The History of San Miguel de Salinas
We could not have presented our history page without the help of Joaquín Martínez Albaladejo, CORRINA to us, who has many anecdotes and a very
large photographic archive. We also thank Graciela Conesa, our
Municipal Librarian, who, besides having a great interest in the
website, also looks after the records of the pueblo and has given us
unlimited access to The Municipal Archives so that we can bring you more local history.
We must also acknowledge the great work of local resident Peter
Little, otherwise known as Pedro the Fisherman, who delves
into those archives to extract the facts for many interesting articles -
Thanks Amigos!
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THE SPANISH PIMPERNEL
by Pedro the Fisherman,
Peter Little
The intrepid tales of the enigmatic Captain Edwin Christopher Lance DSO are subject of a book entitled 'The Spanish Pimpernel' by the author C.E. Lucas Phillips, who also wrote 'The Cockleshell Heroes'. Why did San Miguel de Salinas name a street after this Englishman?
Captain Lance, the son of a clergyman of Wells Cathedral, was born in 1892. He always sought adventure. He trained as a civil engineer and with the onslaught of WW1 he headed for the ‘Front’ as a Private Soldier in the West Yorkshire Regiment where, due to his exceptional aptitude, he was commissioned in the field. |
Our History Page brings you, the
visitor, the very best sources of local information... We have split
a
comprehensive article entitled CANTERAS, YESERAS Y YESO EN SAN MIGUEL DE SALINAS
from
our local author Tomás Vte.
Martínez Campillo. |
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Soon after, he was awarded the DSO
(Distinguished Service Order) for his leadership achievements in the
murderous battle of Delville Wood on the Somme in 1916. Years passed with many battles in many theatres of war on different continents until 1931 when he arrived in Madrid as a civil engineer. Here he was engaged in the construction of roads, bridges and dams before the start of The Spanish Civil War.
At the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936, Lance was also an attaché at the British Embassy in Madrid and witnessed the carnage first hand. Many Spanish sought refuge in foreign embassies and he saw how much the Spanish around him were suffering. Using his diplomacy, great affability and skill at dealing with Spanish officials and guards, he organised escape routes from Madrid to the ports of Valencia and Alicante and onward by sea to Marseilles or Morocco. One of his tricks was to smuggle people out of Madrid in an ambulance unit kindly donated by a Scottish philanthropist, and take them to Alicante, where he would get them on board ships disguised as members of the crew - quite a chancer! He helped, not only, stranded British citizens but also Nationalists and Republicans alike, all people in danger of their lives as they became caught up in the war.
Lance, apparently, always wore a conspicuous check jacket, and was brilliant at cracking jokes with the anarchist and communist militiamen, and bribing them with cigarettes. His language was liberally sprinkled with words like 'topping', 'old girl' and 'Hell's bells'! Such was his love of danger and risk-taking, that he even got to meet General Franco as well as Dolores Ibarruri - 'La Pasionaria', the feared leader of the Spanish Communist Party.
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It refers to many place names within the municipality,
including Las Zahúrdas, one of the last yeso kilns, La Escribana,
Lo Catalán y Villaberta, Lo Maseras and Lo Rufete, all referred to as
yeso workings. And what is yeso? It is cement, plaster, gypsum, a bygone Industry of SMdS.
But, best of all, are the ‘apoyos –
the nicknames’ of some of those who worked in the Gypsum Industry, like Manuel Mellado, “El Aldeano”, Antonio “El Terencio”, José Martínez López, “El
Taranta” and Felipe Martínez, “El Mincho” – all from local families that
continue to live in San Miguel de Salinas.
To find out a bit more about YESO visit our
Geography Page... it is a
natural geological feature of SMdS
Foto:
El padre de Antonio (PCBites), el otro se llama Fausto y vive enfrente del
Sotanillo (Revistas y periodicos)..y el tercero es Antonio del estanco (Tabacos
Mercedes) información y courtesy of
CORRINA
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Both sides used him as a spy. The British Embassy at the time, whose attitude to the war was generally cynical, callous and pro-Franco, probably made good use of Lance too. By the end of the war he had helped hundreds of people escape from Spain. However, Lance was arrested by the Republicans as 'Criminal No. 1' and charged with spying. He was imprisoned in a series of terrible prisons from Valencia and Barcelona to Gerona. Just when he thought he was due to be executed by firing squad, a message came through from the British Embassy that got him released and sent home to England. After a full and active life, he retired to The Channel Isles where he died in 1970.
