Despeñaperros (literally, '' liff wheredogs plunge'') is a

gorge A canyon (from ; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), or gorge, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosion, erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tenden ...

canyon A canyon (from ; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), or gorge, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosion, erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tenden ...

carved out by the Despeñaperros river. It is located in the

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

of Santa Elena in the northern portion of the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

of Jaén,

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. The area was declared a natural park by the

Andalusian Autonomous Government The Regional Government of Andalusia ( es, Junta de Andalucía) is the government of the Autonomous Community of Andalusia. It consists of the Parliament, the President of the Regional Government and the Government Council. The 2011 budget was 31. ...

, primarily for its

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...

and

landscape A landscape is the visible features of an area of land, its landforms, and how they integrate with natural or man-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. A landscape includes the ...

, but also for its notable

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. E ...

and

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. Zoo ...

. The gorge has steep walls, some more than in height. It has historically been much used by humans as a natural

pass Pass, PASS, The Pass or Passed may refer to: Places *Pass, County Meath, a townland in Ireland * Pass, Poland, a village in Poland *Pass, an alternate term for a number of straits: see List of straits *Mountain pass, a lower place in a mountai ...

through the

Sierra Morena The Sierra Morena is one of the main systems of mountain ranges in Spain. It stretches for 450 kilometres from east to west across the south of the Iberian Peninsula, forming the southern border of the ''Meseta Central'' plateau and providi ...

, constituting a principal path of connection between

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a ...

and the Meseta Central, Castile-La Mancha, and the rest of Spain. Today the Despeñaperros is the route of the

Autovía A-4 The Autovía A-4 or Autopista AP-4 (also called ''Autovía del Sur'' that means ''Southern Autovía'') is a Spanish autovía and autopista route which starts in Madrid and ends in Cádiz. The Autopista AP-4; formerly tolled, (from Seville to C� ...

and of one of Andalusia's most important

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

connections to the rest of Spain. Until the 1992 construction of the high-speed

Puertollano Puertollano () is a municipality of Spain located in the province of Ciudad Real, Castile-La Mancha. The city has a population of 47,035 (2019). Contrasting to the largely rural character of the region, Puertollano stands out for the importance of ...

– Córdoba route ( to the west), this rail route was second in importance only to the Mérida–

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

line in terms of connecting from Andalusia to the rest of Spain.

Geology

The Sierra de Despeñaperos is located at the eastern limit of the Sierra Morena. The mountain range is oriented east–west, but is crossed by some rivers oriented north–south, so that some zones of the Meseta Central drain south to the Guadalquivir and thence to the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

, crossing the theoretical natural barrier of the range. One of these is the Despeñaperros river, but the Guarrizas also crosses to the east, forming the beautiful Cimbarra Falls, protected as a ''paraje natural''. The Despeñaperros flows into the Guarrizas about south of the gorge. The vertical walls of the gorge expose geological layers that reveal the history of the surrounding land. The walls are composed of extremely hard "Armorican"

quartzite Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock which was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tect ...

, formed in the ocean 500 million years ago in the

Paleozoic The Paleozoic (or Palaeozoic) Era is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. The name ''Paleozoic'' ( ;) was coined by the British geologist Adam Sedgwick in 1838 by combining the Greek words ''palaiós'' (, "old") and ' ...

, which were later covered by more recent materials. In the

Carboniferous The Carboniferous ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic that spans 60 million years from the end of the Devonian Period million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Permian Period, million years ago. The name ''Carbonifero ...

these were elevated and exposed to erosion, finally to be discovered here and at Cimbarra Falls. According to the prevailing theory, it took some 320 million years of the Variscan orogeny for the continental collision of

Laurasia Laurasia () was the more northern of two large landmasses that formed part of the Pangaea supercontinent from around ( Mya), the other being Gondwana. It separated from Gondwana (beginning in the late Triassic period) during the breakup of Pan ...

and

Gondwana Gondwana () was a large landmass, often referred to as a supercontinent, that formed during the late Neoproterozoic (about 550 million years ago) and began to break up during the Jurassic period (about 180 million years ago). The final stages ...

to crush the Armorican continent. In the

strata In geology and related fields, a stratum ( : strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as ei ...

of Armorican quartzite some spectacular ripples or crinkles are visible,

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

effects of

wave In physics, mathematics, and related fields, a wave is a propagating dynamic disturbance (change from equilibrium) of one or more quantities. Waves can be periodic, in which case those quantities oscillate repeatedly about an equilibrium (res ...

s, similar to those that can be observed in any deep, sandy sea, which reveals their origin. Trace fossils also remain of organisms that left their mark in the sandy sediments during the Ordovician, almost 500 years ago. Among the formations visible in Despeñaperros are several that have been given names of their own: ''El Salto del Fraile'' ("Friar's Leap"), ''Las Correderas'' ("The Slides"), or ''Los Órganos'' ("The Organs"). In this last, the quartzite had been folded until it stood in vertical strata, which

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is distin ...

then gave the forms of pointed tubes, evoking the musical instrument the

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

. ''Los Órganos'' has status as a natural monument in its own right.

