A briefing on Alicante History

Alicante is a touristic city located by the Mediterranean Sea. It is the second most important city of the region of Valencia with a population of more than 330,000 people. Situated on the Costa Blanca, it is an important player in Spain's tourism.

Alicante history originates from very safe and strategic places located by the sea; one of them was Mt Benacantil, the other was located in the ´Benalúa´ area while the last one was situated in Albufereta and the mountainous area of Serra Grossa.

When the moors arrived into Alicante, they started to arrange the city. However, it was the king Alfonso X, “El Sabio” (the Wise) who conquered it in 1246. It was years after in 1308 when the king James I amalgamated Alicante into the Kingdom of Valencia. Eventually the Catholic King, Ferdinand, awarded a city status to Alicante in 1490.

One hundred years later Alicante became the natural port of the kingdom of ´Castilla´ favouring the maritime trade in such a way that it developed into the third biggest trading city in Spain.

The city was bombed for a week in 1691 by the French Armada. Later on the Succession War happened (1701-14), when the Brits attacked part of Alicante’s castle. Moreover, the city was also the provisional capital of the Land of Valencia during the War of Independence (1804 -1814).

It started to recover at the beginning of the 19th century when its importance as a port city increased with the arrival of railways in 1858. Later on within that century new boroughs were created when the city walls were demolished.

Nowadays Alicante is seen as an established services and tourism hub.