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Murcia
KNOWLEDGE OF Murcia
Murcia (37°59′N 1°8′W) is a city on the river Segura in southeastern Spain and the capital of the Autonomous Community of Murcia. Population: 409,810 (2005); 563,272 including the metropolitan area (urban area plus satellite towns), ranking as the 12th-largest metropolitan area of Spain. Since 2003 the mayor has been Miguel Ã?ngel Cámara BotÃa (PP).
Murcia is built nearly in the centre of a low-lying fertile plain, known as the huerta or market garden of Murcia, which includes the valleys of the Segura and its right-hand tributary the GuadalentÃn (Wadalentin) or river Sangonera, and is surrounded by mountains. Despite the proximity of the sea, the climate is subject to great variations: the summer heat is severe, while frosts are occasionally experienced in the capital during the winter.
Precipitation in Murcia is scarce, with less than 200 mm (7.9 inches) registered in the recently terminated hydrological year (October 2004 to September 2005).
Murcia-San Javier Airport (MJV) is located on the edge of the Mar Menor close to the towns of San Javier and Santiago de la Ribera, 45 km southeast of Murcia, about 30 minutes by car. The airport at Alicante is frequently used by travellers to Murcia also.
Murcia was founded with the name of Medinat Mursiya in A.D. 825 by Abd ar-Rahman II, emir of Al-Andalus. The Arabs, taking advantage of the course of the river Segura, created a complex network of irrigation channels that made the town prosperous and is the predecessor of the modern irrigation system. The Arab traveller Muhammad al-Idrisi described it in the 12th century as populous and strongly fortified. After the fall of the caliphate of Cordova, Murcia passed successively under the rule of AlmerÃa, Toledo and Seville. In 1172 it was taken by the Almohades, and from 1223 to 1243 it became the capital of an independent kingdom.
The Castilians, led by King Alfonso X, took it at the end of this period, when large numbers of immigrants from north-eastern Spain and Provence settled in the town; Catalan names are still not uncommon. In 1296, Murcia and its region were transferred to the Kingdom of Aragon, but in 1304, in virtue of the Treaty of Torrellas, it was finally incorporated into Castile.
Murcia flourished in the 18th century, mainly due to the boom of the silk industry. Many of its churches and monuments are from this period.
The town and its surroundings suffered badly from floods in 1651, 1879 and 1907, though the construction of a contention wall or Malecon did much to keep the Segura within its own channel. Murcia is capital of the province of Murcia since 1838, and capital of the autonomous community (which includes only the province) since its creation in 1982.
Murcia is built nearly in the centre of a low-lying fertile plain, known as the huerta or market garden of Murcia, which includes the valleys of the Segura and its right-hand tributary the GuadalentÃn (Wadalentin) or river Sangonera, and is surrounded by mountains. Despite the proximity of the sea, the climate is subject to great variations: the summer heat is severe, while frosts are occasionally experienced in the capital during the winter.
Precipitation in Murcia is scarce, with less than 200 mm (7.9 inches) registered in the recently terminated hydrological year (October 2004 to September 2005).
Murcia-San Javier Airport (MJV) is located on the edge of the Mar Menor close to the towns of San Javier and Santiago de la Ribera, 45 km southeast of Murcia, about 30 minutes by car. The airport at Alicante is frequently used by travellers to Murcia also.
Murcia was founded with the name of Medinat Mursiya in A.D. 825 by Abd ar-Rahman II, emir of Al-Andalus. The Arabs, taking advantage of the course of the river Segura, created a complex network of irrigation channels that made the town prosperous and is the predecessor of the modern irrigation system. The Arab traveller Muhammad al-Idrisi described it in the 12th century as populous and strongly fortified. After the fall of the caliphate of Cordova, Murcia passed successively under the rule of AlmerÃa, Toledo and Seville. In 1172 it was taken by the Almohades, and from 1223 to 1243 it became the capital of an independent kingdom.
The Castilians, led by King Alfonso X, took it at the end of this period, when large numbers of immigrants from north-eastern Spain and Provence settled in the town; Catalan names are still not uncommon. In 1296, Murcia and its region were transferred to the Kingdom of Aragon, but in 1304, in virtue of the Treaty of Torrellas, it was finally incorporated into Castile.
Murcia flourished in the 18th century, mainly due to the boom of the silk industry. Many of its churches and monuments are from this period.
The town and its surroundings suffered badly from floods in 1651, 1879 and 1907, though the construction of a contention wall or Malecon did much to keep the Segura within its own channel. Murcia is capital of the province of Murcia since 1838, and capital of the autonomous community (which includes only the province) since its creation in 1982.
Chapi