Javea History

The itinerary which will let us know the urbanism and history of the medieval Vila of Javea starts where the Porta de la Mar , one of the three accesses which its wall had, was raised.

In 1244, Denia capitulated in favour of King Jaime I, and Pere Eiximen Carroç, who directed the conquest of the navy, carried out the division of this zone. But the repopulating was slow and little effective until the Musulman revolts of Al-Azraq in 1279 did not end.

The first documental news that speaks of Javea comes from King Jaime II, fruit of the need of reinforcing the lands of the south, since the XIV century begins labelled by two conflicts: the war with Castille from 1296 and the "razzias" of the people of Granada (1304, 1308), with the aid of the Mudejar population of the kingdom. This King maintained a policy of fortifications and in his documentation he describes some elements of the primitive nucleus of the Vila. It was a small enclosure closed by an adobe wall with loafer towers. One of them, probably that of En Cairat seems to have formed part of a previous construction, an Islamic farmhouse.

The wall went along the streets Sor María Gallard , Primícies ,Major y Roques. In the interior he speaks of another tower (the current apse of the church), of a church and of houses.

The growth was slow and in 1333, "the first bad year", a period of recession started. In 1397 the title of VILA with a Council and district was granted, but it continued forming part of the County of Denia.

The XV century began with the recovery and the increase of the population, with a clear reflection in urbanism. The primitive enclosure was insufficient and the walls were demolished to open new roads carrer Nou or to take advantage of it in the construction of new houses.

The division of the Vila was effected and the new plan of the walls with the doors of la Mar , of Sant Vicent or of theFerreria and of Sant Jaume or of the Clot.

The central nucleus was occupied by the local oligarchy with important constructions. A clear example is the Palau dels Sapena , Lords of Benitatxell and of Lluca. On its ground floor the great doorway with a Roman arch has disappeared -similar to the one which is conserved in Nº 47 Major Street, but it maintains the gallery of carpanel arches as well as the double windows with three lobes, although the small columns of the mullion have not been preserved. It corresponds to the typical constructions of the civil gothic.

The rest of the Vila was inhabited by the "mà menor" (peasants, craftsmen, fishermen, etc.). The houses were conditioned by the previous division into long narrow plots. The facade consisted of a door with a Roman arch with keystones worked in sandstone and on the upper floor, a threshold window or a conical arch of reduced dimensions with a dedge of worked sandstone or a double window. This type of manufacture or some of its most characteristic elements (a Roman frontispiece) continued being used until the first part of the XVII century.

The growth of the population and the instability due to the assaults of the Berber Corsairs, which had been continuos from the XV century, made it advisable to enlarge the fortress. In 1513 the works of the great nave with internal buttresses of the Església de Sant Bertomeu directed by Domingo de Urteaga began.

Of a gothic Isabelline style, it presents a unique nave with lateral chapels between the buttresses, following the Mediterranean model. The dome is of crosspieces and the decorative elements which it presents are scarce in the interior, as well as in the exterior, where they concentrate in the two frontispieces. A watch tower with belfry functions and the old sacristy were raised. The set is finished with battlements and it has loopholes, windows for the mortars and two objectives perfectly, to defend the population and to cover the religious needs of the people. The Església de I'Oreto was also constructed in 1515, near the Porta de la Mar, where a small garden is currently found.

Another need, when the pest outbreaks were relatively customary, was covered by the hospital (1502), of which only the Capella de Santa Anna is conserved. It seems that Javea was not very affected as the demographic data which we have demonstrates. In 1510, there were some 930 inhabitants -the greatest population of the region- and a century later it reached 1800 inhabitants. The greatest preoccupation of the monarchy in the XVI century was the "Moor issue", a problem which finished in the reign of Philip III with the expulsion of the Moors in 1609, lessening the population of the interior valleys of the region. The Palau d'Antoni Banyuls , member of the court, of which its superior gallery with clear Castilian influence stands out, belongs to

The XVIII century began with the defeat of Almansa and the Decree of New Plant (1709), by which the Valencian jurisdictions were abolished. Javea, which participated in the succession war together with the Bourbon band, obtained in exchange a series of privileges which impelled it demographically and economically throughout the century, ahead of the rest of the region, follower of the Austrian band. Toguether with the honorific titles, it obtained for the port a concession of exportation of merchandise and fruits of the country. This united to its situation, safe from storms, and its capacity for vessels of great tonnage, converted the port into the activator of the local economy, first with the importation of wheat and afterwards with the trade of raisins.

