The medieval age

The importance of these lands in the later medieval period needs to be understood within a framework of border politics and the partitioning up of the feudal estates which are the origins of the modern municipal districts. A large part of Orxeta’s history is associated with the Islamic culture. However, its rising prosperity was interrupted during the reign of King Felipe III, due to the expulsion of the “Moriscos” (Moslem converts to Christianity) in 1609. Nevertheless, Orxeta did not appear to take part in the disturbances and uprisings which took place in that period throughout the local region, due to the Knight Commander Jerónimo Ferrer who maintained the peace. For this reason, the king granted the possession of the lands in La Vila Joiosa region to the Military Order of Santiago, which had previously belonged to the now expulsed Moriscos.