Tinença de Benifassà () is a historical ''

comarca A ''comarca'' (, , , ) is a traditional region or local administrative division found in Portugal, Spain, and some of their former colonies, like Brazil, Nicaragua, and Panama. The term is derived from the term ''marca'', meaning a "march, mark ...

'' of 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 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 ...

. It is nowadays part of the

Baix Maestrat Baix Maestrat (; ) is a coastal Comarques of the Valencian Community, ''comarca'' located in the north of the Provinces of Spain, province of Castellón (province), Castellón, Valencian Community, Spain. The capital of the ''comarca'' is Vinarò ...

, one of the present-day

Comarques of the Valencian Community The ''Comarcas of Spain, comarques'' of the Valencian Community form an intermediate level of administrative subdivision between Municipalities of Spain, municipalities and Provinces of Spain, provinces. They are used as a basis for the provision ...

, even though commercial and human relationships have been stronger with Els Ports in the west, the

Terres de l'Ebre Terres de l'Ebre (, in English 'Ebro, Ebre Lands') is the south-westernmost of the eight regions (Vegueria, ''vegueries'') defined by the Regional Plan of Catalonia. It has a population of 182,231 as of 2022, placing it second to last in terms of ...

in the northeast and the Matarranya in the northwest in historical times.

Geography

The Tinença de Benifassà is situated within a

mountainous A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

area known as Muntanyes de Benifassà located in the southern region of the

Ports de Tortosa-Beseit Ports de Tortosa-Beseit (), also known as Ports de Beseit, or simply as Els Ports or Lo Port by locals, is a limestone mountain massif located at the north-eastern end of the Sistema Ibérico, a complex system of mountain ranges and massifs in ...

. The main villages are Castell de Cabres, la Pobla de Benifassà, el Bellestar, el Boixar, Coratxà, Fredes and

Bel Bel can mean: Mythology * Belenus or Bel, a Celtic deity * Bel (mythology), a title (meaning "lord" or "master") for various gods in Babylonian religion People * Bel (name) * Annabel Linquist, known as Bel, American artist, musician, and entrepr ...

. The Ulldecona Dam, a scenic reservoir supplied by three tributaries of the

Sénia river The Cenia is a coastal river in Spain that flows through the eastern part of the Iberian Peninsula. Along a significant portion of its course, it acts as a border between the provinces of Castelló and Tarragona. It has a length of 50 km and it ...

, is located within the La Pobla de Benifassà municipal limits. With a surface of and a capacity of , the reservoir plays a very important role in the irrigation of agricultural crops in the surrounding region. One of the main products of the area is good-quality

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...

, commercialised as ''Mel de la Tinença de Benifassà''. The ranges of this sparsely-populated mountain area have the most important forested zone of the region. Thus the area of the Tinença de Benifassà together with the neighboring

Serra del Turmell Serra del Turmell, also known as Serra del Mont Turmell, () is an over long mountain range in the Baix Maestrat comarca, Valencian Community, Spain. These mountains and their neighboring ranges are a desolate place with little human habitation. ...

and

Serra de Vallivana Serra de Vallivana (, ) or Muntanyes de Vallivana is an over long mountain range straddling the Alt Maestrat and Baix Maestrat comarcas, Valencian Community, Spain. Geography The highest point of the range is the 1,275 m high Muixacre, located ...

mountain chains was declared a

Site of Community Importance A Site of Community Importance (SCI) is defined in the European Commission Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC) as a site which, in the biogeographical region or regions to which it belongs, contributes significantly to the maintenance or restoration at ...

by the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

under the name Tinença de Benifassà, Turmell i Vallivana.European Parliament - SCI and ZEPA ‘Tinença de Benifassà, Turmell i Vallivana’
/ref>

History

The area was conquered by the

saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century History of Germany, German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to ...

in 1230 and was administered by the

Principality of Catalonia The Principality of Catalonia (; ; ; ) was a Middle Ages, medieval and early modern state (polity), state in the northeastern Iberian Peninsula. During most of its history it was in dynastic union with the Kingdom of Aragon, constituting together ...

between 1260 and 1262 along with

Vallibona Vallibona () is a small town and Municipalities of Spain, municipality located in the Ports (comarca), Ports comarca, province of Castelló (province), Castelló, part of the Valencia (autonomous community), autonomous community of Valencia, Spa ...

and Rossell. La Tinença de Benifassà was documented as a comarca in the map ''Comarques naturals del Regne de València'' made by Emili Beüt in 1934. Most of the villages in the historical ''comarca'' have become very depopulated in recent decades owing to the abandonment of traditional agricultural practices by the local youth and the lifestyle changes that swept over rural Spain during the second half of the 20th century. The

Generalitat Valenciana The Generalitat Valenciana is the generic name covering the different self-government institutions under which the Spanish autonomous community of Valencia is politically organized. It consists of seven institutions including the ''Corts Valen ...

administration declared the whole area of the historical comarca a Natural Park under the name Parc Natural de la Tinença de Benifassà in May 2006.

References

External links

Web turística de la Tinença de Benifassà

Parc Natural de la Tinença de Benifassà

Carta Pobla del Bellestar de 1279 (en llatí)

Walking trails through the natural park of Tinença de Benifassa
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tinenca De Benifassa Baix Maestrat Historical comarques of the Valencian Community Ports de Tortosa-Beseit

Geography

History

See also

References

External links