La Yesa is a small 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' ...

in the ''comarca'' of

Los Serranos Serranos (; ), also known as Serranía (; ), is a Comarques of the Valencian Community, ''comarca'' administrative subdivision in the Provinces of Spain, province of Valencia (province), Valencia, Valencian Community, Spain. It is part of the S ...

in the

Valencian Community The Valencian Community is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid wit ...

, Spain. The name in

Valencian Valencian can refer to: * Something related to the Valencian Community ( Valencian Country) in Spain * Something related to the city of Valencia * Something related to the province of Valencia in Spain * Something related to the old Kingdom of ...

is ''La Iessa'', but the local language is Spanish, not Valencian.

Geography

The municipality covers an area of and as of 2011 had a population of 265 people. La Yesa is located north of Chelva and northwest of

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

, off the provincial road CV-35 which links with the CV-345. It borders Abejuela of

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...

to the northeast. At an altitude of

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

, the climate is dry

continental Continental may refer to: Places * Continental, Arizona, a small community in Pima County, Arizona, US * Continental, Ohio, a small town in Putnam County, US Arts and entertainment * ''Continental'' (album), an album by Saint Etienne * Continen ...

, resulting in hot summers and cold winters (sometimes below 0 °C), where there is frequent snow.

History

The archaeological remains found in La Yesa attest to a settlement during Roman times. Alpuente and La Yesa were also coveted by the Cid, who seized the land in the late eleventh century. In the Muslim period it was part of the

Taifa The taifas (from ''ṭā'ifa'', plural ''ṭawā'if'', meaning "party, band, faction") were the independent Muslim principalities and kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula (modern Portugal and Spain), referred to by Muslims as al-Andalus, that em ...

Kingdom of Alpuente(ninth century), being conquered by James I in 1236 and delivered to

Juan de Auñón ''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 ...

in 1238. In 1583, King

Philip II of Spain Philip II (21 May 152713 September 1598), sometimes known in Spain as Philip the Prudent (), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from 1580, and King of Naples and List of Sicilian monarchs, Sicily from 1554 until his death in 1598. He ...

granted the status of University and in 1587 it was declared an independent village.

Economy

The municipal economy revolves around agriculture and livestock. In 1611 wheat was reportedly sold for 110 ''sous'' in La Yesa. The town has a growing tourism sector on weekends and holidays, which has fueled the growth of several shops and bars. Kaolin mining and construction are the main industries. The municipality has close ties with the neighboring municipality of Alpuente, the town of which lies to the southwest of La Yesa.

Notable landmarks

Notable hermitages include Ermita de San Juan, Ermita de San Roque, Ermita de San Sebastián (in disrepair) and the ruined Ermita de Nª Sª de Belén. The principal church is the Iglesia de Nª Sª de los Ángeles, which was completed in 1622 in the Renaissance style with a square tower. The church was burned down in 1840 following the

Carlist Wars The Carlist Wars (, ) were a series of civil wars that took place in Spain during the 19th century. The contenders fought over claims to the throne, although some political differences also existed. Several times during the period from 1833 to 1 ...

but was subsequently reconstructed, completed in 1852. To the left of the façade, recessed, stands the sturdy bell tower of ashlar masonry. Next to the Ermita de San Roque is the Monument to the Carlists, a cross composed of parts of a machine gun on an octagonal stone.

References

External links

Official site
{{authority control Yesa, La Yesa, La