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So how did this Englishman come
to have a street named after him in San Miguel de Salinas? Well,
Lance was honoured in 1961 by the City of Madrid, and, being
somewhat of a legend in the Alicante region, it seems San Miguel
de Salinas honoured him as well. Calle Capitan C. Lance was the
little street two roads north of Calle Juan XXIII, where the
Wednesday market is held. When Franco died and Spain changed to
a Socialist government, Calle Capitan C. Lance was renamed Calle
Federico Garcia Lorca in honour of the famous republican poet
who was shot by the fascists in the war near Granada, and whose
remains are currently being exhumed. |
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Pictured is one in
the new exciting range of images that can be purchased as framed prints
of San Miguel de Salinas by local photographer and website friend Andy
Fox |
Acknowledgements: This story was brought to the attention of Peter
Little by Andy Ormiston, the historian of Torrevieja.
The Spanish Pimpernel by C E Lucas Phillips published by Odhams Press Ltd., & William Heinemann Ltd., 1960 |
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Book Review - HISTORIAS VIVIDAS
- the personal story of Sanmiguelera Carmen Perez Pastor by Peter
Little
Presentación de Libro de la autora locale Carmen Pérez Pastor |
| On Sunday 15th June 2008 I went to the book launch of
HISTORIAS VIVIDAS
by Carmen Perez Pastor at The Casa Cultura San Miguel de Salinas.
The book is Carmen’s story of life in the pueblo. I didn’t know what to expect
but found the place packed with people, and a man was singing. The star of the show
Carmen Perez Pastor was seated in her invalid carriage. She is very much a local celebrity who has at last published her remarkable life story. I couldn’t understand much of the presentation but bought the book and took it home.
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| I’ve since been engrossed by this sad but beautifully told story of life in San Miguel in the 1940’s and 50’s – long before the British, the Chinese and the developers moved in. Armed with a good dictionary, I think you would enjoy it too.
Carmen was born handicapped just before the Civil War in a village cave house. Her parents were very poor, and had an older handicapped son to cope with as well. These were times
long before the Spanish Health Service, when there was little help for the the handicapped. It was also a time of hunger and unemployment in a Spain under the rule of the fascist dictator, General Franco, cold-shouldered by the outside world.
Carmen’s father got what agricultural work he could find, and brought back food from the ‘campo’.
Otherwise they collected firewood in the hills ab was arrested and thrown into the local prison (under the present Tourist Office) for doing so. Without his earnings, the family suffered even more. At 14 Carmen left school and earned a few pesetas selling raffle tickets and then lottery tickets for the ONCE charity which she continued to do for the next 25 years.
The book is an amazing story of courage and cheerfulness in the face of adversity. She was helped by her many friends and neighbours in San Miguel
de Salinas in coping with the deaths of her parents and brother. Eventually she joined FRATER the Christian organisation for the handicapped and was active in the Asociación
de Vecinos.
If you want to get a feel of what San Miguel
de Salinas was like in those days – its streets, its people, its intense neighbourliness – this is an enthralling read.
Why was there a man singing at the book launch? Carmen has also written many ‘canciones’ (songs)
as well as poems that are well worth reading too. And if you see Carmen around the village, don’t forget to say ‘hola’. |
| If you are interested in obtaining a copy of HISTORIAS VIVIDAS by Carmen Perez Pastor you can do so via Graciela Conesa our municipal librarian... the book is also likely to be available from the lending library. |
| The great benefit of rambling with this group is that on
every corner another secret is
disclosed - Villa Milagros, built in the 1930s on the escarpment of The
Sierra Escalona under the peak 'Cabezo Mortero', was a simple finca
occupied by farmers tending the citrus and almond groves. It looks out
across the Vega Baja towards SMdS. It also looks down towards Casa
Cabezo Mortero, which is the large finca on the sharp bend on the Old
Torremendo Road where they still grow many salad crops.
The ramblers of
30th March rested
under this noble pine at Villa Milagros, said to be over 100 years old,
and used the same shade under which the ancient farmers rested their livestock.
And here's the secret history snippet... at the side of the road,
hidden in an overgrown bank, lies a carved granite monolith to 'R.M - 1910'.
