A thousand years of medieval village

Before Atienza, there was Titrhya. That was the name the Arevaci —a Celtiberian people, brothers of those who held Numantia against Rome— gave this place. The necropolis of Cerropozo, on the outskirts, preserves the material memory of that world. There are also Visigothic remains: the hill never ceased to be a strategic piece of contested territory.

Atienza's medieval splendour is born of its geography. The village sits close to the frontier between the Christian and Muslim kingdoms, and just as close to the lands of Aragon. Here passed Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar on his way into exile: the Song of the Cid remembers Atienza as “a mighty crag”, a fortress so firm that the Campeador preferred not to face it.

In the 12th century, after several swings, Atienza finally passes into Castilian hands. Alfonso I of Aragon ordered the building of the church of Santa María del Rey at the foot of the castle: the first Christian church, over a former mosque.

In 1144, King Alfonso VII of León set the boundaries of the Community of Villa y Tierra of Atienza. Five years later, in 1149, he granted the fuero. The village became the visible head of a district of 131 villages and around 2,500 km².

The kings of Castile took advantage of the village's frontier condition to promote mercantile activity. From this impulse comes what would be Atienza's hallmark for centuries: the guild of the muleteers.

In the mid-12th century, King Alfonso VIII —barely four years old— is pursued by the Infantes of Castro. He takes refuge behind the walls of Atienza. Leonese troops besiege the village to seize the child. The inhabitants decide to smuggle him out disguised as a muleteer. The ruse works: the king reaches Ávila safely and the crown is preserved.

Since then, without interruption, La Caballada has been held every Pentecost Sunday — declared a Festival of National Tourist Interest. It is organised by the Brotherhood of the Holy Trinity, which claims to be heir to that muleteer guild and preserves books of agreements and accounts from 1679, plus a parchment from Alfonso VIII himself regulating the brotherhood.

At its peak, Atienza came to have fourteen churches —of which seven survive— and a defensive perimeter of two walled circuits. The castle commanded the hill; the arches of Arrebatacapas, of the Virgen, of the Salida, and the postern of San Julián articulated the passages.

The village was a seigniory of Catherine of Lancaster, wife of Henry III of Castile. To her impulse responds the remodelling of the convent of San Francisco, today one of the few examples of English Gothic in Spain: of the ensemble survives its apse, with tall narrow windows and pointed arches.

In the mid-15th century, amid the war with the Infantes of Aragon, the constable Álvaro de Luna besieges the village. The population suffers a severe decline; many buildings are left in ruin. The decline begins.

From the 15th century, Atienza loses ground to Sigüenza. Losing its frontier status, its mercantile activity wanes. The village remains loyal to the crown: during the War of Succession it hosts King Philip V, who in gratitude donates the rococo chapel of the Immaculate Conception in the church of the Holy Trinity.

The 19th century is lived in fire. Atienza is headquarters of Juan Martín Díez, El Empecinado, during the Peninsular War. French troops under General Duvernet attack the village repeatedly: they loot the churches, sack the houses, batter the castle, and burn much of the town.

In 1833, with the new provincial division, Atienza is incorporated into Guadalajara —previously it had been part of Old Castile and the jurisdiction of Soria.

Atienza recovers, patiently, its cultural density. In 1961 it is declared a Historic-Artistic Site. In 1986 it opens its first museum (San Gil); in 2014, the Interpretation Centre of the Traditional Culture of the Province at the Posada del Cordón. In 2019 it joins the association of The Most Beautiful Villages of Spain.

Today, with around 406 inhabitants, Atienza is part of the Way of El Cid, the Ruta de la Lana of the Way of St. James, and the Don Quixote Route. And it looks forward through its joint candidacy with Sigüenza for the “Sweet & Salt Landscape”, which has advanced to the preliminary report stage for UNESCO World Heritage.