Segovia Nights in Spain By Diana Sainz
by Diana Raquel Sainz
Title
Segovia Nights in Spain By Diana Sainz
Artist
Diana Raquel Sainz
Medium
Photograph - Photography, Color Photography, Black And White Photography
Description
SEGOVIA, SPAIN
FEATURED IMAGE: Spanish Themed Art Work ~ 01/10/2015
FEATURED IMAGE: Art From The Past ~ 12/02/2013
FEATURED IMAGE: Afternoon and Dawn ~ 11/02/2013
FEATURED IMAGE: Urban Landscapes ~ 07/30/2013
FEATURED IMAGE:City and Architecture ~ 07/26/2013
FEATURED IMAGE: All Landscape and Scenery FAA ~ 05/01/2013
FEATURED IMAGE: Spain and the Iberian Peninsula FAA ~ 04/23/2013
SEGOVIA, SPAIN a rainy day on top of the Aqueducts watching the sun go down.
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The name of Segovia is of Celtiberian origin. The first inhabitants named the city Segobriga. This name comes from two terms of the Celtiberian language of the Celtic branch of Indo-European. The term Sego means �victory� (the prefix is also present in other city names such as Segeda and Segontia, cf. German "Sieg") and the suffix -briga would mean �city� or �strength�. So the name might be translated as "City of the victory" or "Victorious city". Under the Romans and Arabs, the city was called Segovia and �iqūbiyyah respectively. Segovia is located within the Iberian Peninsula, near Valladolid and the Spanish capital, Madrid.
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Segovia is one of nine provinces that make up the autonomous region of Castile and Le�n. It is neighboured by Burgos and Valladolid to the north, �vila to the west, Madrid and Guadalajara to the south and Soria to the east. The altitude of the province varies from 750 metres (2,461 feet) in the extreme northwest to a maximum of 2,430 m (7,972 ft) at Pe�alara peak. The town is part of the main route of the Camino de Santiago de Madrid.
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HISTORY
Alc�zar of Segovia. Segovia was first recorded as a Celtic possession, with control eventually transferring into the hands of the Romans. The city is a possible site of the battle in 75 BCE where Metellus was victorious over the general of Sertorius, Hirtuleius. Hirtuleius died in the fighting.
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During the Roman period the settlement belonged to one of numerous contemporary Latin convents. It is believed that the city was abandoned after the Islamic invasion of Spain centuries later. After the conquest of Toledo by Alfonso VI of Le�n and Castile, the son of King Alfonso VI, Segovia began restocking with Christians from the north of the peninsula and beyond the Pyrenees, providing it with a significant sphere of influence whose boundaries crossed the Sierra de Guadarrama and the Tagus.
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Segovia's position on trading routes made it an important center of trade in wool and textiles. The end of the Middle Ages saw something of a golden age for Segovia, with a growing Jewish population and the creation of a foundation for a powerful cloth industry. Several splendid works of Gothic architecture were also completed during this period. Notably, Isabella I was proclaimed queen of Castile in the church of San Miguel de Segovia on December 13, 1474.
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Like most Castilian textile centers, Segovia joined the Revolt of the Comuneros under the command of Juan Bravo. Despite the defeat of the Communities, the city's resultant economic boom continued into the sixteenth century, its population rising to 27,000 in 1594. Then, as well as almost all the cities of Castile, Segovia entered a period of decline. Only a century later in 1694, the population had been reduced to only 8,000 inhabitants. In the early eighteenth century, Segovia attempted to revitalize its textile industry, with little success. In the second half of the century, Charles III made another attempt to revive the region's commerce; it took the form of the Royal Segovian Wool Manufacturing Company (1763). However, the lack of competitiveness of production caused the crown withdraw its sponsorship in 1779. In 1764, the Royal School of Artillery, the first military academy in Spain, was opened. This academy remains present in the city today. In 1808, Segovia was sacked by French troops during the War of Independence. During the First Carlist War, troops under the command of Don Carlos unsuccessfully attacked the city. During the nineteenth and first half of the twentieth century, Segovia experienced a demographic recovery that was the result of relative economic stability.
