Laguardia, Álava
Laguardia (Basque: Guardia) is a town and municipality located in the province of Álava, in the north of Spain. It has a population of 1500 habitants, but in the past it had 2500.
The site of a 10th-century castle, of which two towers remain, the present village has medieval walls dating back to the 15th century surrounding the houses and old cobblestoned streets.
The village has many tunnels dug out of the rock, used for storage of the local Rioja wine, some of which can be visited.
It is the hometown of the Spanish fabulist Félix María de Samaniego (1745–1801).
Located in the south of Alava, la Rioja Alavesa is clearly bounded by the Cantabria mountain range (Sierra de Cantabria) to the north; from here its lands slope gently downwards as far as the Ebro river, where its south boundary is.
Laguardia itself is bounded by the mountains of Cantabria to the north and by the left bank of the Ebro to the south. The San Ginés river splits the districts of Elvillar and Laguardia in the east, and it is bounded by Navaridas to the west.
Páganos, El Campillar and Laserna are villages within the jurisdiction of Laguardia
These geographic nuances provide this area with its particular landscapes and climate, which have clearly made a mark both in its history and in the villagers' character.
History
In the place named "La Hoya" (a few metres north of the town centre) there is an important protohistoric archaeological site — a pre-Roman Celtiberian settlement that covers a period of more than 1000 years, from 12th century BCE to 2nd century CE.
In 1164, the village got its town charter during the reign of King Sancho VI "the Wise" of Navarre. During the middle ages, Laguardia was the main market of Navarre's Sonsierra.
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Coordinates: 42°33′00″N 2°34′59″W / 42.55000°N 2.58306°W