History of Jabalquinto
Jabalquinto originated as a Muslim tower with the dual purposes of controlling and defending the ford of the Gualdalquivir River. On November 5, 1009, the Battle of Quantix took place in what is now the rural district of Jabalquinto, as recounted in the famous chronicle by Constable Lucas de Iranzo. Count Don Sancho defeated the Almahadí troops, leaving about 20,000 dead on the battlefield, according to the chronicler (though it is feasible that the author exaggerated this figure in order to glorify the battle). The Christians settled in the area and built a castle that has long since disappeared.
According to local historian Mateo Francisco de Rivas y Soriano, at the time of the foundation of Jabalquinto, there were two Muslim settlements, Estiviel and Ventosilla, whose populations would end up disappearing, coinciding with the end of the reign of Alfonso XI. Later, a new town was built due to Día Sánchez de Biedma (1347).
At the beginning of the sixteenth century, only 30 families lived in Jabalquinto. In the following century, the number of families increased to about 150. The population continued to boom to approximately 300 families by the early days of the seventeenth century, but throughout the 1600s this figure began to decline, principally due to high mortality rates.
The first step in the constitution of the Lordship of Jabalquinto was taken by Día Sánchez de Benavides in 1406 when he granted his will, which transferred the assets of his estate to his eldest son, Men Rodríguez de Benavides, leaving the assets (Jabalquinto, Espeluy, Estiviel, Ventosilla and Roda de Mengibar) free to his other two sons, Gómez and Manuel. Seven years later, he modified the will, by giving Mota and Valdematilla to Gómez, with which Manuel, the third son, could claim to form an independent patrimony from the aforementioned free assets.
The last marchioness of Jabalquinto was Doña María Josefa Alfonso Pimentel y Borja, Countess and Duchess of Benavente, who held the Lordship from 1763 to 1834. She had married the ninth Duke of Osuna, so her possessions passed to her eldest son, however, her second son, Pedro Alcántara, received the titles of Prince of Anglona and Marquis of Jabalquinto, thus establishing a new title.