Town located at the shores of the Barbatas river and under the protection of the Encantada mountain range. From its town-planning, its stately houses, that still conserve the blazons with the coats of arms in its facades, stand out. The border situation of the town and the fact that it is property of the Diocese of Toledo explain its numerous religious constructions, among which the Collegiate of Santa Maria, of the XVI century stands out. Other places of interest are the Church of Santiago, the convents of Santo Domingo and San Francisco, or the Rodriguez Penalva park. Huéscar has been, as well, a beautiful natural place where it is possible to appreciate gigantic sequoias, planted more than one hundred years ago. The Guardal river has several monuments when it flows through this district: the Bridge of the Animas (or aqueduct of Raigada) of the XVI century, that was declared national historical-artistic monument in 1982, or the Bridge Duda, whose pillars rest on the rock. Besides, in the property of the Fuentes de Guardal, the head of the Channel of Carlos III is located.
It has been human settlement from Prehistoric times as the numerous archaeological sites demonstrate. In 1915 a natural shelter, Piedra del Letrero, was discovered, which could date from the Neolithic period. The Arabs founded it as warlike place in the settlement which Roman villas had occupied previously. It belonged to the Tudmir cora since the VII century until it was added to the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada. Since the beginning of the XIII century to end of the XV it went through continuous conquests and re-conquests between Castilian and Nasrids, because it was a border area of certain importance. At the beginning of the XIV century it was besieged by the Granada’s army of Ismail I, who destroyed the roquero castle named Uxkar. But without a doubt, the most excellent historical fact was the conquest of the Huescar’s fortress in 1435 by Don Rodrigo Manrique, father of the poet Jorge Manrique, feature that is part of the history of Hispanic Literature in “Coplas por la muerte de su padre” written by his son. Huéscar went to be dominion of the Castile Crown in 1488, and seven years later the Catholic Kings gave it to the Condestable of Navarra. The town got to have 6,000 inhabitants in the XVI century, but the later expulsion of the Moorish reduced it to half. Since 1544 until 1953 it belonged to the Diocese of Toledo.
It has a wide recipe book based on native products like the segureño lamb, the pork, legumes or vegetables of the region. The typical dishes are remojón of San Antón, tin of lamb or rabbit, or its famous stuffed. The products elaborated from the pig stand out, as the inlays, the black pudding, the orza’s back or the butifarra. Its vineyards are also very important. They cultivate blanquilla, gordal, generval, blasca and tinta doble grape.
© Patronato Provincial de Turismo de Granada I Diputación de Granada
