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| The greater contribution to the study of the Castle of Mula was made by Edward Cooper, who made a comparison between the white castle of the Vélez and the ''Cuevas de Almanzora'' in Almería, all of which belonged to the marquess. | The greater contribution to the study of the Castle of Mula was made by Edward Cooper, who made a comparison between the white castle of the Vélez and the ''Cuevas de Almanzora'' in Almería, all of which belonged to the marquess. | ||
| The architecture of |
The architecture of the castle is Renaissance in its defensive character nad simple forms, situated over a crag of rock. Of the two entrances, one of them accedes better to the high part of the wall and the towers of the old Muslim fortress in addition to a drawbridge. It contains four differentiating elements: the ''torre del homenaje'', a central nave with a barrel vault, a structure semidetached from the nave and a cistern. The cistern is an indication of Muslim influence because it is an essential element of a ]. | ||
| The works were created in four phases: the first was very crude, the second and third completed the cistern and the tower, and the final phase finished the barrel vault, the basement staircase, and the dungeons. | The works were created in four phases: the first was very crude, the second and third completed the cistern and the tower, and the final phase finished the barrel vault, the basement staircase, and the dungeons. | ||
Revision as of 14:44, 29 November 2007
 | This translation system has been deprecated in favour of WP:TRANSLATION. |
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| Mula, Spain | |
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| Country: | Spain |
|---|---|
| Autonomous Community: | Murcia |
| Province: | Murcia |
Mula is a municipality in the northeast of the autonomous community of Murcia in Spain, with approximately 16,000 inhabitants (2005, INE figures).
It is best-known for the tamborradas (drumming processions) made during the Holy Week, which in southern Spain are traditional of a region formed by Mula, Moratalla, Hellín and Tobarra.
Geography
Districts and Neighborhoods
The neighborhoods of Mula include Fuente Librilla,Yechar,Los Baños De Mula,Puebla De Mula y Casas Nuevas.
Municipal Limits
Mula is bounded by:
- Calasparra, Cieza and Ricote to the North
- Ricote, Campos del Río, Albudeite,Alcantarilla and Murcia to the East
- Librilla, Alhama de Murcia and Totana to the South
- Bullas, Cehegín and Lorca to the West
- Pliego surrounds Mula completely.
Economy
The economy of Mula is sustained mainly by agricultural and ranching operations. The manufacturing industry in Mula focuses on the food and beverage sectors.
Currently, work on the first phase of the industrial zone, called "El Arreaque," has begun, located along the Mula-Yechar highway.
Government
| Term | Name | Political Party |
|---|---|---|
| 1979-1983 | Antonio Hernández Cava | Democratic and Social Centre |
| 1983-1987 | Bibiano Imbernón García | Spanish Socialist Workers' Party |
| 1987-1991 | Bibiano Imbernón García | Spanish Socialist Workers' Party |
| 1991-1995 | Bibiano Imbernón García | Spanish Socialist Workers' Party |
| 1995-1999 | José Iborra | People's Party (Spain) |
| 1999-2003 | José Iborra | People's Party (Spain) |
| 2003-2007 | José Iborra | People's Party (Spain) |
| 2007-present | Diego Cervantes | Spanish Socialist Workers' Party |
Demographics
This graph shows the changes in the population of Mula from 1900 to 2005.
Monuments of Mula
Religious Monuments
Saint Michael's church (la Parroquia de San Miguel) is located in Mula's City Hall Square (La Plaza del ayuntamiento de Mula). With its two towers, including a clock tower, it forms a large monumental complex that often serves as the representation of the municipality.
The destruction of this church during the Spanish Civil War was extensive; only the entraceway was saved. The rest of the decorative paintings and sculptures were completely destroyed. It is known that the canopy of the old altar shared the Baroque flavor of the paintings on the walls, and was quite tall for its era. The church contains several very important chapels. To the right, the Chapel of Marquess Vélez, and to the left, the Chapel ofSan Felipe. The latter chapel contains relics of the saint brought from Sicily by Marchioness Vélez in 1648. The alterpieces of these chapels were created by the artist Aralafe Ángel Moreno Rubio. The portrait of San Felipe, made by Anastasio Martinez, dates back to the end of the nineteenth century. The carvings of the church were made by Vicente Benedicto of Valencia, of San Miguel, the patron saint, San Felipe (based on a painting in the parish's collection), and San Expedito. By Sánchez Lozano the church has San José (the child from before the war) and the Virgen of Dolores de Francisco. The church also has San Pedro, a work by P. Gomara. Many works, such as "Christ on the Cross," were obtained through the personal donations of the family of Pérez de los Cobos.
