Ciudad Real
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Ciudad Real (Spanish for: Royal City) is a city in Castilla-La Mancha, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Ciudad Real.
During the Middle Ages, four kilometres of walls and one hundred and thirty towers protected a population made up of Christians, Moors and Jews. After the unification of the peninsular Kingdoms under the Catholic Monarch, Ciudad Real became the capital of the province of La Mancha in the 17th century. This fact favoured its economic development which was spilled into important buildings. The city was founded by king Alfonso X in the 13th century to fight against the Military Order of Calatrava. Its population is 73,124, which is about an eighth of the population of the province. The city was surrounded by walls. Nowadays, there are only two parts of the wall left.
"Don Quixote's Museum" is situated next to "Parque de Gasset". It's dedicated to the important figure of "Don Quixote". It has a lot of works of art. In the museum there are a lot of rooms....: the showroom, which shows 10 character busts relationated with "Don Quixote". These busts seem to talk to each other: a library, which has an amount of 3500 books, and it also holds a consulting room; an artroom, which shows 10 pictures painted by José Jiménez Aranda; a projection room, where you can see videos and films about "Don Quixote" and a multipurpose room which has a capacity of 90 people.
It has a stop on the AVE high-speed rail line and has begun to grow as a long-distance commuter suburb of Madrid.
The "Iglesia de Santiago" is the oldest one in Ciudad Real. It was built at the end of the 13th century. Its style is gothic. It has three blocks divided into two parts. Its decorated with gothic paintings and with seven headed dragons, they were used such us amulets against the bad spirits. The ceiling is decorated with stones forming eight points stars.
Another important church in Ciudad Real is "Iglesia de San Pedro" ( San Pedro's church). It is the monument that has more interest and quality of the city. It was built between the XIVth and XVth century. It has gothic style. Inside we can find the tomb of Chante de Coca, confessor and chaplain of the Catholic Monarchs. Admission is free.
A high capacity airport (Ciudad Real Central Airport) is currently under construction and expected to commence operations in June of 2008. The beginning of the construction of a new Caesar's Palace Casino is planned for 2007.
The city has a handball team, the BM Ciudad Real, which was the winner of the handball EHF Champions League in 2006 and 2008. The handball club is one of the best in the world and its hall, the Don Quixote Arena, is the biggest in Spain.
Museo Elisa Cendreros: this museum exhibits an old collection of fans and wrought wood that speaks to us of a cultured and a refind time. Here you can see works of art by Ciudadrealeños like Angel Andrade and Carlos Vazquez, fruit of interest and friendship of Elisa Cendreros founder of this museum with these artists.
In the centre of Ciudad Real, where the city council is, it's the Plaza Mayor. In one of its sides there is a statue of Alfonso X, founder of the city, the House of the Arc, an old house consistorial.
Ciudad Real has 18 Primary Schools and six high schools. The High School "Torreón del Alcázar" was founded the year 1987. In the first years there were only vocational studies, thirty teachers and 350 students. Some years later the high school incorporated the Compulsory Secondary studies and A levels. At the moment there are 93 teachers and 1000 students. In the year 1995 the High School was offered to become a bilingual school. And in the year 2005 the first bilingual group arrived.
One of the most popular festivals in the city is La Pandorga, which takes place July 30th and 31st. On the last day of the month the festival honors its patroness “La virgen del Prado.” The usual attire consists of jeans, a white shirt, and the traditional handkerchief. Throughout the day there is music, dancing, and food. There are things for younger kids like rides and games accompanied by a section for the older crowd, which consists of a large field filled with white tents, each tent playing different music. The festival usually lasts all night, ending early the next morning.
[edit] Natives of Ciudad Real
- Hernán Pérez del Pulgar (1451 - 1535), captain of the Conquest of Granada
- Manuel Marín (born October 21, 1949), politician and former president of the Spanish Congress
- Fernando Luna (born April 24, 1958), professional tennis player
- Manuel López-Villaseñor (1924-1996), painter
- Juande Ramos (born 1954), manager of Tottenham Hotspur football club
[edit] See also
- List of municipalities in Ciudad Real province.
