Index
Welcome
Program
La Manga
General Information
Travel to La Manga
by plane,train and bus
Hotels
A SEA WITH A HISTORY
La Manga, (which means "sleeve" or "arm" and indicates the shape of this strip of land) was formed from the sediment from the accumulation of sand transported on the marine winds which was forced to the surface when it encountered the volcanic formationsbelow the sea. This created a barrier and so the Mar Menor began to take shape.
Although La Manga acquired it's actual form and structure in the 17th century, the first human habitation can be attributed to Neolithic Man. Some 5000 years ago a village was built in the area of Las Amoladeras, at what is now the entrance to La Manga. This settlement was in the form of huts built in a circle and made from wattle and reeds. The settlement did not have any form of fortification and the villagers lived from the sea,by fishing and collecting the shell-fish of the region. It is difficult to imagine today, but the area was surrounded by forests which reached to the edge of the sea. The richness of the mountain range above La Union, now called the Sierra Minera, plus the exceptional conditions of the Mar Menor,attracted settlers from all over Spain and together with the Carthaginians and the Romans,they began to exploit both the silver mines and the fishing trade. It has been established from the sunken ruins at " El Estacio " that La Manga was used in pre-historic times as a " fish factory ". From other treasures discovered at the bottom of the seas which skirt La Manga, the remains of various vessels can be traced to the Phoenicians, the Greeks and the Romans and these were used to transport ingots of silver and lead, in addition to ceramic pots containing a variety of merchandise. The arrival of the Arabs brought about the introduction of a form of fishing known as "las Encañizadas"(cane enclosures) a method which is still in use today and can be seen in many areas of the Mar Menor. After the expulsion of the Moors, La Manga was constantly assaulted by the magrebs who constantly patrolled the coastline.To help defend themselves against these attacks, the emperor Carlos and his son Felipe II ordered the construction of three " watch towers"on La Manga and another at Cabo de Palos.The vast forests of pines, plus the different varieties of oak and yew were gradually reduced during the Middle Ages and in the18th century their exploitation for fuel and brushwood, aided by the strong winds from the Mediterranean, added to the gradual deforestation.
In the year 1862 the lighthouses at "el Estacio" and "Islas Hormigas" were built,followed three years later by the one at Cabo de Palos. The existence of many submerged rocks brought about many maritime disasters in the area. The sinking of the "Sirio" in 1906, with the loss of over 300 lives being one of the worst ever recorded disasters at sea.In the middle of the 18th century, in line with the policy of disposing of large tracts of land by public auction,the family "Maestre"acquired the northern part of La Manga.Then,the beginning of the year 1960, Tomás Maestre bought from the family Celdran the rest of the peninsular and in 1963, inspired by the newly created " Law of Centres of Tourist Interest" the plan to develop La Manga as a tourist resort was conceivedOne year later the first apartments were built at the very beginning of La Manga and were given the name "Black Tower" due to the appearance created by the tiles used on the exterior. This was quickly followed the opening of the first two hotels the Entremares and the Galúa and from that point on La Manga has grown as one of the largest and most interesting resorts in Europe.
