History of Ciudad Real

  Ciudad Real is a quiet and cheap small comercial and University town in the heart of La Mancha 200km south from Madrid, with a population of 75.000 habitants.

Founded as a Crown colony on 20th February 1255, when the King of Castile and Leon Alfonso X created by «Carta Puebla» (Magna Carta) a small village called Villa Real near Toledo.

The project was to have a commercial and administrative center of the Crown in the middle of the territories of the powerful Military Orders, specially The Calatrava Order.
For the new Village,  The King ordered to built a wall around the village, in the form of an oval, with seven Gates, giving privileges to its population.

Santiago’s church tower, and Alarco’s church.

The Toledo’s Gate of Ciudad Real from 13th Century

In the year 1420 the King of Castile and Leon Juan II, gave it the title to Ciudad Real (Royal Town).

The Walls of Ciudad Real
In 1451 born in Ciudad Real, Hernán Pérez del Pulgar, a famous Military and conqueror in the War of Granada against te Muslims.

In the year 1691 was created the Province of La Mancha, with its capital city in Ciudad Real.

In 1755 the earthquake of Lisbon destroyed several of the buildings.
In 1796 was open the Hospital of Ciudad Real.Ciudad Real’s old Hospital, now the University of Castilla-La Mancha.
In 26th and 27th mars of 1809 the napoleonic army held Ciudad Real, after a battle between the Napoleonic Army and Spanish Army near Ciudad Real, see «The battle of the Guadiana Bridges in Ciudad Real in 1809» , after the spanish defeat Napoleonic troops held Ciudad Real and using its Hospital as cavalry HeadQuartier and Barracks. Now it’s the Rector facilities of University of Castilla-La Mancha.

  In the year 1875 the church of Santa María del Prado is consagred Cathedral of Ciudad Real.

The Cathedral of Ciudad Real

In 1905 during the Acts of the III Centenary of Don Quichote Publication, the King of Spain Alfonso the XIII visited Ciudad Real for an exhibition at the Casino.

The late twenty Century, Ciudad Real experimented a significant growth with the arrival in 1985 of the University of Castilla-La Mancha, also with the arrival of the High Speed Train whit Madrid, AVE, in 1992.

AVE train travels from Madrid to Ciudad Real every hour. In Ciudad Real you can study a Grade in Spanish Language (ELE) in the Castilla-La Mancha University or the Grades in Medicine, Civil Engineering, History, Art, English, Italian, French and Law.