Flora

Like the rest of the eastern Sierra Morena, the Despeñaperros is dominated by

Mediterranean forest Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub is a biome defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. The biome is generally characterized by dry summers and rainy winters, although in some areas rainfall may be uniform. Summers are typically hot in ...

. Holm oak (''

Quercus ilex ''Quercus ilex'', the evergreen oak, holly oak or holm oak is a large evergreen oak native to the Mediterranean region. It is a member of the ''Ilex'' section of the genus, with acorns that mature in a single summer. Description An evergreen tr ...

'') and cork oak ('' Quercus suber'') predominate, along with Portuguese oak (''

Quercus faginea ''Quercus faginea'', the Portuguese oak, is a species of oak native to the western Mediterranean region in the Iberian Peninsula. Similar trees in the Atlas Mountains of northwest Africa are usually included in this species, or sometimes treate ...

''), Pyrenean oak (''

Quercus pyrenaica ''Quercus pyrenaica'', commonly known as Pyrenean oak, is a tree native to southwestern Europe and northwestern North Africa. Despite its common name, it is rarely found in the Pyrenees Mountains and is more abundant in northern Portugal and nort ...

'') and various pines: stone pine ('' Pinus pinea''), Aleppo pine ('' Pinus halepensis''), and European black pine (''

Pinus nigra ''Pinus nigra'', the Austrian pine or black pine, is a moderately variable species of pine, occurring across Southern Europe from the Iberian Peninsula to the eastern Mediterranean, on the Anatolian peninsula of Turkey, Corsica and Cyprus, as wel ...

''). The predominant

shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...

s are strawberry trees (''

Arbutus unedo ''Arbutus unedo'' is an evergreen shrub or small tree in the family Ericaceae, native to the Mediterranean region and western Europe. The tree is well known for its fruits, which bear some resemblance to the strawberry — hence the common name ...

''), heather (genus '' Erica''), rockroses of the genus ''

Cistus ''Cistus'' (from the Greek ''kistos'') is a genus of flowering plants in the rockrose family Cistaceae, containing about 20 species (Ellul ''et al.'' 2002). They are perennial shrubs found on dry or rocky soils throughout the Mediterranean region ...

'', myrtle (genus ''

Myrtus ''Myrtus'' (commonly called myrtle) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Myrtaceae. It was first described by Swedish botanist Linnaeus in 1753. Over 600 names have been proposed in the genus, but nearly all have either been moved ...

'') and kermes oak (''

Quercus coccifera ''Quercus coccifera'', the kermes oak, is an oak bush in the ''Ilex'' section of the genus. It is native to the Mediterranean region and Northern African Maghreb, south to north from Morocco to France and west to east from Portugal to Cyprus an ...

''). There are also riparian forests along the various rivers and streams, shadier and more humid, with alders (genus ''

Alnus Alders are trees comprising the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus comprises about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few spec ...

''), ash (genus ''

Fraxinus ''Fraxinus'' (), common name, commonly called ash, is a genus of flowering plants in the olive and lilac family, Oleaceae. It contains 45–65 species of usually medium to large trees, mostly deciduous, though a number of Subtropics, subtropic ...

'') and willows (genus '' Salix''). The natural park also holds 30

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

unique in the world, and others unique in the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...

Fauna

There is an important presence of

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...

(''Cervidae'') and

wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...

s (''Sus scrofa''); there are authorized

hunts Hunt's is the name of a brand of preserved tomato products owned by Conagra Brands. The company was founded in 1888, in Sebastopol, California, as the Hunt Bros. Fruit Packing Co., by Joseph and William Hunt. The brothers relocated to nearby San ...

of both. There are also Iberian lynxes (''Lynx pardinus'') and

wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; plural, : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large Canis, canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of Canis lupus, subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been reco ...

, as well as small carnivores such as

fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

es,

Egyptian mongoose The Egyptian mongoose (''Herpestes ichneumon''), also known as ichneumon (), is a mongoose species native to the coastal regions along the Mediterranean Sea between North Africa and Turkey, tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrub ...

s (''Herpestes ichneumon'') and

wildcat The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') and the African wildcat (''F. lybica''). The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while the ...

s (''Felis silvestris''). Birds in Despeñaperros include the Spanish imperial eagle (''Aquila adalberti'', also known as Adalbert's eagle) and the griffon vulture (''Gyps fulvus'').

