The Chequered History Of Gaucin In The Costa Del Sol For The Keen Visitor.
When you are holidaying in a Casares Del Sol Villa you might consider visiting the pretty mountain village of Gaucin. Those staying in Casares villas or apartments highly recommend a scenic tour of both Gaucin and Casares to view the contrast between the two.
Gaucin has sweeping views of the Rif Mountains of Africa and Gibraltar. The village is a literally a painter’s palette displaying amongst its colours vivid red poppies, yellow mimosa, and wild orchids depending on the season you visit.
Being not heavily populated with only around 2000 inhabitants you won’t be overrun by the locals at its busiest. Once the village was a major Roman settlement. Its castle, Castillo del Aguila (meaning Eagle’s Castle due to its lofty position) was built in Roman times and was later developed into a fortress by the Arabs. Look carefully and you may well find eagles circling above, while smaller kestrels frequently nest in the walls of the medieval convent.
The Romans settled in Gaucin as they found it the easiest place to access the Ronda mountain range from the sea to penetrate to the heart of the region. The Roman road, Camino de Gibraltar, is still used, and in parts surprisingly the original stones are intact. Gaucín was in fact a resting place for the fighters after the battle between Julius Caesar and the sons of Pompey.
Gaucin is constructed around a maze of narrow twisting streets and was once a haven for tobacco and brandy smugglers who frequented the area. It was like stepping back in time visiting until recently as the majority of houses had no running water and one light bulbs.
Gaucin has a history even further back than the Roman period. Step back in time by visiting the Cave and see the prehistoric Cave paintings. Ancient Iberian ceramics have been found in the castle’s water deposit. The Phoenicians established gold mines on the nearby Sierra Bermeja and probably controlled Gaucín during their hegemony in the region.
In 714 AD Tarik the Moor invaded Spain through Gibraltar utilising the Roman roads and Gaucin was the scene of many a long and bloody battle. King Henry IV finally liberated Gaucín in 1457.
The British took Gibraltar in 1704 and the local priest, fearing that Gaucín would be ramsacked, hid church treasures, but the British didn’t arrive. By the end of the century many British Gibraltarians were coming to the Gaucín to spend the summers in the cool mountains.
The French invaded Gaucin in 1808 during the Napoleonic Wars. Seven hundred brave guerrillas tried unsuccessfully to defend the castle. Gaucin subsequently became very poor and many local men became Banoleros, (bandits) ,Bandoleros (bandits) and contrabandistas (sellers of smuggled goods) providing inspiration for Prosper Merimée´s novel that was adapted by Bizet into the opera Carmen. There is allegedly evidence to prove that Gaucín, not Ronda was the setting for the Bandolero Act III.
‘Toro de Cuerda’ (bull on a cord) is one of the most popular festivals of the year. On Easter Sunday two bulls, one at 10 a.m. and one at 4 p.m., are loosed to run through the town, chased by the brave. Much drinking, feasting and hilarity follows.
There are plenty of suitable Villas in Casares in which to stay to tour the area, or instead select from those in nearby Caseras.
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