"Aroche" Aroche by jantichm

Aroche is a pretty village located at 406 mts. heigh and 130 kmts. from the capital Huelva. It is set in the Sierra de Aroche close to Rosal de la Frontera, Cortegana, Jabugo and Almonaster.

My father was born here, although he emigrated to Barcelona in the 60's.

This area is one of the most beautiful mountainous spot of Huelva. Its orography is wild and hostile. lt is formed in the North by the Picos de Aroche and in the south by the Sierra de Mojonato. In fact, the village is inside of a Sierra de Aracena y Picos de Aroche NP.

Aroche has an extension of 498.4 square kilometres. The inner part of the city has 62 streets.

The place name Aroche comes from old celta Arucci, that at Roman time receives the sobrename of Arucci Latin Vetus, arabicizing itself later to give the present form.

Aroche is a village with a great historical past. Its origins dates back to around the end of the neolithic period (about VII century BC). The first settlements were probably celtics. It is also found the only menhir of the province.

The Roman period begins about 194 BC. The reason why the romans entered in that area wasn't a political one but it was due to the existence of coal mines.There were two Roman settlement during that time: Arucci Vetus and Turobriga.

It is belived from the coins found that there was trade commercial activities with the Valle del Guadalquivir, Portugal, Tarraco, etc. Aroche was an important settlement, even had own amphitheatre.

Unfortunately, there isn't Visigothic period information

The Arabians also settled in this area. At the middle of the 10th. century, Al Razi describes the castle placed on the top of Aroche pertaining to 'Kûra de Baya" (Kûra: administrative division), likewise Ibn Galip situates the village named AWRÛS in the same Kûra, deducing then, that Aroche was a military district of Kûra de Beja (Portugal).

At the end of the XII th. century the "Ordenes Militares del Hospital y Santiago" started the Portuguese reconquest. In the XIII th. century Moura, Serpa, Aracena y Aroche had already been reconquested breaking this way the border and creating distrust between Castilla and Portugal.

The disagreements between Sancho II with the Holy See made him go to the Castilian King Fernando III who offered to help him with the condition that he had to leave some of his territory situated in the east of the Guadiana. This affaire was delegated to his son Alfonso X, giving to the Castilian Crown back Aroche and Aracena. Between 1249 and 1251 after Sancho II death, his brother Alfonso III reconquest Aroche and Aracena among other villages.

In 1255 Alfonso III gave Aroche a Lusitanian law-code and in 1267 the border was restablished and situated over de Guadiana river.