Denia

Denia is a city located in Valencia, in the province of Alicante. Its origins are to be found in the Roman period, although it was during the Muslim period that it reached its peak, as the capital of one of the kingdoms (taifa) of the Iberian Peninsula. Reconquered by the Christians in 1244, it became a fief from 1298. The county of Denia was assigned to Diego Gómez de Sandoval y Rojas in 1431 and remained with the Sandoval even when he became a Marquis, in 1487. Under the fifth Marquis of Denia, the Duke of Lerma and favourite of Philip III, it attained the rank of city. Tens of thousands of Moriscos left the port of Denia following the expulsion of 1609. The departure of the population of Muslim origin caused depopulation and economic ruin there. During the War of Succession (1701-1713) Denia sided with Archduke Charles of Habsburg and was finally occupied by the Bourbons in November 1708. Nowadays established as a seaside tourist destination, the city retains many traces of its sixteenth and seventeenth century  past, in the Iglesia de la Asunción, a perfect example of Valencian Baroque. Evidence of the history of Denia, from its origins to the eighteenth century, is also preserved in the archaeological museum, located inside the castillo.