The origins of Pozuelo de Alarcón date back to 1208 when King Alfonso VIII established the boundaries of Segovia with Toledo, Madrid and Alamín. The name of Pozuelo appeared for the first time: “et Pozolos remanet de parte de Madrid”.
The current territory belongs to Madrid’s outlying area, within the “Sexmo de Aravaca”, and it was therefore known at the time as Pozuelo de Aravaca.
The name is due to the existence of “pozos” [wells] and natural springs in the area, and also to the surname of the person who bought the township. Pozuelo was subjected to Royal jurisdiction until 1632, when it fell under Lordship jurisdiction and was purchased by Gabriel Ocaña de Alarcón, who established the condition of changing its name from Pozuelo de Aravaca to Pozuelo de Alarcón.
In the 18th century the town began to acquire a certain degree of importance, since it was the place where the Madrid Bourgeois class spent the summer, preferring to spend this season among trees and water that were said to be medicinal.
Colonies with summer homes began to appear, known then as “hotels”. The rise of Pozuelo truly began with the arrival of the railway in 1861, which meant more and more people came to spend the summer there. In 1914 the San José Colony was founded.
The Los Ángeles Colony was founded in 1926 and three years later the Los Ángeles Colony Society was created. It was also at this time that the former Quinta del Carmen was formed, becoming the Cabaña Colony, and creating the relevant society the following year.
Urban development of Pozuelo underwent a hiatus during the Civil War owing to the episodes of violence that took place there.
From the 50’s onwards the population began to grow, with people going there to settle from places such as Castile León, Castile La Mancha, Andalusia and Extremadura.
As of the 70’s, Pozuelo de Alarcón became a town with large residential estates, leaving behind the market gardens, vineyards and tanning factories.
At the end of the 80’s and beginning of the 90’s the buildings on the Casa de Campo extension on Avenida de Europa were built, doubling the existing population.
