Dolores

Cities - Villages

Within the province of Alicante, Diocese of Orihuela, the Judicial District of Dolores was confined by the North, with the term Escudo de Dolores de Crevillente; This those of Elche and Guardamar; South, those of Rojales, Dayas, Puebla de Rocamora and Almoradí, and West, those of Orihuela, Rafal, Callosa de Segura, Saladar de Albatera and Catral. Its extension will be 2 leagues from North to South, and 3 from East to West. All this land was barren in another time, humid and almost always marshy, growing only in him salicornias, sálsonas and other several plants that love the humidity. The decomposition of the waters by the heat of the sun and the corruption of the plants was a perennial source of rebellious diseases, which frequently degenerating into pestilential epidemics, spread throughout the orchard of Orihuela, causing the greatest damage and significantly reducing the population. Condolido who was Bishop of Cartagena, Cardinal D. Luis Belluga and Moncada, seeing so many disasters, and that death had seized one of the best lands in Spain, conceived the great project to destroy the focus of that evil, draining the land, digging hazards, and opening a multitude of channels through which the waters flow freely to the river or lagoon of Elche. To this end, Cardinal Belluga acquired the 25,000 tahullas that belonged to him in 1,715 from the City of Orihuela through a short contribution that forced him to pay annually, whose donation he confirmed and did on his own, King Felipe V, on December 15th. year; of Guardamar del Segura the 13,000 tahullas of which he was the owner by contract, which was granted in Orihuela on July 20, 1720, with the approval of His Majesty, in which he was obliged to pay annually to said Villa, 150 pounds in compensation of the fishing that that obtained, and in addition 150 pounds with destiny to the poor of the same one; and finally His Majesty donated him the 2,000 that form what was known as Majada Vieja, all of which total 40,000 tahullas.