The story goes that R.Martín, whether
Roberto, Rodrigo or Ramon... it is not known, was shot by his rival over
the love of a Sanmiguelera at this spot in 1910. Is there more to this
story? As much
as I tried, I could get no more than the disclosure of this hidden
memorial... again I am marvelled by another romantic tale in the history
of SMdS... that is the
snippet! (If you discover another secret snippet please tell me -
email)
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| Plaza Jaime 1 in the vicinity of The Casa Cultura takes its name from The Christian
King of Aragon and Catalunya (1217-52). Jaime 1 was five years old when he came to the throne and had a five-year struggle to keep it from powerful nobles. From 1229, ‘El Conquistador’ did much to shake off the Muslim grip on Spain, first taking the Balearic Islands, then Valencia, Alicante and Murcia, cleverly allowing Muslims to keep their lands and their religion under his rule...
more about street names
This delightful photo, courtesy of Corrina (Joaquín Martínez Albaladejo) who is pictured amongst the boys with Padre Jesus of Orihuela
a popular priest and teacher in San Miguel in the 1930's and 1940's. A street is named
after him too. |
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Some of the people who have invaded San Miguel de Salinas over the centuries…
by Pedro the Fisherman
The very first San Migueleros were probably cave-dwellers and hunter-gatherers. Then, in around 5000 BC, their peace was shattered by…
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The Iberians - The Iberian tribes, it is thought, came across from North Africa to colonise Spain. They were short, dark-haired and rather quarrelsome. Sound a bit like some Spaniards today? They were the first really civilised people to come to the peninsula.
The Iberians settled in villages, often on hill-tops, and knew a lot about sheep, ploughing, weaving and crop-growing, whilst, as metal workers, they were keen to extract the plentiful copper and silver in the area to make rings and bangles. They had a common language, their own form of writing, and were skilled craftsmen, making their own sculpture such as the famous ‘Dama de Elche’ and figurines of horses and pigs. They traded goods with…
The Phoenicians (1100BC- ) These were seafaring merchants from Tyre (modern Lebanon) who came largely for the silver, lead, iron and copper around Cartagena but also traded Iberian pottery, grapes, olives and grain around the Mediterranean. Phoenician coins have been dug up at the finca Lo Zahurdas in San Miguel. They had competition from… |
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The Greeks (c.600BC) Greek traders set up several commercial colonies on the eastern coast, notably at Alicante before it became a Roman city. They introduced iron technology, the potter’s wheel and a monetary system. They traded grapes, olives and wheat for Greek and Etruscan pottery and other goods from around the Mediterranean including modern Tunisia, whence came…
The Carthaginians (241BC – 200BC) When the Romans robbed the Carthaginian empire of Sicily, Sardinia and Corsica, they started a new empire in eastern Spain at Cartagena (the new Carthage). From there they planned to attack the Romans, financed by the silver mines in the area. The great Carthaginian general Hannibal led thousands of men and many elephants from Cartagena, past San Miguel through to the Pyrenees, the Alps and Northern Italy, where after a long campaign they were eventually defeated and the new Cartagena was sacked by Rome. Fragments of Carthaginian pottery have been found at Lo Zahurdas. Iberian men from the San Miguel area may well have been hired as mercenaries in Hannibal’s ill-fated force against… |
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The Romans (200BC -476AD) This area, and the whole of Spain, was totally absorbed into the mighty Roman empire, and the Roman way of life. The Romans built roads like the Via Augusta which ran from Cartagena to Elche through what is now San Miguel, and many bridges, canals, aqueducts and public baths besides. They also founded many of the towns of modern Spain. If a local served in the Roman army, he was rewarded with Roman citizenship on completing his service. Many local Iberians took Roman names and spoke a Latinised language, the basis of today’s Spanish. It was a time of great stability and prosperity.
