Totana

This current municipality has been inhabited from the Prehistory, specifically from the Middle Palaeolithic, but during the Upper Palaeolithic Totana was already occupied by humans.[2]

During the Chalcolithic there was also human presence. A piece of evidence about that fact is a settlement named Poblado del Campico de Lébor. Archaeological remains in that area are mainly holes, which could have been silos, and stone implements such as arrow tips and sickles.[2]

In the Bronze Age there are noteworthy archaeological remains about a settlement of the Argaric civilization which name is La Bastida. There were people in that town from 1,675 BC to 1100 BC. Its maximum population consisted of 600-800 inhabitants and it took place about 1550 BC.

During the late Bronze Age, people moved from the settlement because of a crisis that was caused by a lack of foodstuff for all the inhabitants of La Bastida. They started to populate a new settlement named Las Cabezuelas.

Remains about the Iberian era have been found in Las Cabezuelas. These consist mainly of ceramic objects and wall plinths belonging to little-sized rooms, with regular allocation and ordinary masonry.

This archaeological area has also remains from the Roman Hispania era. These are mainly ceramic objects and walls with opus africanum masonry.

During Al Andalus (or Islamic Spain era) the archaeological area was also inhabited. Remains of that fact such as ceramic materials, stone wall plinths, support that fact.

Between 1238 and 1243, the Taifa of Murcia came under increasing pressure from the powerful kingdoms of Castile, Aragon and Granada. There was also considerable internal instability. King Ibn Hud decided to make Castile a vassal state.[3]

In April 1243 the Treaty of Alcaraz, recognising the sovereignty of Castile, was signed. Then Alfonso X of Castile designated his brother Manuel governor of the town council of Aledo, and consequently ruled the town of Totana, which was a suburb of Aledo.[3]

The lack of geographic roughness, which could give defence to Totana, and the lack of structures for defence purposes, caused the village to be a dangerous place for living due to Muslim raids. The locality was hardly populated during 14th and 15th centuries and people used it as a merchandising trade place.[3]

Totana did not obtain the status of villa before the last years of the Reconquista. People started to exit the enclosed by a wall town of Aledo and move to plain lands, to the suburb of Totana from the year 1492.[3]

During the last decades of the Low Middle Ages and the first decades of the Modern period, the number of inhabitants was growing and Totana was expanding. With the purpose of ceasing people to move to Totana, the major of Aledo forbade house building in Totana except for the buildings for labourers. People did not take the notice of the order and even the major, councilors, wealthy people and the parish moved there during the following years.[3]

In the Early Modern Period there was a new urban structure that was created and two new neighbourhoods were settled: Sevilla and Triana. In Sevilla, there were quite religious buildings and the paths to Murcia, Cartagena, Lorca and Mazarrón. In Triana, there were the salaried workers dwellings.[4]

Throughout the 16th century, several plague epidemics took place in the Region of Murcia and it also had presence in Totana. The people of the town suffered famine and some unfortunate weather events.[4]

The 18th century was an apogee era for Totana, as well as for the Region of Murcia. Totana supported Philip II of Spain during the War of the Spanish Succession. As Philip II got the crown, the town was awarded with the 'Noble' status in 1709.[4]

Two new hydraulic structures were constructed. There were several aesthetic architectonical works such as the facade of the Parish Church of Santiago and a fountain named Fuente Monumental.[4]

In the census of 1755, 2303 people were listed and 201 members among those people lived in Aledo.[4]

In the year 1795 Totana and Aledo split and became two municipalities.[4]

The first years of the 19th century consisted of misfortune for the inhabitants of Lorca. In the year 1802, a reservoir in Lorca got broken, and that caused. Six years after, the Peninsular War broke. However, Totana was not invaded by the French and young male locals battled in the front against the invaders. In the year 1810 an epidemy of yellow fever spread and it caused to die half of the population of the town.[5]

During the mid-19th century, the crisis began to be overcome in Totana. The agriculture of the municipality was expanded and neighbourhoods formed.[5]

In a lesser way, the last third of the century was not prosperous for the town and there was high emigration among its inhabitants.[5]

In the first years of the 20th century, there was a man named Ángel Aznar y Butigeig, who was a politician, influenced in the fact that Totana was awarded the status of town by Alfonso XIII of Spain with a legal provision.[5]

There was a large decrease in the population of Totana during the 1930s as a result of the lack of water.[5]

As non-irrigated lands became irrigated and new products began to be grown, the prosperity returned to Totana.[5]

After the postwar period, Totana experienced a high development during the 1960s. The town expanded to the south. Two new neighbourhoods were set because peasants from villages of Lorca migrated to the town. In the 1980s other new neighbourhoods came to existence.[5]

There are some of the festivities held in villages of the municipality below:[21]

• Lébor festivity:This festivity is consecrated to Saint Peter and is held at the weekend which includes 30 June. The festivity is opened with a rocket set off. Other activities are music group performances, a procession (festive religious parade) and the typical of the village fried egg contests.The finale action of the festive days is firework display with typical Spanish structure and procedure named 'castillo' (castle).[22][23]
• La Ñorica district festivity: Unlike most villages and localities in general in Spain, La Ñorica has not its own patron saint. Therefore, there is not any patron saint festivities in contrast with many places in Spain, whose main festivities are patron saint ones. As Ñorica have not had traditional and historic celebrations, their event has recently been introduced.
• La Huerta district festivity: This festivity is consecrated to the 'Virgin of the vegetable-patches' (Virgen de las huertas), in other words, it is consecrated to the Virgin Mary in facet in which she is related to the vegetable patches. The festivity takes place in a weekend that includes the 8th of September, or in the most closest to 8 September weekend. On the first day there is a procession (festive religious parade) devoted to the 'Virgin of the vegetable patches', next a mass is held. On the second day a verbena takes place. On the last day of the festive days there is a mass that includes a music performance of a local band and mass picnic event.[24][25][26]
• La Sierra district festivity: The reason for the festivity is the tribute to Leocadia. It is usually held on the third weekend of September. On the first festive day there is a contest of a Spanish and Portuguese typical dish named migas and next there is a music performance. On the second day there is a procession (festive religious parade) and next a verbena takes place. On the last day, a 'paella', a mass paella eating event occurs. In some years special activities are also carried out in Sierra Espuña (a mountain range).[27][28][29]