The economy of the population, eminently agricultural, was based on the cultivation of dry lands: wheat, almonds, vineyards, carob-trees and olive trees. The wheat was the most important, the local as well as that imported from Sicily. Its transformation into flour provoked the development of the mill, as in the case of the windmills of la Plana and the water mills of les Barranqueres. It is fitting to emphasise the growing importance of the elaboration and marketing of raisins which reached a peak in the XIX century.

The growth of the population was reflected in the urban expansion of the suburbs of the Convent , of Baix, of Sant Jaume and Patraix, all outside the walls. A change in the architectonic language was produced: the houses were more spacious, being reflected in a wider facade with an architrave door, cart entrance and more windows toward the exterior. Following these trends many gothic arches were suppressed.

Between 1810 and 1812 the war "of the French" passed, with different raids in the Vila of Javea on the part of the troops quartered in the Castell of Denia.

From the second half of the XIX century, the production, elaboration and exportation of raisins was converted into the motor of modernisation thanks to a strong increase in the demand of the North European and American markets, which resulted in the appearance of a local middle-class mercantile. These families also chose the surroundings of the church to build the most ostentatious buildings, as the Casa de la Senyoreta Josefina , the Casa dels Bolufer and the Casa de les Primícies . The agrarian owners also built larger houses as those which can be admired in the Carrer En Grenyó , in the Carrer Major and in the Tossal de Dalt .

In 1873 the walls were demolished and the execution of l´Eixample (broaden) was carried out with wide avenues which favoured the transit of merchandise toward the port, joining it with the Placeta del Convent , where the principal roads of the region reached. In its surroundings and in the current Príncep d'Asturies Avenue , the farmers enriched, thanks to the raisins, were situated.

In the Avinguda d'Alacant part of the commercial middle-class was installed. In this period the eclectic style, which was profoundly established in the society of Javea of the XIX century, triumphed. We can basically differentiate three models. One of them follows the standards of symmetry and austerity of the Casa dels Bolufer , with flat sandstone mouldings which marked the division between the different floors, emphasising the horizontal position of the building, framing windows and doors, as well as in the base. The gratings and balconies are forged and the wood is imported from mobila .

Another model es that of the houses which follow a "romantic" style, which substitute the flat sandstone mouldings for others of plaster with vegetable motives .

Finally, we find a group of houses which collect numerous neo-classical elements as the pilasters which frame the entrance, with a roman arch and fan mount and triglyphs and metopes under the projection .

All this economic and urban development was accompanied by an adequate infrastructure as the Port Customs, the Ajudantía de Marina (1878), Sanitation, the telegraphic cable (1860), electrical lighting (1902) and public fountains (1922), but also of a complete series of institutions devoted to leisure: Theatre (1895), Pelota Court, Bullring (1917), Coffee Shops, recreational societies, etc. The physiognomy of Javea fully enters modernity

Parochial church of Ntra. Sra. de Loreto
It was inaugurated in 1.967. It is built from cement and iron. Its avant-garde oval structure represents a boat and has twelve large struts on the outside wall which appear to be supporting the church and which represent the twelve apostles. Inside our attention will surely be captured by the impressive roof in the shape of a fishing boat which represents Christ´s church. The decoration is scarce, leaving us to appreciate the large crucifix which hangs above the simple altar. Its architectural forms create an impression of elevation towards the supernatural which is strengthened by the zenithal lights.