Alcanada facts for kids
Alcanada is a beautiful seaside area in Mallorca, Spain. It used to be an old farm during Muslim times. Today, it is a popular place for summer holidays. It has a unique beach without sand, a golf course, and a small island with a lighthouse.
The name Alcanada is pronounced 'Aucanada' in Catalán. This name also refers to the coastal area from Port d'Alcudia to Cap de Menorca. The name probably came from Albecanata or Al-kaddan. This was how it was known in the Llibre del Repartiment (Majorca) in 1232.
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History
Alcanada's Old Farm
It seems that a small Roman settlement existed in Alcanada many centuries ago. This settlement was linked to the Roman city of Pollentia, which is now Alcúdia. Pollentia was once the capital city of the Balearic Islands. Later, during the time when Muslims ruled Mallorca (from the 9th to the 13th centuries), the Alcanada farm was created.
After the Balearic Islands were taken over by the Crown of Aragon, the farm became the property of Mr. Pere Ferrandiz. By the 14th century, the land and the small island of Alcanada became shared property for everyone. Local people could use the land to graze their animals, collect firewood, and gather plants. They could also hunt and find snails. From the 16th century, people could rent small farm plots, called rotes, on this shared land.
Martí Torrens, Guillem Torrens, and Antoni Fe were some of the owners of Alcanada's main house. It had simple, two-story buildings. These buildings were used for farming and also as homes for the workers. A document from the Municipal Archives of Alcúdia shows that in 1857, a family with three children lived there. Four shepherds and one servant also lived in the house. In 1862, records described the Alcanada estate as a large area of 106 hectares. It had almond, carob, grain, olive, and fig trees. There were also vineyards, pine forests, and scrubland. The owner was listed as “D. Antonio Morey de Palma.”
The Archduke Ludwig Salvator of Austria wrote about Alcanada in his book Die Balearen. He described a path from Port of Alcúdia leading to the bay of Alcanada. He mentioned the house with its underground spring and a large vineyard. The terraced fields had carob and fig trees. He noted that the house was simple, with a tower and a star-shaped stone terrace. An inscription on a well read "Alcanada 1844."
Today, the main house and its nearby buildings have been fixed up. They are now used as a golf club and a restaurant. Some parts of the buildings still look like they did originally.
Sa Bassa Blanca Estate
The Sa Bassa Blanca estate is located between the main Alcanada house and Cap de Menorca. It is named after a stream nearby. The Egyptian architect Hassan Fathy designed its main building. He was inspired by old Muslim fortresses called ribats. However, he kept the thick stone walls from the original farm building. The main way to enter is through "el Camí de Muntanya" (The Mountain Road). This road starts from the Mal Pas area. You cannot enter from the sea.
Sa Bassa Blanca is home to the Fundacion Yannick y Ben Jakober. This foundation has many different art collections that people can visit. The art rooms in the main building show works from the second half of the 20th century. The old water storage area now holds a special collection. It has over 150 portraits of children painted between the 16th and 19th centuries. Most of these paintings show children from European royal families or noble families.
Torre Major (Big Tower)
To protect against pirate attacks, a mathematician and priest named Joan Binimelis (1538-1616) created a system. He set up watchtowers along the coast of the Balearic Islands. These towers used signals to warn people about approaching pirate ships. Guards would light fires on the tower terraces. They used smoke signals during the day and fires at night. Sometimes, they even fired cannons. This warned local people to get ready to defend themselves.
The Torre Major marks the start of Alcanada. The tower's name comes from a time when the bay of Alcúdia was called Port Major. The entrance of the tower has the coat of arms of King Philip III of Spain. This was carved in 1602 by the sculptor Antoni Verger.
For hundreds of years, especially from the 16th century, a long stretch of coastline had to be watched. This area went from the Torre Major to the Penya Roja watchtower, almost nine kilometers. During this time, the Balearic Islands were attacked by pirates. These pirates would rob towns and homes. They also captured people for ransom. Captives could spend years in North African lands. They were eventually traded, sold, or had their ransom paid. Sometimes, money for ransom was collected from charity. There are stories of an attack on Cap del Pinar in 1551. In this attack, 25 people from Mallorca were taken hostage. The University of Alcúdia paid their ransom of two thousand escudos.
The Islet with the Lighthouse
In the mid-19th century, a lighthouse was built on a small island near Alcanada. For one hundred years, lighthouse keepers lived on this island. Sometimes, their families lived with them. They often helped rescue people from shipwrecks. A boat brought supplies from the Port d'Alcudia twice a week. But sometimes, bad weather stopped the boats. This meant the keepers could be isolated and run out of food.
During the Spanish Civil War (1936–39), more people lived on the island. Soldiers were sent there to guard the coastline. They built three machine gun nests on the islet. Later, in 1960, the lighthouse system became automatic. After that, the islet became uninhabited again.
Nicolau M. Rubió i Tudurí's Design
In 1933, an architect from Menorca named Nicolau Maria Rubió i Tudurí was charmed by Alcanada's beautiful landscape. He was also the director of the Municipal Institute for Parks and Gardens in Barcelona. He designed a summer holiday village in this lovely spot.
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Rubió was interested in the idea of garden cities and summer resorts. These places were inspired by local building styles. This was a popular new idea in architecture in the early 20th century. So, his plan for Alcanada aimed to look like a fishing village. It would have traditional small houses, narrow streets, and alleys. It even included an old part and a newer part. In the middle of the village was the Hotel del Sol, now called Hotel President. It offered rooms and a restaurant for the people living in the village.
The first house in the new village was built by Pedro Dot. He was a gardener and rose grower, and a good friend of Rubió. Soon after, forty more houses were built in just one year. Years later, Pere Dot named a rose 'Perla de Alcanada' after this place.
Besides Rubió, the Sampol family also helped. They owned the Alcanada estate and were the builders for the project. The Spanish Civil War stopped the construction work. The project was left unfinished and partly abandoned for ten years. However, it started again in the 1950s. By then, new building rules allowed different types of buildings. This changed Rubió's original plan, except for the central part of the village.
The group of houses around Cala Ponçet has survived. They still have the feeling of a fishing village. This unique atmosphere has become one of Alcanada's special features.
See also
In Spanish: Alcanada para niños
