The Jardín del Rey Don Pedro and the Paseo Poeta Lorenzo Guardiola in Jumilla

The two historic parks are still used for a host of cultural activities and events in Jumilla

The park or garden of El Rey Don Pedro and the Paseo Poeta Lorenzo Guardiola are among the oldest green areas of their kind in the town of Jumilla and are frequently used as venues for cultural events and markets throughout the year.

The park occupies an area of 10,000 square metres between the Avenida de los Reyes Católicos and Avenida de Levante, and at its northern end is the Jardín del Rey Don Pedro. It is known that the Paseo was first created in 1887 and 1888 under the supervision of architect S. Egozcue and works foreman José Pérez in order to host the annual Fair of 1888.

In 1923 a “templete” was built in the centre of the park, a kind of bandstand structure around 9 metres in diameter, to host open-air concerts by the town band on Sundays and public holidays. This structure to the one in the fairground of Albacete, which was created in 1913, and was dismantled in around 1944. It was replaced by a circular fountain.

Some 20 benches with tiled facing are dotted around the park, the tiling having been provided by the Fábrica de Azulejos de la Viuda e Hijos de Manuel Ramos Rejano in Sevilla in 1940. Some of these tiles were replaced in 2015.

Within the park there is a monument erected in honour of Roque Martínez Pérez (1862-1927) by the Balencia sculptor Ignacio Pinazo Martínez. Roque Martínez was a doctor who was named a Favourite Son of Jumilla after spells as Mayor and representative in the national parliament, as well as founding the Caja de Ahorros de Jumilla.

The Paseo used to connect with the old railway station on the Villena-Almansa-Yecla line, which was opened in 1905.

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