The Romans exported huge quantities of local grapes, olives, wheat, gold and silver to Italy. They developed the fishing and salt industries at present day La Mata. They inter-married with local Iberians, and many retired Roman legionaries were given land and villas in the area. There was believed to be a Roman settlement called Nisdomia at San Miguel and Roman coins and pottery have been dug up at Lo Zahurdas. All was well until the decay of the Roman empire and the invasion of barbarian hordes from the North such as… |
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The Visigoths (415AD – 711AD) These were in fact the most civilised of the barbarians – Franks, Vandals and others - that swept in from Northern Europe - they were allies of Rome, ruled Spain as kings from Toledo and were Romanised to a great degree. In this area, life went on as normal under the Visigoth lord Theodomir of Orihuela, as long as tithes of produce were paid, but politically the Visigoths were not well organised, so fell easy prey to:
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The Moors (711AD- 1243AD) They came across to Gibraltar from North Africa and brought hundreds of years of brilliant civilisation to Southern and Eastern Spain. Who brought oranges and lemons and date palms to San Miguel? The Arabs. They excelled in mathematics, science, astronomy and poetry, and brought paper, music, sugar, even toothpaste (of a kind) and chess to Europe! The great caliphate of ‘Al-Andalus’ based at Cordoba was soon tolerant of non-Muslim religions and let existing landownership continue in return for taxes and produce.. Many locals converted to Islam, and intermarried. This region became rich and fertile under the Arabs. They also introduced rice, saffron, cotton, melons, figs, bananas, and almonds to the area with the necessary irrigation techniques to water them including water cisterns called aljibes, and the noria, a water-wheel powered by the donkey. We owe paella , turron and other sweet foods to them too. There was a small Arab settlement at Lo Zahurdas, which in Arabic means ‘pig farm’, probably producing pork for Muslims and non-Muslims alike! Many towns and villages with the prefix ‘Al’ or ‘Beni’ were Arab in origin.
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Over almost 700 years of Arab rule, the Christian monarchy of Castille and
Aragon gradually invaded and broke up the Moorish empire to unite the
whole of Spain under one crown. (Locally this happened in 1243.) Then,
with the Inquisition, religious intolerance really started!
Apart from a brief period when Napoleon invaded Spain in 1804, and put his brother on the throne, nobody else invaded Spain until the coming of… |
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The British (c. 1960AD onwards) Hordes of retired British people (and other northern Europeans) seeking sunshine and a more relaxed way of life invaded coastal Spain and took up residence in their own colonies (known as urbanisations). They brought new prosperity and strange new foods to the village like Cornish pasties and fish and chips. They are more likely to dine out in a cave than live in one, and are hunter-gatherers of Marmite, and (preferably free) English-language newspapers.
(© pedro the fisherman 2007) |
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| LOS SARTENAZOS - WHEN SAN MIGUEL FOUGHT DIRTY
- another local history gem from Pedro the Fisherman
Most villages in Spain have their strange local customs and traditions - San Miguel de Salinas is no exception. One village custom that fortunately hasn’t been celebrated for over a hundred years was known as ‘Los Sartenazos.’ ‘Sartenazo’ in Spanish means very roughly “hitting someone over the head with a frying pan” and
a very rough the custom it was. On previously agreed Sundays, it is said,
a band of youths from San Miguel would face down a similar band from
neighbouring Torremendo in the Campo between the villages where they would fight it out with frying pans – the bigger and heavier the pans the better, and presumably the dirtier and greasier as well. Whether they won or lost, the wounded were later triumphantly carried around their village on the shoulders of their comrades and lauded as local heroes. As you would imagine, serious injuries would frequently result from ‘Los Sartenazos’ and the custom was thankfully banned by the local authorities in the late 19th century. Nowadays, a ‘sartenazo’ is probably more likely to be inflicted by a wife on a husband returning home late! |
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In another thought provoking short article from Pedro the Fisherman,
he asks -
DID HANNIBAL’S ELEPHANTS PASS THROUGH SAN MIGUEL DE SALINAS?
In May 218BC, the Carthaginians thirsted for revenge on Rome. Their empire, based on the city of Carthage, which is now a ruin in present day Tunisia, had been robbed of Sicily and other territories. Hannibal’s father, Hamilcar, to the alarm of Rome, had instead built up an empire in Spain. The port of Nueva Cartagena was the new Carthage, and it was here that general Hannibal landed with 32,000 infantry, 8000 cavalry and 37 elephants to march north on Rome. His journey would have taken him along the ancient road which had been built by the Cathaginians from Cartagena through Balsicas, near San Javier, to the North passing through the place where San Miguel de Salinas now stands. This road was called the ‘via antigua’ and it later became the Roman Via Augusta.
