San Javier () 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 autonomous community and province of Murcia in southeastern

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 ...

. The municipality is situated at the northern end of Murcia's

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

coastline, the Costa Cálida.

History

There is little trace in the historical and archaeological record of early human habitation in the municipality itself. There is, however, evidence of prehistoric human presence at several nearby locations, including Cabezo Gordo hill in Torre-Pacheco and the salty coastal lagoon, the Mar Menor. San Javier was prized for its climate in

Roman Hispania Hispania was the Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula. Under the Roman Republic, Hispania was divided into two provinces: Hispania Citerior and Hispania Ulterior. During the Principate, Hispania Ulterior was divided into two new provinces, Baet ...

, and for the Mar Menor, where a salt industry developed. Traces of

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 ...

and Carthaginian presence remain. A major Roman road, the '' Via Augusta'', passes through the area and there are several underwater sites where, among other artefacts, pots and amphorae have been found. In

Al-Andalus Al-Andalus () was the Muslim-ruled area of the Iberian Peninsula. The name refers to the different Muslim states that controlled these territories at various times between 711 and 1492. At its greatest geographical extent, it occupied most o ...

, during Islamic rule in the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

, while there was little Arab or Berber presence in the territory of the current municipality there is evidence of use of their fishing technology, known in Spanish as ''encañizada''. Muslim presence is also attested in nearby Los Alcázares, where walls and cisterns from this period remain. When King Alfonso X of Castile conquered 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 ...

of Murcia, the coastal area was only sparsely occupied, by shepherds and fishermen. The Huerta de Murcia and Mar Menor regions were gradually repopulated between the 13th and 16th centuries. Some of the families obtaining property near the Mar Menor took their surnames from the local area: Lo de Tacón, Saavedra, Roda, Galtero y Aledo. New churches and chapels were built as new population centres developed. At the beginning of the 18th century, one of these small churches founded the hamlet of San Javier. By 1809, the population of the villages of San Javier, Roda and La Calavera was 428. During the three years of the ''

Trienio Liberal The , () or Three Liberal Years, was a period of three years in Spain between 1820 and 1823 when a liberal government ruled Spain after a military uprising in January 1820 by the lieutenant-colonel Rafael del Riego against the absolutist rule ...

'' (1820–1823), a number of town councils were established in the Huerta de Murcia and Mar Menor regions. One of these was in San Javier. When this period ended, the town council of San Javier was abolished and the area once again became a district of the municipality of Murcia. The San Javier town council was reinstated in 1836. Over the last 30 years of the 19th century, economic hardship and poverty in the municipality led inhabitants to migrate to find work as farmhands and miners, in La Unión in Murcia and

Oran Oran () is a major coastal city located in the northwest of Algeria. It is considered the second most important city of Algeria, after the capital, Algiers, because of its population and commercial, industrial and cultural importance. It is w ...

in Algeria. At the close of the 19th century the area had 3,770 inhabitants, of whom half were farmers and the remainder fishermen and artisans. Some families prospered despite local poverty, becoming wealthy through dealings in land. A new middle class of administrators of country estates, entrepreneurs, mine owners, moneylenders and farmers emerged. Settlement of the area known today as Santiago de la Ribera began in 1888. A Naval Flying School was founded in San Javier in 1932. In 1943, the San Javier General Air Force Academy (''Academia General del Aire'') was established, founding a new neighbourhood, Ciudad del Aire.

Administrative divisions

The administrative perimeter of the municipality includes the town and ten smaller villages. Of these, the last two in the list are located on the coast: *El Mirador *La Grajuela *Roda *Los Sáez de Tarquinales *Pozo Aledo *Los Pinos *Lo Llerena *La Calavera *Santiago de la Ribera * La Manga del Mar Menor

Climate

Aerodrome

A military aerodrome was built in Santiago de la Ribera before 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 ...

. Its Bomber School (''Escuela de Vuelo de Alta Velocidad'') and Multi-Engine Aircraft School ''(Escuela de polimotores)'' were used by the

Spanish Republican Air Force The Spanish Republican Air Force was the air arm of the Armed Forces of the Second Spanish Republic, the legally established government of Spain between 1931 and 1939. Initially divided into two branches: Military Aeronautics () and Naval Aeron ...

to train military pilots.Memoria republicana — SBHAC. Estructura orgánica de las FARE
/ref> After the Civil War, the airfield was used by the

Spanish Air Force The Spanish Air and Space Force () is the aerial and space warfare branch of the Spanish Armed Forces. History Early stages Hot air balloons have been used with military purposes in Spain as far back as 1896. In 1905, with the help of Al ...

as an occasional landing facility. Currently it is the location of

Murcia–San Javier Airport Murcia–San Javier Airport is a military airport and former civilian passenger airport located in San Javier, southeast of Murcia, Spain. It is owned by the Spanish Air and Space Force. It was replaced (after several delays) by the new Regi ...

, which was to August 2018 the largest in the Region of Murcia.Ejército del Aire - Academia General del Aire (AGA)

Notable people

* Antonio Cañadas, footballer

References

External links

Ayuntamiento de San Javier
(In Spanish)
San Javier - Región de Murcia Digital
(In Spanish)

{{authority control Municipalities in the Region of Murcia Populated coastal places in Spain