Molina de Aragón

During the Caliphate of Córdoba, the area appears to have been very sparsely populated. According to Ramón Menéndez Pidal, its inhabitants were primarily Arabized Berbers. After the disintegration of the Caliphate, a small taifa kingdom emerged there, mentioned in the epic Cantar de mio Cid. During the Reconquista, it was captured in 1128 by Alfonso the Battler, king of Aragon. His brother Ramiro II who succeeded him chose to cede to Castile the lands corresponding to the lordship of Molina. The region was therefore resettled by the Crown of Castile, as it lay west of the Iberian System; it later returned to Muslim control, specifically to that of the Almoravids.

Around 1139, the lands were retaken by Manrique Pérez de Lara, and the area was established as an independent lordship. Consequently, Manrique Pérez de Lara became the first Lord of Molina, and Molina remained an independent lordship, separate from the Crowns of Aragon and Castile, for more than a century and a half, receiving its own fuero. The Lordship of Molina comprised not only the town of Molina de Aragón but also four additional sexmas: the Sexma del Campo, Sexma del Sabinar, Sexma del Pedregal, and Sexma de la Sierra.

Henry II of Castile (r. 1366–1367, 1369–1379) granted Molina to his lieutenant Bertrand du Guesclin. However, due to the war between Castile and Aragon, the people of Molina rebelled and chose to place themselves under Aragonese sovereignty in 1366. This process was completed three years later with the acceptance of the Aragonese king. From this period of Aragonese rule comes the town's current name, previously known as Molina de los Caballeros. It finally returned to Castilian hands in 1375, when the lordship was given as part of the marriage dowry of Eleanor, an Aragonese infanta, upon her marriage to the Infante John of Castile. In the Middle Ages, Molina was also home to a Jewish community. Remains of a medieval synagogue still survive in the town.

During the Peninsular War (1807–1814), the residents' resistance to Napoleonic troops led to the town being set on fire in retaliation. In recognition of their loyalty, the Cortes granted it the title of "Muy Noble y Muy Leal Ciudad" ("Very Noble and Very Loyal City"). By the mid-19th century, there were several proposals to demolish the town's castle. Around the same period, the town had a recorded population of 3,453 inhabitants. It is also described in the eleventh volume of Pascual Madoz’s Diccionario geográfico-estadístico-histórico de España y sus posesiones de Ultramar.

•Castillo de Molina de Aragón

•Palacio del Obispo

•Prao de los Judíos

•Palacio de los Garcés de Marcilla

•Palacio de los Arias

•Palacio de los Montesoro

•Conjunto Histórico de Molina de Aragón

•Posada de los Comuneros

•Puerta de Medina

•Iglesia de Santa María del Collado

•Palacio del Virrey de Manila

•Palacio de los Marqueses de Embid

•Puente Viejo

•Museo Comarcal Geoparque Alto Tajo

•Ermita de Santa Lucía y mirador

•Palacio de los Molina

El Museo de Molina se trata de un museo comarcal ubicado en la localidad que promueve el interés por la paleontología, mediante diferentes actos como exposiciones, publicaciones y seminarios. Cuenta con colecciones de paleontología, arqueología y de fauna (entomología) y flora.​

Patrimonio:

En la localidad se encuentra el castillo de Molina de Aragón, uno de los más grandes de España,​ además del monasterio de San Francisco​, la iglesia de San Gil,​ con un destacable retablo y la iglesia de San Martín.​

En la localidad también se encuentran restos de su muralla, el puente románico (llamado puente viejo), el barrio de la morería y el barrio de la judería. En general el pueblo conserva buena parte de su patrimonio medieval con importantes restos arqueológicos en el denominado "Prao de los Judíos".​​

Fiestas:

Fiestas patronales de El Cristo de Las Victorias (del 30 de agosto al 5 de septiembre).

El Carmen (16 de julio), declarada de interés turístico regional.

La Inmaculada (8 de diciembre). Bula papal para celebración de misa de 0 h.

Feria Medieval (Tercer fin de semana de junio).

San Cristóbal (3.º/4.º sábado de julio).

Butrón.

Loa a la Virgen de la Hoz (Domingo de Pentecostés).

Mercadillo semanal: Jueves, de 08:00 a 14:00 · Calle San Felipe

•Camino del Cid (Senderista) (GR 160)

•José María Araúz de Robles Estremera, político español

•Claro Abánades López

•Tirso de Obregón y Pierrad, cantante español

•Aurora Egido, filóloga española

•Romualdo de Toledo y Robles, político español

•Rafael Martínez Sansegundo, baloncestista español

Alcaldía: Jesús Herranz Hernández

Web oficial: http://www.molina-aragon.com/

1 paradas de autobús en el municipio.

•Farmacia Lda. S. Sanz Novella

•Farmacia

•Centro de Salud y Especialidades