Geographical Situation: Llanes, a municipality in the
East of Asturias has a surface area of 261,14 km². It is
bordered in the North, by the Cantabrian Sea; in the West, by the
municipalities of Ribadesella and Cangas de Onís; in the South,
by those of Onís, Cabrales, Peñamellera Alta and Peñamellera
Baja; and in the East, by Ribadedeva. The number of inhabitants
is 13.133, spread around 70 towns, villages and hamlets.
Rivers: in addition to the Guadamía and Cabra, which
signal the limits with the neighbouring municipalities of
Ribadesella and Ribadedeva, respectively, flow through Llanes the
river Bedón, the longest and largest, which disapears at Puente
Nuevo el Riensena; the Ereba, which crosses Nueva and flows out
to Cuevas del Mar; the Cabrales, which passes through Posada; the
Purón, famous for its trout,and the Carrocedo, which ends its
course in the town of Llanes. All of the rivers run from South to
North.
Topography: Llanes is a municipality that is the least
contoured in the region, with extensive plains of spectacular
formations, such as the so-called level of Nueva with many small
valleys and hills. The real heights are reserved for the natural
wall, which is the Sierra de Cuera, with the Peña Blanca, at
1,176 metres, the highest point in Llaniscan territory followed
by the Ibeu and Jo l'Alisa at 869 metres, which are no less
spectacular given that they are no more than 6 kilometres from
the coast.
In 1206, during the reign of Alfonso IX, the town was
encircled by walls with battlements to defend itself from bandits
and ruffians. This was as a result of the "Carta
Puebla" or "Fuero de Llanes" where King Alfonso
granted Llanes its liberty from obligations to the Court of the
Kingdom of Aguilar and Leon.