(see another reference to this subject -
Plaza Pozo de Enmedio) |
| At the time San Miguel de Salinas would probably have been just a collection of scattered rural fincas and other dwellings rather than a proper village. What a sight this army must have been for the locals of the time! Later Hannibal was to ferry the elephants across the Rhone by raft, and take them through the icy passes of the Alps, often frequently attacked by fierce local tribesmen. It’s no wonder that he lost many of the animals when they fell off the mountain sides – it is thought he only had 2 when he got to Italy. Once he got there, he had some huge successes against the Romans, notably at Lake Trasimene in 217BC, where he drove large numbers of them into the lake and at the plain of Cannae in 216BC where he encircled the Roman army and only 10,000 of them escaped. However the famous delaying tactics employed by Emperor Fabian, whereby the Romans continually pestered Hannibal and blocked his roads and line of supplies whilst avoiding direct engagement, gradually wore him down. Eventually, in 203BC Hannibal was forced to go back to Carthage to defend the city which was threatened by the Roman army. He was finally defeated and went into exile. He eventually committed suicide in 183BC. The Carthaginian Empire in Spain, which included San Miguel de Salinas, became part of the Roman Empire. |
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In the May 2007 issue of The New Angel Magazine
Pedro features
the wonderful
life account of 'Gloria', an elderly Sanmiguelera - this could not have
been achieved without the help of Municipal Librarian - Graciela Conesa. This is an important record and we are
also pleased to include the feature in Spanish
This is an artists impression of how
Largo Jardin at Los Balcones looked in its hay day - painted by John Felix
See Pedro's Gran Casas of San Miguel de Salinas
foto courtesy of Andy Fox
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Sanmiguelera Gloria's Memories of the
Pueblo by Pedro the Fisherman
Pedro writes: It's hard to understand San Miguel de Salinas today without knowing what the village has been through in the past. I knew that prosperity had come only recently, and that the village suffered like the rest of Spain in the Civil War (1936-9) and in the forties and fifties under Franco. But who could tell me more? It’s next to impossible to find an elderly citizen who can speak English. But with the great help, once again, of our
local librarian Graciela, we found an elderly lady, Gloria, who
was willing to tell me a few things about the Pueblo. We must all
appreciate that subjects like this are, and must be treated, as
sensitive. I am deeply indebted to Gloria for being so open - for our
benefit. Here are my questions and Gloria's answers:
What was San Miguel like before and during the civil war?
Life was quiet and good even up till 1936, because the conflict didn’t really reach our village directly.. Before the civil war, we lived under the dictatorship of the 2nd Republic, and after the war, under the dictatorship of Franco.
Over the years 1935-6, at the start of the 2nd Republic, there also began persecution of the church and the rich, and the seizing of fincas from their owners. Around San Miguel, they seized many fincas, for example ‘La Coronela’. They stripped them of produce and jewellery, and later in the church, they shared out the spoils, but only to their own political followers. One crafty finca-owner, so that they couldn’t steal his pig, is said to have given it plaster to eat until it died, and they weren’t able to remove it. The pig made a good dinner later.
During the war years, many people hid themselves in holes in the ground, covered over with firewood, staying there a long time, whilst their families brought them food to eat.
As San Miguel was in the Republican zone of the country, right-wing followers lived in fear and suffered reprisals, but they weren’t that numerous because there were many friends in both left-wing and right-wing camps. There was one case of one right-wing gentleman who warned his friend who was a communist that they were going to the village to get him. Thanks to this kind of friendship between members of both factions, the atmosphere in the village was more relaxed and cordial than could be expected in such a cruel war.
On the other hand, it was also the case that there was bitter rivalry between family members. They say there was one family of brothers who decided not to give any food to one of their sisters, a young girl of 14 or 15, because she was a right-wing sympathiser. It is said the girl was left weeping at the larder where they kept their food.
In San Miguel, we never saw any ‘little strolls’, as both gangs called the practice of taking someone for a little ‘paseo’ or stroll, with aim of shooting them at the end of it - something which went on a lot in Torrevieja and Bigastro.
Here in San Miguel, they say the mayor during the civil war, Jose Barcelona, would not permit any ‘little strolls’ in the village. Doubtless they did go on, but not leading to anyone being murdered.
There is a story that the mayor of Redovan spent a lot of time in San Miguel during the war hidden in a particular house. Years afterwards, his son, also the mayor of Redovan, thanked the people of San Miguel for giving his father refuge.
All told, San Miguel gave refuge to many people of both sides, thanks to the ability of Mayor Barcelona who would not allow any criminal behaviour.
