Record Atlas
5 eras · 1244–2026 · 10 places

The Valencia–Castile frontier — Villajoyosa, Benidorm, Castalla and Utiel

Benidorm, Villajoyosa, Castalla, Ayora, Utiel. Which empire held this ground in which years — and, the part that matters, which archive that means.

Whose archive this ground was

YearsWho held itWhose archive that means
1244–1296 Kingdom of Valencia — Treaty of Almizra frontier PARES · FamilySearch

James I of Aragon signed the Treaty of Almizra on 26 March 1244: the lands south of a line from Biar to Villajoyosa, through Busot, were reserved to Castile. James nevertheless conquered Caudete, Villena and Sax, which technically belonged to Castile.
1296–1305 Crown of Aragon after the conquest of Murcia PARES · FamilySearch

In 1296 James II of Aragon conquered the Kingdom of Murcia.
1305–1707 Kingdom of Valencia — Crown of Aragon PARES · FamilySearch

Medio Vinalopó, Bajo Vinalopó, L'Alacantí and the Vega Baja del Segura were incorporated into Valencia by the treaties of Torrellas (1304) and Elche (1305).
1707–1871 Spain — after the Nueva Planta decree for Valencia PARES · FamilySearch

The abolition of the Valencian institutions was promulgated on 29 June 1707; the Furs of Valencia were repealed completely and the Courts abolished.
1871–2026 Spain — civil registration PARES · FamilySearch · Geneanet

Spanish civil registration began in 1871, although some municipalities have records from 1837; the records are kept in each municipality's archive.

The rings are approximate — deliberately. They exist to shade which filing system a place fell under, not to adjudicate a border. A place near a ring's edge should be checked against both neighbours.

See the whole span, 1244–2026, on the map →

The map takes a range, and a range that crosses one of the rows above is where records get lost: the family never moved, and the archive on the far side of the handover will tell you it holds nothing.

10 places on this ground

47 FamilySearch collections reach this ground

Ranked with the regional ones first — a collection for a province is usually a better lead than a national index, though the national index is often where a name is actually written down. A free account opens the images.

All record regions · The map