while Murcia was protected against Granada and Aragon. But the town became rapidly colonized by Christians from almost all parts of the Iberian Peninsula. These Christian populations were brought to the area with the goal of establishing a Christian base here, one that would be loyal to the Crown of Castile and whose culture would supplant that of the subjugated Muslim peoples. During the process of Christianization, many of the city’s mosques were destroyed or converted into Catholic churches... That is why a revolt spread in 1264-6. In 1296, James II of Aragon conquered the city. In 1304, it was finally incorporated into Castile under the Treaty of Torrellas.
Murcia then lost its prosperity but flourished again in the 18th century, benefiting greatly from a boom in the silk industry. Many of the modern city's landmark churches and monuments date from this period of nascent mercantilism. However, this was to be followed by nearly a century of mishap. In 1810, Murcia was looted by Napoleonic troops; it then suffered a majorearthquake in 1829. According to contemporaneous accounts, an estimated 6,000 people died from the disaster's effects across the province. Plague and cholera followed.
The town and surrounding area suffered badly from floods in 1651, 1879, and 1907, though the construction of a levee helped to stave off the repeated floods from the Segura. A popular pedestrian walkway, the Malecon, runs along the top of the levee.
Murcia has been the capital of the province of Murcia since 1838 and, with its creation by the central government in 1982, capital of the autonomous community (which includes only the city and the province). Since then, it has become the seventh most populated municipality in Spain, and a thriving services city.
On May 11, 2011, the city and surrounding area was struck by a 5.3 magnitude earthquake. At least 4 people were reported to have died as a result of the earthquake