Most of those who suffered repression and saw atrocities committed by both sides have chosen not to instil hatred in their children. My own father (Gloria tells us) who was with the nationalists, never told me that at the Colegio del Carmen in Murcia where he was held prisoner, they daily executed people. I knew this a long time afterwards through a friend, but not directly from my father. At the end of the war, all those who had taken others for ‘a little stroll’, were put in jail.
Is it true that the priest of San Miguel was murdered and the church set on fire?
The priest was murdered in another village, not San Miguel. Jose Barcelona would not have allowed it. But the republicans did burn the church down.
Was the village mainly pro-Republican, or were loyalties mixed?
Very mixed. As an example: a sister of one of the men who burned down the church was right-wing, and never spoke to her brothers again for having done this. So, in one family there could be supporters from both camps.
Who was Joaquin Ortuño?
He was just a ordinary man, a citizen of San Miguel, and much persecuted during the war years. But at the end of the war, he never took revenge on anyone who had persecuted him. For his humanity, they named a street in San Miguel after him.
What was life like after the war, under Franco?
After the war, under Franco, Spain was left utterly ruined. We had nothing. No factories. No schools. Life was very bad. The republicans had to get away, although in San Miguel the great majority of people didn’t take reprisals. It was a time of great hunger, although in the villages, people got on better than they did in the big towns. Country people survived better in the post-war period because at least they could plant their own food. Even from the provincial capital, Alicante, people came to take refuge here in our village. Some refugees even came from Madrid, and arrived telling stories of how the city was in flames as they left it.
Do memories of the war, even now, rankle with people in the village?
The village was certainly left scarred by deep injuries. But fathers never told their children about the hardships they had suffered in case they created hatred or further conflict.
How do you feel about the village today, and the invasion of foreigners?
A lot of new people have arrived in a short time, and this has created problems. There just aren’t sufficient services for everyone. But the coming of the outsiders’ has been, and, always will be, greatly welcomed by the Sanmigueleros. I think it has shown what a welcoming village we are."
What a great contribution - This is the first of Pedro's interviews with our senior Sanmigueleros about their living history that are being recorded for prosperity. |
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La Plaza del Pozo de en medio or Plaza Pozo de Enmedio.
Pictured in April 2007 are the tiny houses on one side of this plaza,
one that is currently undergoing a major refurbishment as part of the scheme for the
Barrio de las Cuevas area.
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According to accounts published in a book about SMdS entitled
'BARGUSTRA - Semblanza história de San Miguel de Salinas by
Local Historian Francisco de Asis Patiño Valero, La Plaza del Pozo de en medio was
the location of an important well at which the Roman cohorts
satisfied their thirst and bathed their battle wounds - injuries they
had sustained from the spears of The Cartagenians...whether true or not,
history is merely stories handed down from generation to generation and
we have many more to come! |
Pedro the Fisherman
featured in the March 2007 edition of The New Angel Magazine - 'How
Street Wise are you?' In the article he asks, 'Ever wondered who Joaquin Ortuño
was? Or Juan Mateo Box? Or why the main street of San Miguel
commemorates the 19th April? Wonder no more.
Like a lot of Spanish towns and villages, San Miguel de Salinas has named its streets after famous writers, engineers, painters, saints and heroes as well as natural features like a mill or a well.
Some street names have changed over the years due to political correctness; for
instance, Calle 19 de abril was once called Calle Calvo Sotelo, after the right-wing leader whose assassination in 1936 led to the start of the Civil War. After the death of Franco in 1975, and the change to the socialist government of Felipe Gonzalez, street names changed from commemorating generals and captains and marquises to left-wing writers and poets! SMdS’s bias towards left-wingers might have something to do with it being in an area of Republican stronghold during The Spanish Civil War!'
Pedro's potted guide to most of our village's street names is now
included in
Pedro's Glossary - Please tell us about any omissions or mistakes or ask
Pedro for the answer and if you want to undertake research and contribute to this page please
contact us
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| Las Gachas: There was an old lady, in the living memory of virtually all the Spanish in the pueblo, who
had the nickname (una apoda)
La Gacha and she lived in Las Cuevas de las Gachas. It wasn't her real name but
the common practice of 'awarding a nickname' is quite normal in a small pueblo...there weren't many people and there were probably far too many Marias!
