The village itself is 237 metres above sea level, lying in the valley of the River Borge, between two mountains, and climbing up the sides of a hill known as Egido, not far from the Santo Pitar peak, which measures 1,019 metres.
El Borge has the typical appearance of Axarquía villages: one or two-storey houses made of plaster, brick and slate slabs, with sloping roofs covered with Moorish tiles. The walls of the houses are whitewashed, with splashes of colour provided by geraniums on window sills and balconies. It is worthwhile taking a wander round the narrow winding streets - they are cool, too, a heritage from the days of the Moors.
This legacy is especially marked around the El Rinconcillo quarter, the most picturesque part, where steps have been built on the steepest stretches.
The Arabic origin of the village is obvious from the original name, Al-Borg, but very little is actually known of the history of the municipality. What is known is that a community of Moors living under Christian rule resisted the occupation fiercely.
When the inhabitants of the Axarquía organised an uprising El Borge was the centre of the rebellion against the re-conquerors. The rebels fled to the Alpujarras mountains, in the provinces of Granada and Almeria, with the help of supporters, and the Governor of Vélez-Málaga, Álvaro de Zuazo, ordered a garrison to be sent to El Borge to quash the uprising.
The title of the Raisin Capital was not given to El Borge for nothing since over 40 per cent of the land in the municipality is under production. Thus, the landscape is largely vineyards surrounded by holm oak trees, rockrose and broom.
Where to go and what to see in El Borge
Church of Nuestra Señora del Rosario
The most interesting building, as in most villages in the area, is the church. As in most villages in the province of Malaga, too, in El Borge it was built in the early sixteenth century, on the orders of Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand, on the foundations of an old mosque. Dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary, it was consecrated on May 25th 1505 by the Archbishop of Seville, Diego de Deza. Architecturally it is one of the most interesting churches in the Axarquía region, being designed in an original combination of Gothic and Renaissance. The church tower, however, is baroque. Although its base is rectangular, further up the tower becomes octagonal, being topped by a roof of vitrified ceramic tiles. On one side of the square where the church stands there is a fountain decorated with tiles representing the Virgen of Lourdes.
The Rinconcillo Barrio
One cannot visit El Borge without taking a stroll down the streets filled with genanium pots in the windows. Particularly beautiful is the barrio of El Rinconcillo, the streets themselves stepped in places to accommodate the lie of the land.
El Bizco de El Borge
In the days before communications were so fast or so easy the village was home to one of the most famous bandits in the province of Malaga - El Bizco del Borge (the cross-eyed man from El Borge). Described as bloodthirsty, depraved and treacherous, he was born on September 2nd 1837 and died in Lucena, in the province of Cordoba, in a confrontation with Civil Guards, on May 21st, 1889. The scene of his most famous deed was the village of Alfarnate, where he murdered a gallant young man known as El Chirrina, who had given El Bizco away when he was planning an attack. The bandit was twice wed but neither of the marriages was particularly happy, due to his lifestyle.
Museum of Popular Arts. C/Río, 3. Tel: 952 512 133. Visits on appointment.
Thanks to Diario Sur
