Arcos de la Frontera

Arcos de la Frontera municipality
coat of arms	Map of Spain
Basic data
Autonomous Community :	Andalusia
Province :	Cadiz
Comarca :	Sierra de Cadiz
Coordinates	36 ° 45 ′  N , 5 ° 48 ′  W Coordinates: 36 ° 45 ′  N , 5 ° 48 ′  W
Height :	185  msnm
Area :	527.58 km²
Residents :	30,700 (Jan. 1, 2019)
Population density :	58.19 inhabitants / km²
Postal code :	11630
Municipality number  ( INE ):	11006
administration
Mayor :	José Luis Núñez Ordóñez ( PP )
Address of the municipal administration:	Plaza del Cabildo, 1, 11630 Arcos de la Frontera, Tel .: [phone]
Website :	arcosdelafrontera.es
Location of the municipality

Arcos de la Frontera, seen from the valley of the Río Guadalete

Arcos de la Frontera is a municipality and a city in the province of Cádiz in Andalusia ( Spain ) about 68 km from the provincial capital Cádiz . Arcos is the main town of the white villages . The old town in particular, which is located on a steep cliff above the Guadalete River , is a tourist attraction.

description

In the old town there are the narrow streets with whitewashed houses, which are characteristic of the white villages ; In Arcos, the many supporting arches that connect the houses above the alleys are striking. The heart of the old town is the Plaza del Cabildo . It is bordered by the Town Hall, Parador and the Church of Santa Maria de la Asuncíon , and the open side offers a beautiful view of the Guadalete River . Behind the town hall is the castle ( castillo ), built by the Arabs (see History of Spain ) in the 11th century, with the palace of the Dukes of Arcos attached to it . Along the main street you come to a second large church, San Pedro , which was built in the Gothic style. It was built in the 16th century on the site of a Moorish castle. Other attractions include some magnificent town houses, u. a. the Palacio del Conde del Águila from the 15th century, the Palacio del Marqués de Torresoto , a Baroque building from the 18th century, and the Palacio del Mayorazgo , a Renaissance building from the 17th century.

history

Arcos was founded by the Iberians and was known as Arco Briga in Roman times . Nearby, the Battle of the Río Guadalete took place in July 711 , in which the Visigoth king Roderich was killed in action against the Muslim invasion force. Subsequently, the area became part of the Muslim territory of Al-Andalus , later the Emirate of Cordoba, and then the Caliphate of Cordoba . After its end, Arcos was an independent taifa until the city was annexed by the Abbadids from Seville around the middle of the 11th century . In 1263 it was conquered by the Christians. Until the fall of Granada in 1492, the city remained in the border area between Christians and Moors, which the part of the name "de la Frontera" (Spanish for: at the border ) reminds of to this day. After the Reconquista , the city ​​benefited from the wealth of the large landowners who lived here , which can still be seen today in the town houses.

Attractions

• The palace del conde del Águila, in the Moorish-Gothic style, built during the 14th and 15th centuries, is located in the Cuesta de Belén.
• Castillo de Arcos, a building of military character, is located on the highest mountain in the municipality. It has been declared a general cultural asset (Bien de Interés Cultural).
• The Iglesia Parroquial de Santa María de la Asunción is a temple of Moorish origin from the 14th and 15th centuries, with extensive renovations carried out during the first half of the 16th century. Ogival elements can be found on the outer facade (Portal de Santa María). There are also other elements from the Baroque or Renaissance periods .
• S. Agustín Monastery from the 16th and 17th centuries
• San Pedro Church (15th - 17th centuries)
• Palace del Mayorazgo (17th century)
• The 17th century town hall
• Church de San Francisco. (16th to 17th century)
• The Matrera Gate. It is the only gate that has remained at the foot of the historic Arab wall.
• The hospital and church de la Caridad (16th to 17th centuries)
• Calduba

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  Arcos de la Frontera from the southwest

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  Old castle

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  Palace of the Dukes of Arcos

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  Street scene

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  The place seen from above

nature

Particularly noteworthy is the Peña de Arcos (natural steep slope), which has a balcony at a great height and which has been declared a natural monument of Andalusia.

Other natural attractions are the presa de Arcos and the "junta de los ríos".

Festivals

• Festival of Nuestra. Sra. de las Nieves (Patrona)
• Easter (national tourism)
• Bullfight from Aleluya
• Día del Caballo (Day of the Horse)
• Carnaval
• Cruz de Mayo (Festival of the Cross in May)
• Velada del Barrio Bajo (Lower Quarter Music Festival)
• Festival of San Miguel, the patron saint of Arcos

politics

Historical development in the municipality of Arcos de la Frontera

Political party	2011		2015
	Be right %	Seats	Be right %	Seats
PP	30.78%	7th	-	-
PSOE	27.33%	7th	-	-
AIPRO	27.49%	7th	-	-

Source: Spanish Ministry of the Interior

Population development

Source: INE archive - graphic processing for Wikipedia

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Cifras oficiales de población resultantes de la revisión del Padrón municipal a 1 de enero . Population statistics from the Instituto Nacional de Estadística (population update).
2. ↑ M.El Consejo Andaluz de la Biodiversidad analiza la regulación del aprovechamiento energético de la biomasa Europa Press of June 29, 2011, accessed on July 16, 2018.
3. ↑ Resultados provisionales - Arcos de la Frontera Ministerio del Interior - Subsecretaría Dirección General de Política Interior, May 22, 2011, accessed on July 16, 2018.

Web links

Commons : Arcos de la Frontera  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• City homepage , accessed on January 4, 2018