Some foundations and ceramics found in the town show the area was occupied at the time of the Romans. In 1342, the Battle of Estepona took place in the Bay of Estepona between the fleet of the Kingdom of Aragon and that of the Marinid Dynasty. The name Estepona probably comes from the Moorish Astabbuna. Henry IV of Castile captured the town from the Moors in 1457. A church was built on the site of the previous mosque. In 1729 Estepona was granted its own charter by Philip V of Spain