History

Early history

As well as the Cimbarra Falls and the

cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

s in the area, Despeñaperros has important examples of

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...

cave painting In archaeology, Cave paintings are a type of parietal art (which category also includes petroglyphs, or engravings), found on the wall or ceilings of caves. The term usually implies prehistoric origin, and the oldest known are more than 40,000 ye ...

, proof that humans have long been aware of these passages between the Meseta Central and

. Notable among the area's caves are the ''Cueva de los Muñecos'' and the ''Cuevas de las Vacas del Rematoso''. During the

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

, local caves were often use for depositing bronze votive offerings for the local gods. Many are now in the National Archaeological Museum in Madrid but a representative sample is kept in the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

in London. Separating as it does the central part of Spain from the south of the peninsula, the Sierra Morena and its defiles have always had great military importance. The remains of a Roman road lead to the ruins of the castle of (the name ''castro'' being a sign of its antiquity). The castle was later occupied by the

Almohads The Almohad Caliphate (; ar, خِلَافَةُ ٱلْمُوَحِّدِينَ or or from ar, ٱلْمُوَحِّدُونَ, translit=al-Muwaḥḥidūn, lit=those who profess the unity of God) was a North African Berber Muslim empire fo ...

until it was captured and garrisoned by

Alfonso VIII Alfonso VIII (11 November 11555 October 1214), called the Noble (''El Noble'') or the one of Las Navas (''el de las Navas''), was King of Castile from 1158 to his death and King of Toledo. After having suffered a great defeat with his own army at ...

's troops on 18 July 1212, following the Battle of the Navas de Tolosa.

Peninsular War

During the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...

, especially during the first weeks of June 1808, Napoleon's troops had great difficulty in maintaining fluid communications between Madrid and Andalusia, mainly due to the activity of guerrilleros in the Sierra Morena. The first attack around Despeñaperros took place on 5 June 1808, when two squadrons of French dragoons were attacked at the northern entrance to the pass and forced to retreat to the nearby town of

Almuradiel Almuradiel is a municipality in Ciudad Real, Castile-La Mancha, Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: " ...

. On 19 June General Vedel was ordered to head south from Toledo with a division of 6,000 men, 700 horses and 12 guns to force a passage over the Sierra Morena, hold the mountains from the guerrillas and link up with Dupont, pacifying Castile-La Mancha along the way. Foy, Maximilien Sébastien (1827
''History of the war in the Peninsula under Napoleon, to which is prefixed a view of the political and military state of the four belligerent powers, publ. by the countess Foy, Volume 2'', pp. 315–317.
At Google Books. Retrieved 25 August 2013. Vedel was joined during the march by small detachments under Generals Roize and Ligier-Belair. On 26 June 1808 Vedel's column defeated Lieutenant-Colonel Valdecaños' detachment of Spanish regulars and guerrillas with six guns blocking the mountain pass of Puerta del Rey and the following day met up with Dupont at

La Carolina La Carolina is a Municipalities of Spain, city and municipality located in the Province of Jaén (Spain), province of Jaén, Spain. According to the 2014 census, the municipality has a population of 15,808 inhabitants. History La Carolina was fo ...

, reestablishing military communications with Madrid after a month of disruption. Finally, General

Gobert Gobert is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *André Gobert (1890–1951), French tennis player *Anthony Gobert (born 1975), Australian motorcycle road racer *Dedrick D. Gobert (1971-1994), American actor *Émile Joseph Isidore Go ...

's division set out from Madrid on 2 July to reinforce Dupont. However, only one brigade of his division ultimately reached Dupont, the rest being needed to hold the road north against the guerrillas. File:P_n_despenaperros.jpg , General view of the Despeñaperros Natural Park File:Parque Despeñaperros2.JPG , Despeñaperros path, sight to La Mancha File:Órganos Despeñaperros.JPG , Natural Monument of Los Órganos File:Vacas del Retamoso.JPG , Cave paintings: Anthropomorphic and zoomorphic depictions in one hillside of "Los Órganos" File:Pinturas Despeñaperros1.JPG , Cave paintings: Vertical lines and different figures

References

External links

Parque Natural de Despeñaperros
official site of Santa Elena municipality, within whose borders the park falls; warning: heavy use of

Adobe Flash Adobe Flash (formerly Macromedia Flash and FutureSplash) is a multimedia Computing platform, software platform used for production of Flash animation, animations, rich web applications, application software, desktop applications, mobile apps, mo ...

Parque Natural Despeñaperros
Ventana del Visitante de los Espacios Naturales Protegidos de Andalucía (Despeñaperros Natural Park on the official site of the Autonomous Andalusian Government)
Los Órganos
Ventana del Visitante de los Espacios Naturales Protegidos de Andalucía ("Los Órganos" on the official site of the Autonomous Andalusian Government) {{DEFAULTSORT:Despenaperros Sierra Morena Natural parks of Spain Canyons and gorges of Spain Natural parks of Andalusia Landforms of Andalusia Peninsular War