The Past

Until the decade of the 60s of the last XX century, Los Realejos could preserve an important quantity of its heritage, especially of the real estate heritage, constituted by peculiar religious and civil buildings, which express stylistic languages as a symbol of an important past. Among all of them the oldest ones curiously could survive, regarded as the first ones aroused in Tenerife: The Parent Church of St James the Apostle, in Realejo Alto, related to Fernández de Lugo and the baptism of the Guanches, and the country estate of Los Príncipes, in Realejo Bajo, a great stimulus on the local economy. Both factories are nowadays transformed by the further changes and contributions of the last centuries.

The XVII and XVIII centuries were the ones of greater heritage magnificence, and because of the population growing and the economic impulse, a number of churches were built (Our Lady of la Concepción, Realejo Bajo) and hermitages, some of them became afterwards parishes, such as Our Lady of Buenviaje (Icod el Alto), Our Lady of Los Dolores (Palo Blanco) y La Santa Cruz (La Cruz Santa). It also took place the building of three convents, two of them belong to the order of Saint Augustine (male and female), in the town area that receives its name, whose saint patron and benefactor was the Alderman of Tenerife, born in Los Realejos, Juan de Gordejuela; and the Franciscan ones, built in the high area of Realejo Bajo, thanks to the nobility of the country owners of Los Príncipes. These buildings wee taking a large catalogue of plastic arts, sculptures, paintings and also splendid works of craftsmanship in precious metals, textiles, engravings, ivories, valuable archives and libraries, musical instruments (organ) and an incalculable number of objects of a great worth put at the service of the religious cult.

The sugar crops, firstly, and the one of the vine plantations afterwards, encourage the creation of beautiful country estates all across the area, above all in the middle lands and in the coastline setting (Rambla de Castro). They are buildings of a great architectural appearance where the wide spaces and the wooden works are the most remarkable aspects, without forgetting the botany richness of its setting, constituted sometimes by lovely gardens.

In the above – mentioned centuries the current town areas were already shaped, with their paved streets and roads (Realejo Alto, Realejo Bajo, San Agustín, La Cruz Santa, Palo Blanco, Icod el Alto, El Toscal – Longuera, San Vicente, Tigaiga, La Zamora, La Montañeta), and also the main buildings of one or two floors, with the two corn exchanges (Realejo Alto and Realejo Bajo), with the central countyard or open in the upper part; plain main fronts with sash windows or otherwise showing their beautiful balconies, typical of the traditional Canarian architecture.

In the XIX century, the urban setting was put into an order, the public squares were designed, with lighting, the establishment of gardens, and the new architectural shapes, which show the newly – made styles (Classicism shapes). In the beginning of that century, the monastery of the Augustine monks had disappeared because of fire, and the political measures of the minister Mendizábal, by means of his disentailment project, cuts off the lives of the Franciscan monks; the one of the Augustine nuns is the only monastery that remains upright, turned into Consistorial Houses of the municipality of Realejo Bajo.

Until the middle of the XX century, Los Realejos still kept the rural, agricultural and picturesque manners, which were well appreciated by the English travellers of the previous century historian. The urban contests preserved their architectural shape dominated by the towers of the churches and the steeples of the hermitages. In 1952 the last convent, the one of the Augustine is lost because of fire, and three years later it takes place the unification of the time municipalities of Realejo Alto and Realejo Bajo, and it is raised the current church of Our Lady of El Carmen (designed by Tomás Machado), Sanctuary where the Saint Patron of the Orotava Valley is venerated and the Honorary and Perpetual Governess of Los Realejos Theatre – Cinema, and later on the Viera Cinema, work of the Tinerfeño artist Marrero Regalado. One of the greatest heritage losses was certainly the burning in 1978 of the church of Our Lady of La Concepción, in Realejo Bajo.

About the decade of the 60s an enormous growth of the population which roused a strong change of the urban; noticeably disturbing the structure of the roads and dwellings.