This church has a museum of painting brought into existence by a donation from Doña Pilar de la Canal, widow of Don Pedro Luis Blaya, in 1940. Theirs was a family with a fondness for buying works of art and donating them to outside causes, such as decorating the church after the desolation of the Spanish Civil War. The church contains works from the sixteenth century to the twentieth century. Paintings from France, Holland, and Mexico are found, among others, along with works in wood, canvas, copper, and glass. The paintings vary in medium and theme, from the religious to the mythological. Among the most widely-featured painters are Ribera, Mengs, and Juanquin Campos. All of their paintings and those of the other artists are now in a parochial museum founded in the 1950s by Father Esteban Monreal y Monreal.
Secular Monuments
Castle of the Velez Family
The first thing that attracts the attention of a visitor to Mula is the castle that watches over the daily lives of the city's inhabitants from above. The passage of time has left numerous traces in this emblematic construction built not to protect the people but to subject them.
There are many documented sources that tell of the castle. Emilio Molina, in his "Aproximación al estudio de Mula islámica" references the famous traveler of the twelfth century, Al-Idrisi, who writes of the existence of a fortress in Mula. Alfonso X makes reference to the fortress and writes, "Mula, is a well-located and well-fortified village, and its castle rises high and strong ." According to the study of Don Juan González Castaño, the fortress in the fifteenth centry had a massive wall to the North. The first wall protected the cisterns of the city, while the second watched over the city's two parishes recently converted to Christianity. These walls still remain a fundamental part of the castle.
The son of Alonso Yañez, Don Pedro Fajardo (adelantado del reino de Murcia y Marques de los Vélez) was humiliated when in 1520, the vocal citizens of Mula made him swear to respect the privileges that Fernando III gave to the village. In this way the dispute against the marquess over the municipal government council began. The marquess pre-empted the situation with the construction of his fortress to make his rule over the people of Mula assured.
Construction of the Castle
Before the construction of the castle, the marquess encountered two fundamental problems. One was the existence of a previous fortress. The second and more important one was the ban on the constuction of new fortresses in Spain (except Christian ones) laid down by Carlos I and other Catholic kings. According to Nicolás Acero y Abad, the marquess put up a fake tablet in the the torre del homenaje, that permitted its construction
"Marchio Petrus Fagiardus Primus hanc turrin erexit, marcentenque arcem olim ab Antinino Augusto Pio structam reaedificavit, inmperante Carolo Caesare IIIII. Hispaniarum Rege domino suo."
Though the inscription is written in Latin, the fortress was not Roman but Muslim. The reconstruction began in 1524 according another tablet. According to historian Juan González Castaño, an inhabitant of Mula, Luis Fajardo led it as the possible house manager of the Vélez.
The greater contribution to the study of the Castle of Mula was made by Edward Cooper, who made a comparison between the white castle of the Vélez and the Cuevas de Almanzora in Almería, all of which belonged to the marquess.
The architecture of the castle is Renaissance in its defensive character nad simple forms, situated over a crag of rock. Of the two entrances, one of them accedes better to the high part of the wall and the towers of the old Muslim fortress in addition to a drawbridge. It contains four differentiating elements: the torre del homenaje, a central nave with a barrel vault, a structure semidetached from the nave and a cistern. The cistern is an indication of Muslim influence because it is an essential element of a mosque.
The works were created in four phases: the first was very crude, the second and third completed the cistern and the tower, and the final phase finished the barrel vault, the basement staircase, and the dungeons.
Access to the torre del homenaje is gained by means of an ascending passageway, that currently has been substituted for a permanent bridge. If the castle is taken over by the enemy during a conflict, the garrison would be able to resist in the interior of the tower, which is provided with water by a system that catches water falling on the courtyard and carries them to the cistern along with the tower.
Decoration and Inscriptions
El castillo carece de decoración ya que no es la residencia oficial del Marques, sin embargo deja constancia de su persona en lo ocho escudos de armas pertenecientes a la familia Fajardo y Silva.
En menor mediada se pueden apreciar las marcas de canteros que nos aclaran las etapas de construcción del castillo.
Estructura del Castillo Accedemos al interior del castillo por un puente levadizo, podemos disfrutar de una bella vista del valle del Rió Mula en la cara norte de la construcción, entrando directamente a la nave donde podemos admirar la bóveda de medio cañón, y podemos observar la chimenea de la guarnición, y unos puntales de piedra sobre los que se apoyaba el antiguo techo de madera. Nos encaminamos hacia las escaleras de ascensión a la azotea baja, donde podemos disfrutar una vistas del municipio incomparable. La visita al castillo es una parada imprescindible del visitante, es una pena que actualmente el ayuntamiento de Mula se encuentre en litigio por la propiedad de este y no pueda realizar acciones sobre el.
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38°03′N 1°30′W / 38.050°N 1.500°W / 38.050; -1.500
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