Baena is a town and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

located in the province of Córdoba,

Andalusia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

. It is situated near the on the slope of a hill southeast of

Córdoba Córdoba most commonly refers to: * Córdoba, Spain, a major city in southern Spain and formerly the imperial capital of Islamic Spain * Córdoba, Argentina, the second largest city in Argentina and the capital of Córdoba Province Córdoba or Cord ...

by road. The population of the town is 20,266 (2012).

History

The site of the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

town (''Baniana'' or ''Biniana''). In 1833, a subterranean vault was discovered, containing twelve

cinerary urn An urn is a vase, often with a cover, with a typically narrowed neck above a rounded body and a footed pedestal. Describing a vessel as an "urn", as opposed to a vase or other terms, generally reflects its use rather than any particular shape or ...

s with inscriptions commemorating members of the Pompeian family. Following the demise of the

Caliphate of Córdoba A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

, the town was ravaged by Berbers, bringing its prosperity to an end. Once conquered Córdoba, Ferdinand III rapidly acquired a number of towns in the Campiña—including Baena—in 1241, probably meeting no resistance. The hill is crowned by fortifications. In 1292, Nasrid Granada, ruled by Muhammad II, unsuccessfully besieged the citadel, which was held for Sancho IV; the five Moorish heads in its

coat-of-arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achiev ...

commemorates the occasion. The castile was a base for

Gonzalo de Cordova Gonzalo may refer to: * Gonzalo (name) * Gonzalo, Dominican Republic, a small town * Isla Gonzalo, a subantarctic island operated by the Chilean Navy * Hurricane Gonzalo, 2014 See also * Gonzalez (disambiguation) * Gonzales (disambiguation) * ...

and was held in the 19th century by the Altamira family. At that time, it held four

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

es and three

schools A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of ...

conducted by sisters of charity. The girls' school held a high reputation in its province, despite not going beyond reading, writing, arithmetic, and religious instruction. Its population was around 12,000 in the 1870s and 15,000 by the turn of the century.

Grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached husk, hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and ...

and

olive oil Olive oil is a vegetable oil obtained by pressing whole olives (the fruit of ''Olea europaea'', a traditional Tree fruit, tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin) and extracting the oil. It is commonly used in cooking for frying foods, as a cond ...

were the principal articles of commerce in the 19th century; by the time of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

horse-breeding Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired characteristics in ...

and linen-weaving had also developed, despite the nearest

railroad station A train station, railroad station, or railway station is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight, or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track, and a station building providing such ...

being at

Luque Luque () is a city in Central Department of Paraguay, part of the Gran Asunción metropolitan area. Both 1635 and 1750 have been recorded as dates of its founding. It was temporarily the capital of Paraguay in 1868 during the Paraguayan War ...

. At the beginning of the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

the town was the scenario of the Baena Massacre, a mass execution of

Spanish republicans The Republican faction (), also known as the Loyalist faction () or the Government faction (), was the side in the Spanish Civil War of 1936 to 1939 that supported the government of the Second Spanish Republic against the Nationalist faction of t ...

where about 700 loyalists were murdered by the orders of rebel Colonel Sáenz de Buruaga following the killing of 99 Nationalists and their families who were being held hostage by Republican soldiers. Other estimates mention up to 2,000 victims following the brutal repression in Baena.No solo corrieron rios de sangre en Badajoz
/ref> High-quality olive oil continues to be the mainstay of the local economy.

Sierras Subbéticas Natural Park Sierra is a Spanish language, Spanish word meaning mountain chain and saw, from Latin ''Serra (disambiguation), serra''. The corresponding word in Portuguese language, Portuguese, Catalan language, Catalan and Latin is ''serra''. This name is used ...

is located to the south of the town.

Notable residents

Juan de Penalosa ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. The name is of Hebrew origin and has the meaning "God has been gracious." It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking countries around the world and in the Philippi ...

References

;Citations ;Bibliography *
Baena at andalucia.com
* . * . Municipalities in the Province of Córdoba (Spain) {{andalusia-geo-stub