La Gacha was so nicknamed because everyday she used to 'knock up'
La Gacha, a gruel, porridge or sopa, made with the cheapest
available ingredients, for the many poor children in the pueblo so they never went without a meal. She also had a local grocery cave, Las Cuevas de las Gachas
- pictured above, in which she sold local produce. Her family still
live in the pueblo but have moved to more luxurious accommodation. The
local history of San Miguel de Salinas will, no doubt, unearth a number
of these 'nicknamed' celebrities but that's what makes any pueblo the
special place that it is! We expect to provide the colourful
picture of SMdS through some of these nicknames, living history. |
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Casas Baratas, looking across the
almendros - almond groves towards the main street of San Miguel de Salinas.
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The History of San Miguel de Salinas cannot be presented without the
assistance of The San Migueleros themselves and we acknowledge
particularly Joaquín Martínez Albaladejo - Corrina for access and use
of his library of pictures.
The project to present information from the archives of San Miguel de
Salinas could not be achieved without the interest and encouragement of
our Bibliotecaría Graciela Conesa of The
Municipal Biblioteca Pública de San Miguel de Salinas. Graciela is currently transcribing a number of documents that we will be translating and publishing.
There are already a number of residents who are researching the archives and preparing articles for publication
and if you are interested in making a contribution please
email us.
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In the first of our transcriptions we present the account of
D. JOSÉ MONTESINOS PÉREZ MARTÍNEZ OF ORUMBELLA
His Compendio histórico Oriolano - The historic summary of Oriolano was compiled in 1795 and provided one of the first snapshots of the pueblo...
Transcribed is a fragment extracted from Pages 353-4, Chapter 11 of the Volume XII relating to San Miguel del Campo de Salinas – San Miguel de Salinas.
"With reference to the foundation of the modern place of the Campo de Salinas and the erection of its Iltª. Parochial Church of San Miguel.
The place of San Miguel in the Fields of the Salinas, a village with streets belonging to the city of Orihuela, is 4 leagues towards the West and is situated on a high point near the coast at the longitude 16˚ 13’ and latitude 53˚ 45’ in the middle of
the dry and arid plain of this region, has a central but uneven plaza and six medium streets inhabited
by some 246 neighbours, subject to a titled parish of San Miguel, with a parish priest to provide the holy sacraments; and in civil matters it is governed by the City of Orihuela whose Military Governing Gentleman and Politician has kindly appointed a Representative to govern in their name all the area of the village, which is computed as three leagues. The place is in high position and is not very healthy because it is prone to ‘tercianas’ a malaria fever that greatly
affects the people, who spend much time in the fields producing the necessary food for others, on account of being isolated from its capital at Orihuela.
The governor of this place will go occasionally to inspect the care of the meat market, oven and store that is there. Its foundation can be traced back to around 1599 when it was discovered that the first houses existed in the sheltered corners of some of the fields and
neighbouring glens, the ones that were given memorial listing by Iltmo. Sr. D. José Estevan IV, Obispo Oriolano / Bishop Oriolano in order that a licence be granted to establish a Hermitage where Mass can be held by a Religious Franciscan in the days excused from the work schedule, who having seen the just motives that were proposed to him, gave them permission and based on the population in the year 1600, and with the charity of the neighbours, in whose state it was maintained until the heritage was erected in Parish. The fields called The Salinas enjoy most beautiful lands and glens in which, if it rains at the right time, produce a lot of wine (that is
very praised even by the foreigners), oil, wheat, barley, Carobs, barrillas, wheat,
many specialities and some fruits, there are beautiful houses with their water cisterns, abundant mounts of pines, oak trees, oaks, lentiscos and squats from which there is a lot of hunting of hares, rabbits, partridges, wild pigeons and other birds, to where many people of Orihuela go to be entertained with the shooting; the town does not have water sources or cisterns, but outside the walls there are two very abundant wells of water - rather brackish, but of good quality that supply the
neighbourhood, and one a meeting place with six batteries of large stone where the women wash the clothes and they allow the beasts to drink. There is jail, parish house of the Pastorate; and the other properties of individuals; there are schools of first letters, a teacher of dressmaking, an inn, a store, an oven, a meat market,
doctor, pharmacist, veterinarian, surgeon, farming and banking clerks
and guards from The Ronda de Alicante; it is a place with a lot of traffic for Cartagena, Orihuela, San Ginés, the sea and other places. In their plaza there is farming produce
that they supply to Orihuela."
