the year 5000 BC. After this date remains of stone tools has appeared. Within these remnants highlight polished stone axes along the stacks area of Cobos, La Alhaja, The Cortijillo, Captain Fuente Pareja, and even in the Cave of El Toro in El Torcal.

Those primitive inhabitants of the area were beginning to build their own huts and have basic knowledge in agriculture. They also practiced the burial of their dead.
Tombs of this era has been also found in Chaperas (Casabermeja) and in a flatwork in the Cortijo de Gálvez. It is known that were the Iberians, circa 200 BC, who built the first settlement in the region.

Arguably the most prominent is the settlement that formed Oscua City, which later became one of the Roman villas. Oscua came to embrace the pleasure villas of Roman patricians. In these settlements unique buildings were built at the time, such as temples to their gods, a public forum, theater, necropolis, etc, as evidenced by archaeological remains found in the Cerro León in a radius of more than 10 kilometers.

All cities and Roman villas of the environment, as were those of Nescania, Oscua, Singilia Barba, etc., suffered the passage of different cultures, and all disappeared after the Muslim invasion, leaving only Antikaria city that became the Medina Antequira Arabs.

In 1410, the region of Antequera is reconfigured at a crossroads.

Christian kings harassed the kingdom of Granada while muslim kings were strong in Antequera, defended by a string of castles, which in turn facilitated the safe passage to the Medina Malagueña.

The castles of Cauche, Hins Almara and nearby Xêbar were the key to the three natural steps towards the coast. After five months of fighting, on September 4, 1410 the Infante Don Fernando conquering Antequera. Rodrigo de Narvaez, governor of Antequera, repairs Xêbar Castle leaving a garrison of 100 men and 100 laborers. From now Xêbar border enclave becomes militarily linked to the antequerano warden. After the war of Granada the castle loses its military value and the period of decay and ruin that come down to us.

In the mid-eighteenth century, major public works were started in Malaga and one of them was the realization of the "Royal Road" linking Malaga and Madrid. Concentrations of the first houses were born in the vicinity of this communication channel, forming lately the core population of Villanueva de la Concepción.

Years later, in 1786, other bridges were built that would facilitate traffic in this way, because in winter the road became impassable. Of these new bridges, must be highlighted the Lion and Horcajo Bridges, and the one over the Cauche Stream.

The settlements of the Cuesta del Palmar is chartered as a rural village for Civil Government Decree of the province on November 3, 1880, resulting in what is today Villanueva de la Concepción. In the nineteenth century came more "New Villas" of its kind in the area of Antequera and Archidona.
The former residents of Villanueva de la Concepción was granted a number of privileges, as were the men were exempt from military service and were exempted from paying taxes to facilitate their attachment to the land.

Finally, on February 25, 1992, the Governing Council of the Junta de Andalusia (Andalusian Government) gives the category of Smaller Local Organization, then the first in the province of Malaga and one of the first in Andalusia.
On January 16, 2001, the same Governing Council of the Andalusian Government apporve the Decree to convert Villanueva de la Concepción, previously under the municipality of Antequera (Malaga), in Autonomous Local Entity.

The new entity, which arises as a result of the agreement reached between its neighbors and the municipality of Antequera with the mediation of the Ministry of Home Affairs, will take among other powers those concerning licensing works, waste collection, public safety, traffic, fairs and local festivals, social services and cultural activities. Currently, Villanueva de la Concepción (named for the patronage of the Immaculate) has become the municipality 101 of the province of Malaga, with its own town council.