How the son of a small village in Spain became a big name in the United States

© Share

You can reach Macharaviya via a winding road common to the Andalusian foothill villages. Turn right on a fork and descend into Village Square.

Macharaviya from a distance

In the center of the small roundabout is a statue of Bernardo de Colves. He grabs a roll of paper and looks in the direction of Ayuntamiando (town hall). Why the townhall? Because that is the direction of America, the country where he made his name.

What does Colves like?

Bernardo de Colves y Madrid is also Calveston’s Viscount and Calves number. Born in Macarovia on July 23, 1746, he was the military leader and colonial administrator of Spain, serving as the colonial governor of Louisiana and Cuba and later as viceroy of New Spain.

Statue of Bernardo Colves in Macharvia

Before leaving for the United States, he took part in the Spanish invasion of Portugal. His coronation, however, was his help to the thirteen colonies in gaining independence from Great Britain. He defeated the British during the siege of Benzacola (1781) and recaptured Florida to Spain.

But Colves is not the only Bernardo who has left his mark on history. Jose de Colves founded schools for boys and girls. Her girls school was the first in Spain, the next four years before it opened in Madrid. He also built the Church of San Jacinto, designed the sanctuary at the entrance to the village and established the Agricultural Bank.

The first exporter of Akshargua desserts was Miguel de Colves, who was much loved by Russian Sarina Catherine the Great.

The Colves family had all the troops

The Colves family also patronized the cardboard factory in the village. The factory had a monopoly on the sale of playing cards in the American colonies. The family never forgot their homeland as they seized and defended new lands in the name of the King of Spain.

The Museo de los Colves in the village displays the family logo and provides a 3D animation, available in many languages, as well as articles on the history of the village.

Art Village

Macharawia was founded in 1572 in the remnants of a Moorish region. The name is believed to be derived from Andalusian-Arabic, Machar ibn Yahya, meaning ‘court of Yahya’. The village is painted white and is located on a hillside 235 meters above sea level, west of the town of Isnat. Until the opening of the cardboard factory the main concern of agriculture was agriculture.

It is now home to numerous painters, writers and sculptors in addition to those working in agriculture.

However, the size of the church says nothing about the size of the village. The church is of considerable size to such a small town, where echoes of footsteps and voices are often heard. Used not only for church services, but also for music and poetry readings. The interior of a Catholic church is surprisingly simple.

There is a church with a tower in the hamlet near Penak, which was originally the minaret of a mosque. Inside you will find paintings from the sixteenth century.

Macharavaya may have been exaggerated with the nickname Pegvo Madrid (Little Madrid) given to it for its economic development in the eighteenth century, but it is a beautiful village and municipality. It is well maintained, pleasing to the eye, and creates a pleasant way to spend an hour or two.