This translation is provided by www.san-miguel-de-salinas.com
© 2004-2006
Pictured right the Old Town
Hall in about 1955; if you are familiar with the corner where Juan Antonio's Peluquería
sits under The Collie Bar, it was here that the current bar owner's
Grandfather had a tobacconist shop - just a window! |
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A brief history of San Miguel de Salinas
The geographical position of the Iberian peninsular is such that it has been touched by every civilization in the Old World. From the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Greeks, Celts, Romans, Visigoths, Goths, Moors, Christians and many more, the veins of this great county run with a diversity of cultures unsurpassed in modern Europe. So how do we fit our San Miguel de Salinas into this play?
We have to say that there's little tangible evidence of our local history in San Miguel, the oldest
displayed date we've found so far is 1875 on The Finca Aniorte. We know that it's here but we obviously haven't asked the right people yet! Our research, so far, reveals that
archaeological finds of both ceramic pottery and early structures have been
discovered at the property of Zahurdas even though little examination has been undertaken.
Since the earliest times the area around our Pueblo has always succumbed to the will of the Diocese and Council of Orihuela and it is from their records,
yet to be viewed, that we learn of the founding of a hermitage around 800 AD. Probably because of its raised defensive position and two good water sources
or wells, this developed over the following centuries as the Convent and Monastery of San Gines, home to Augustine Friars and Carmelite Nuns, in the place called Matamoros, which is on the property of Dehesa de Campoamor. In 1407 the hermitage was sacked and in 1419 the local landowners founded the Brotherhood of San Gines to defend the Convent against intrusion from Moors and Pirates.
San Gines however was some distance from modern San Miguel de Salinas
and the first houses here seem to have been constructed around 1599 and in 1600 the first Church was built on its present site.
Due to poor structure it was re-built between the years 1689 - 1719. Dedicated to St Michael The Archangel it was granted parish status by Orihuela in 1723. During the early 1800s San Miguel de Salinas continued to strive for independence, first gaining it only to lose it again.
On 21 March 1829 there was a great earthquake leaving San Miguel de Salinas in ruins, and it was thanks to the benevolence of The Bishop of Orihuela that saw its slow and laborious reconstruction. In 1840 the Old Town Hall and jail
were built on the site of the ancient cemetery. The classic building,
renovated in 2006, was used for Council meetings up to 3rd January 1988 when the New Town Hall was inaugurated.
On 4 March 1955 San Miguel de Salinas was finally granted the Independent Municipality status that continues to the present time. The first mayor was Don Joaquin Martinez Perez. Historically it has always been a village based on agriculture and the salt industry. More recently the orange and lemon groves are giving way to housing and commercial property development resulting
in the current rapid growth in the population. |
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La Historia de San Miguel
This
website link is provided to our best local site in Spanish provided by
Joaquín Martínez Albaladejo
PROPIAS ARMAS - del Lugar de la Parroquia de San Miguel, Barrio o
Calle de la Ciudad de Orihuela. (Campo de Salinas) Montesinos Fecit 1795 |
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Here are some other facts we like:
- Fact: That defensive wall built between Carlisle and Newcastle to keep the warlike Scots out of the Roman Empire was built by a Spaniard or rather a Hispano-Roman his name - The Emperor Hadrian.
- Fact: Miguel de Cervantes, the author of Spain's universal masterpiece Don Quijote/Quixote, was a contemporary of William Shakespeare. The two writers both died on the same day - 23 April 1616.
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So what's the answer
to Las Chanes? Well, to a Sanmigueleros a Chane is a foreigner!
This term pre-dates the one we are more familiar with - 'Extranjeros'. In the earliest times when the great wealth of our 'Salinas' or salt lakes was discovered mariners from northern Europe came to harvest the salt. Besides the preserving properties, it was also used for spreading on snow to cause rapid melting. Locals found this encounter with people speaking different languages very difficult but they observed that a common name amongst these foreigners was that of Juan or John and they interpreted it to sound like 'Chuan' and hence all such people were referred to as Chuanes. It is not a disrespectful term and over the centuries it was modified to Chanes and refers any foreigner whether English, German, French or even Chinese.
In fact some schools of thought believe the origin may simply refer to
The Chinese. We think Chanes sounds better than Extranjeros! |
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