May 1, 2014 WALKS IN HISTORY: El Pozo de la Llorona Story by José Antonio Pilares / japilares@gmail.com & Left side photos by José Antonio Pilares, right side photo by Kumarnm, MorgueFile
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ll towns have ghost stories. Some of them happen to be unique, while in other instances these stories are simple repetitions of folk tales from other places. One such example is the tale of the Vanishing hitchhiker or the boogieman. Diving through some old books I have come across a local ghost story that I would like to share. “La Llorona” or the Weeping lady. This is a very old tale, akin to the boogieman; I found it in a local book published in 1986, but it reproduces a legend published in the Cádiz weekly “El Domingo” dating from 27th of September, 1868. The original, by José María León Domínguez, tells us the story of “la Llorona” by mouth of an old local man.This tale goes back to the reign of king Pedro “the Cruel” (1350-1369). Rota had been in Christian hands for barely a hundred years and was a border outpost in the intermittent war between Castile and Granada.This gave the local lord “el Castellano” (literally “the castle owner”) an unchecked and extreme power in the Ville. This knight would scare the locals with his presence as he would take, kill, rape or burn as he wished, as he was the Law. At the time, an old fisherman –Pedro- used to live with his very young daughter -Elvira- in a small
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hut by the sea; probably near to today’s Pub Los Arcos. Every day they would put out on their small fishing boat and, as if blessed by Fortune, in two hours they could catch enough fish for the two of them to go on with their meager, yet happy, lives. As time went by, Elvira grew up to become the prettiest girl in town, and would show herself off in the town square during the fairs, markets and in Mass. She was desired by all the boys, and the girls became jealous of her. How dare she, the daughter of a fisherman, look better than them and be the center of attention in town; instead of the daughters of the miller, the merchant or the ironsmith! Soon Elvira found herself isolated from the other girls that had grown up with, so she began to wonder how she could get back at them. Pedro saw all this and feared that his loved Elvira might attract the attention of the worst possible man in town, “el Castellano”. Pedro would tell her “Stay away from ‘el Castellano’ for he is like an eagle attacking a dove with the women that cross his path.” But she, stubborn and proud would answer “Worry not Father. Elvira has an iron will that does not bend under the strongest of impacts.” But inside she wondered… “If I can make “el Castellano’ fall in love with me, I’ll be set for life after my elderly father dies… and I’ll get back at all the girls that have mistreated me so much.” One morning, as Pedro and Elvira were pulling their boat ashore after their fishing day, “el Castellano” came across them riding his horse. However his horse seemed out of control and was only forced to a stop when Pedro swiftly hit it in the chest with his row. El Castellano came down thankful and said “Old man, I will have you come to the castle and give you as much gold as you see fit to keep you from having to go fish for the rest of your life.” Pedro quickly answered “Thank you, Sire. But my job gives me enough to live with my daughter”, and as he said it he realized the mistake as now the lord had set his eyes on Elvira. Instead of hiding, Elvira saw her opportunity and walked into the conversation, dragging her father away but enchanting the knight with her smile, her voice and her body.
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Within a week, people would say that Elvira and el Castellano were seeing each other in private, a week later that Elvira had been seen entering the castle after sunset and exiting before dawn. Pedro did not want to believe this, until one morning Elvira was nowhere to be seen. Enraged, he went over to the castle crying out “My daughter! Give me back my daughter!” as he ran around the walls. “You are mad, old man. Leave now before I make it worse for you.” The proud lord answered back from the top of a tower. “You stole her from me! Give me back my Elvira, you thief!” poor old Pedro shouted back. And he cried, shouted and screamed until Elvira popped out of a window, all dressed up like a duchess and said “Do as he says, for if he is El Castellano, I am now La Castellana.” The old man could not believe what was happening. His own daughter had betrayed him and married in secret the feudal lord. The crazed man ran off shouting “My daughter is ‘la Castellana’!” and was never again seen in town. Not much time passed, and one day the King arrived in town to judge all crimes. Many, tired of the tyranny of their local lord, denounced all the illtreatments and king Pedro sentenced “el Castellano” to death by hanging. The next morning the scaffolding was built in the square and the lord hanged for all to see; all the while Elvira begged for her husband’s life at the foot of the gallows weeping. When it became clear that “el Castellano” had died, everyone in town began mocking her. Soon her arrogant soul could not take any more shame and she raced off, pushing the crowd apart until she made it to a well in what was known as “el baluarte” (probably today’s Hotel Duque de Nájera). She did not think twice and threw herself inside, blinded by her tears and her shame. Since then, when the clock on the city gates strikes twelve at midnight, she can be seen weeping as she walks the streets of the old town; from “el baluarte” to the castle… Or at least that is what children were told. The tale was used by generations of roteños to put their kids to sleep and to teach them not to be arrogant like Elvira, or evil like “el Castellano”.This story is, sadly, unknown by young people today in Rota but it is a part of our heritage that, I think, should be passed down as long as possible.
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