A number of ancient cultures have passed through the site of present-day San Roque: Iberians, Phoenicians, Carthaginians and Romans all left their mark. Carteia, Spain’s first Roman colony founded in 171 B.C., was located here, on the site of a town with an important sea port.
It was occupied by the Moslems from the time they invaded the peninsula until the conquest of the kingdom of Granada in 1462.
The town’s more recent history dates back to the loss of Gibraltar in 1704. Some of the Rock’s inhabitants moved to San Roque Chapel and settled nearby, under saintly protection, thus providing the origins of modern-day San Roque. The town’s coat of arms is identical to that of Gibraltar.