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WORLD HERITAGE CITY
The Roman Aqueduct of Segovia.
In 1985 the old city of Segovia and its Aqueduct were declared World Heritage by UNESCO. The Roman Aqueduct of Segovia. Within the environment of the old city, stand diversity of historic buildings both civil and religious, not just Catholics but also Jews, like the district that served this minority, which commemorates the different cultures in the city. One of the best examples of this cultural diversity is represented by the former synagogue, now the church of Corpus, and the Jewish cemetery located in "El Pinarillo" with its interpretation center in the most important Jewish palace of the Spanish aljamas, the chief accountant Meir Melamed, son-in-law and successor of Abraham Senior, chief rabbi of the Kingdom of Castile, Melamed after converting to Christianity under the name of Fern�n N��ez Coronel, was alderman of the city and occupied important positions in the kingdom. Among its monuments are:
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The Aqueduct of Segovia, located in the much-visited Plaza del Azoguejo, is the defining historical feature of the city, dating from the late 1st or early 2nd century.Acknowledged as the most important Roman civil engineering work in Spain, it consists of about 25,000 granite blocks held together without any mortar, and spans 818 meters with more than 170 arches, the highest being 29 meters high.
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The Alcazar of Segovia, the royal palace located on top of a rock between the rivers Eresma and Clamores, is documented for the first time in 1122, although it may exist in earlier time. It was one of the favorite residences of the kings of Castile, built in the transition from Romanesque to Gothic and Mud�jar decor highlighting its ample rooms. The building is structured around two courtyards and has two towers, the Keep and John II. It was a favorite residence of Alfonso X the Wise and Henry IV, and Isabella the Catholic left him to be crowned Queen of Castile in the main square. Devastated by fire in 1862, was later rebuilt. Now houses the General Militar de Segovia archive and museum of the Royal School of Artillery, managed by the Board of the Alcazar.
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The Segovia Cathedral is the last Gothic cathedral built in Spain. It is considered the masterpiece of Basque-Castilian Gothic and is known as "The Lady of Cathedrals." This is the third largest cathedral in the city, and retains the cloister of the second, located opposite the castle and destroyed during the Revolt of the Comuneros in 1520. In his works he worked Juan and Rodrigo Gil de Honta��n, and other teachers of Spanish architecture. It was consecrated in 1768 and has dimensions of 105 meters long, 50 meters wide and 33 high in the nave, has 18 chapels and has three doors: El Perd�n, San Frutos and San Geroteo, first bishop of the diocese.
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The Walls of Segovia existed when Alfonso VI of Le�n and Castile took the city to the Arabs, who commanded a larger coming to have a perimeter of 3 kilometers, eighty towers, five doors and several doors. It was built mainly with granite blocks, but also reused gravestones of the Roman necropolis. The wall runs along the old, and currently maintains three doors: San Cebri�n, of great austerity, Santiago, of Mud�jar looking, and San Andr�s, gateway to the Jewish quarter, and the breaches of Consuelo, San Juan, the Sun and Moon.
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The city maintains an important collection of Romanesque churches of both stone and brick, which include San Esteban, San Mill�n, San Mart�n, la Sant�sima Trinidad, San Andr�s, San Clemente, Santos Justo y Pastor, la Vera Cruz and San Salvador and others . It also retains many convents and monasteries such as San Antonio el Real, del Parral or San Vicente el Real and the Old main synagogue is a remainder of Jewish Segovia.
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CLIMATE
The climate is continental Mediterranean, cold and dry, resulting from the high altitude and the distance from the coast. The average annual temperature is 11.5 �C (52.7 �F), with an absolute minimum in December of −14 �C (6.8 �F) and maximum in August of 39 �C (102.2 �F). The annual precipitation is 520 mm (20 inches) per year, making the province a damp corner in the context of the region. The predominant forms of vegetation in the mountainous areas include pine, evergreen, oak, beech and juniper.
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April 23rd, 2013
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