Guía de Montejaque
Located between mountains and within the Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park, Montejaque has been an enclave of interest throughout history. Its popular place name, in different tourist brochures, contains an etymology and spelling in Arabic for Montejaque, the result of the lucubration of some scholar: "Monte-Xaquez = Lost Mountain". The "hidden town" would be a more appropriate name. The most reliable and definitely adopted current is "Munt-Šāqir" or Holy Mountain. There was during this time a medieval citadel that gave a view of much of the Serranía. During the Arab occupation, Montejaque enjoyed considerable importance. This construction disappeared completely, leaving only its name on Finca El Castillo. Another of the historic places in this municipality is the place known as "El Puente", where we can still see the remains of a Roman bridge over the Campobuche River. After the reconquest at the hands of the Catholic Monarchs, the town was handed over to the Count of Benavente, whom they named Lord of Montejaque and Benaoján, ceasing to belong to the suburbs of Ronda. Later, during the uprising of the Moorish people in the area in the 16th century, there were several attacks against the Moorish mayor Mohamad Idriz, for sympathizing with the Christian troops. For his courage and tenacity he was granted land and a pension for life. In the mid-17th century it was the summer residence of D. Miguel Mañara (the myth of Don Juan Tenorio) and his wife Doña Jerónima Carrillo de Mendoza y Castrillo, Lady of the Mayorazgo of Montejaque and Benaoján. The traveler cannot miss a visit to the church of Santiago el Mayor, built at the beginning of the s. XVI and reformed during the s. XVIII. Its main style is late Gothic, of which the tierceron vault, which covers the presbytery, is preserved. In it is buried, after her death in 1661, Doña Jerónima, wife of Don Miguel Mañara. Montejaque also keeps stories to tell during the War of Independence against the French, such as the confrontation that the guerrilla José Aguilar had against the Napoleonic troops on the Gaduares river bridge on October 20, 1810; men from Montejaque, Benaoján, Atajate, Cortes de la Frontera and Jimera del Líbar participated in this contest, there were only 200 people against almost 700 French soldiers, despite the numerical inferiority they were victorious. Its protected natural landscapes of valleys, limestone plateaus, caves, torcal and cliffs make this environment the ideal setting for practicing adventure sports such as mountaineering, hiking, cycling, climbing and caving. Take bird watching tours, landscape photography or simply sit and watch a herd of grazing goats, sheep or cows, vultures flying overhead, the deer bellowing; look at the arrangement of rocks over time in a torcal, see a stalactite or stalagmite in a cave and understand the time it has taken to form, or the sensations that are perceived at the top of a large cliff when looking at the horizon mountainous. Getting lost in the narrow streets that make up this town, typically Andalusian, is a real pleasure, preserving the vitality of a modern town, but with deep roots that make us travel to past times. Another attraction of Montejaque is its traditional cuisine that revolves around products derived from the Iberian pig along with those of the land, Olla, Tagarninas Stew, Loin and Chorizo in butter and sweets such as Torta de Chicharrones, homemade jams and mistela, are typical delicacies that can be tasted. The street map will allow you to locate each place of interest and each bar or restaurant where you can taste the rich local products. COME and LIVE IT. The Privacy and Data Protection Policy can be found at the following URL: https://www.juntadeandalucia.es/protecciondedatos.html
