Situated in the south-west of the province of Soria, the town is bounded by three canyons - Las Gargantas, Los Pilones and Caracena, from which it takes its name - in an area of breathtaking beauty.

Its position as a frontier between Moors and Christians dictated the history of this town. Repopulated by the Christians in the 11th century, by the 12th century it had become a thriving, prosperous town, with more than twenty villages under its jurisdiction.

After confiscating it from the Tovar family, the Catholic Monarchs gave the town and its villages to Alonso Carrillo, nephew of the famous Archbishop of Toledo. Carrillo rebuilt the castle, one of the best-conserved in the area.

Traces of the medieval period remain in the two Romanesque churches: San Pedro Apóstol and Santa María de la Asunción. The magnificent Baroque jurisdiction column stands proudly in the main square, and the streets house the ruins of the ancient hospital and hospice for travellers.