La Palma del Condado

The earliest known human presence around La Palma del Condado dates to the Bronze Age, confirmed by archaeological finds at sites within the municipality called San Nicolás and Bajondillo. The Romans left a richer record — ceramics, a necropolis, coins, and bricks bearing inscriptions including "PALMA URIANORUM" and "PALMA OLEA NOTUM", discovered near the Berrocal road. From the Moorish period, a fortress of thick slate walls survives on a hill known as El Castillo de La Reina, and the remains of several farmsteads along the Giraldo stream still show their old millstones. Inside the town, a crenellated tower called the Torreón del Valle — now a chapel — once served as an advance post between the Moorish kingdoms of Niebla and Seville.

Alfonso X of Castile reconquered the town in 1262, with the Grand Master of Santiago, Pérez Correa, leading the campaign. It passed through several hands: given to the Genoese admiral Micer Egidio Boccanegra by Alfonso XI, then absorbed into the County of Niebla in 1369, then into the House of Medina Sidonia. In 1398 King Enrique III granted La Palma the right to hold a livestock fair, a document still held in the municipal archive. The Catholic Monarchs gave it the title of Villa de Fuero Real, recognising the crossbowmen from the area who fought at the taking of Granada — the two gold arrows on the town's coat of arms refer to this.

Diego Colón held the town briefly before selling it to Francisco de Alcázar in 1519. Miguel de Cervantes visited on 24 and 25 July 1593, a visit recorded in the municipal archive's capitular book. The connection came through his family ties to Juan de Cervantes y Boccanegra, a cardinal linked to the Portocarrero family, which in turn gave the town its full name — Palma del Condado.

The Lisbon earthquake destroyed the town's Mudéjar church and many houses; the present church of San Juan Bautista was built as a direct result. During the Peninsular War, French troops occupied La Palma until General Ballesteros expelled them from the Condado in 1812. A local tavern keeper known as "Marimarcos", from the street called Calle de los Escalones, is remembered as a local heroine of that conflict.

La Palma's old quarter holds a formal designation as a historic-artistic ensemble, granted by regional decree in October 2002.

The most prominent religious building is the parish church of San Juan Bautista, built in the Andalusian Baroque style after the Lisbon earthquake destroyed its predecessor. Alongside it stands the Iglesia del Valle, a Mudéjar church that survives from an earlier period. Other religious buildings include the Convento de Nuestra Señora del Carmen, the Convento de las Hermanas de la Cruz, the Iglesia del Salvador run by the Salesians, and three smaller chapels: the Ermita de la Santa Cruz on Calle Sevilla, another of the same name on Calle Cabo, and the Ermita de San Sebastián.

Civic landmarks include the Casa del Diezmo, the Casa de Tirado which now serves as the town hall, and the former town hall — the Hospital de La Concepción. The Palacio de Justicia and the Teatro España also stand within the historic centre. The railway station, built in 1880 in a Neo-Mudéjar style, is worth a look, as is the town's grain silo. The ensemble of the Plazas de España and Corazón de Jesús, together with the Placita del Rocío, form the social heart of the old quarter. Two public parks, Parque Manuel Díaz García and Parque Villa Luisa, offer green space.

La Palma is wine country. Several working bodegas can be found in and around the town, including Bodegas Rubio, producer of the brandy Luis Felipe; Bodegas Infante, which makes brandy, vinegar, and fortified wines; the Cooperativa del Vino Nuestra Señora de Guía; and smaller producers Bodegas Teba, Bodegas Morales, and Bodegas Salas. A distillation chimney belonging to Celestino Verdier is noted as the pioneer installation of the Condado wine region. Outside town, the Corumbel Bajo reservoir offers a natural setting, and the Monteblanco motor racing circuit sits nearby.