Montilla

Montilla municipality
Basic data
Autonomous Community :	Andalusia
Province :	Cordoba
Coordinates	37 ° 35 ′ N , 4 ° 38 ′ W Coordinates: 37 ° 35 ′ N , 4 ° 38 ′ W
Height :	371 msnm
Area :	168.51 km²
Residents :	22,859 (Jan 1, 2019)
Population density :	135.65 inhabitants / km²
Postal code :	14550
Municipality number ( INE ):	14042
administration
Website :	www.montilla.es
Location of the municipality

Montilla is a Spanish city in the province of Cordoba .

45 BC In BC Caesar defeated the sons of Pompey in the battle of Munda. Munda is today's Montilla.

geography

The Spanish city of Montilla is located in the south of the province in the geographical center of Andalusia , about 44 km south of the provincial capital Córdoba .

history

The battle of Munda probably took place here , which resulted in Roman domination of the region. Only between 1240 and 1241 did Ferdinand III conquer . returned the city and colonized it in the following period with settlers from León .

In the 14th century the city was given to the noble Aguilar family and in 1453 Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba was born in the local castle, owned by his father, Pedro Fernández de Córdoba, lord of Aguilar. The city gradually became a fortress. At the beginning of the 16th century, Montilla was the capital of the Margraviate of Priego and the city experienced an economic boom and an increase in population.

In 1508, King Ferdinand the Catholic had the castle of Montilla demolished to punish the Marquis of Priego. At the same time, various religious orders settled in the city, including the Franciscans , Augustinians , Poor Clares , Jesuits and Conceptionists . Through the work of important churchmen there are numerous saints who are in connection with the city such as the canonized Francisco Solana (Eng. Franziskus Solanus), patron saint Montillas, who was born in Montilla in 1549, John of Avila , Francis of Borja or John of God . But well-known artists and writers such as Miguel de Cervantes , the "Inca" Garcilaso de la Vega and Luis de Góngora y Argote have also shaped the city's history.

At the beginning of the 17th century, crop failures, famine and epidemics stagnated urban development in Montilla , but Philip IV granted Montilla city rights in 1630 . Over the next hundred years the population began to rise again and in 1711 the city merged with the Margraviate of Priego . The associated expulsion of the Jesuit order in 1767 also led to the closure of the school run by the order, which reduced the above-average level of education in the city.

In the 19th century, cholera epidemics followed, the French occupation and the associated transfer of church property into national property, but also their auction to private individuals. This in turn caused political unrest ( Carlist Wars ) in the entire region , which sparked a cultural war within Spain and ended in the proclamation of the First Republic of Spain .

After the end of the Second Spanish Republic , Montilla also turned politically towards socialism. At the time, the city was closely linked to the person of Don Francisco de Alvear , who persuaded the Jesuits to return to the city. The Count also acquired the house of Garcilaso de la Vega and donated it to the city of Montilla to set up a public library.

economy

Montilla produces almost exclusively wine, which is reflected in the Montilla-Moriles Denomination of Origin . Four different basic types of wine are made from the one white grape variety Pedro Ximénez : Fino, Amontillado, Oloroso and the sweet wine Pedro Ximénez, the basis for Málaga and Cream Sherry. The used barrels are later partially used to mature various Scottish whiskeys . Alcohol content (not fortified): at least 14 percent by volume.

geology

The soils are white because of the extreme limestone content and are therefore referred to as "Tierras albarizas".

climate

The climate of Montilla is basically Mediterranean with some continental influences.

Web links

Commons : Montilla - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

↑ 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).
↑ Montilla at cordoba24.info, accessed on February 11, 2017.
↑ Alvear Montilla-Moriles Pedro Ximenez 1927 at whiskyshop.nl, accessed on February 11, 2017.

[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] Montilla at cordoba24.info, accessed on February 11, 2017.

[3] Alvear Montilla-Moriles Pedro Ximenez 1927 at whiskyshop.nl, accessed on February 11, 2017.