1.
Toledo, Spain
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Toledo is a city and municipality located in central Spain, it is the capital of the province of Toledo and the autonomous community of Castile–La Mancha. It was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1986 for its cultural and monumental heritage and historical co-existence of Christian, Muslim. Toledo has a history in the production of bladed weapons, which are now popular souvenirs of the city, people who were born or have lived in Toledo include Brunhilda of Austrasia, Al-Zarqali, Garcilaso de la Vega, Eleanor of Toledo, Alfonso X and El Greco. It was also the place of important historic events such as the Visigothic Councils of Toledo, as of 2015, the city has a population of 83,226 and an area of 232.1 km2. The town was granted arms in the 16th century, which by special royal privilege was based on the royal of arms of Spain, Toledo is mentioned by the Roman historian Livy as urbs parva, sed loco munita. At that time, Toletum was a city of the Carpetani tribe and it was incorporated into the Roman Empire as a civitas stipendiaria, that is, a tributary city of non-citizens. It later achieved the status of municipium by Flavian times, with this status, city officials, even of Carpetani origin, obtained Roman citizenship for public service, and the forms of Roman law and politics were increasingly adopted. At approximately this time were constructed in Toletum a Roman circus, city walls, public baths, and a municipal water supply and storage system. The Roman circus in Toledo was one of the largest in Hispania, at 423 metres long and 100 metres wide, chariot races were held on special holidays and were also commissioned by private citizens to celebrate career achievements. A fragmentary stone inscription records circus games paid for by a citizen of unknown name to celebrate his achieving the sevirate, archaeologists have also identified portions of a special seat of the sort used by the city elites to attend circus games, called a sella curulis. The circus could hold up to 15000 spectators, during Roman times, Toledo was never a provincial capital nor a conventus iuridicus. It started to gain importance in late antiquity, there are indications that large private houses within the city walls were enlarged, while several large villas were built north of the city through the third and fourth centuries. Games were held in the circus into the fourth and early fifth centuries C. E. also an indication of active city life. A church council was held in Toledo in the year 400 to discuss the conflict with Priscillianism, a second council of Toledo was held in 527. The Visigothic king Theudis was in Toledo in 546, where he promulgated a law and this is strong though not certain evidence that Toledo was the chief residence for Theudis. King Athanagild died in Toledo, probably in 568 and this changed with Liuvigild, who brought the peninsula under his control. The Visigoths ruled from Toledo until the Moors conquered the Iberian peninsula in the years of 8th century. Today the historic center is pierced of basements, passages, wells, baths, a series of church councils was held in Toledo under the Visigoths
2.
Infantry
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Infantry is the general branch of an army that engages in military combat on foot. As the troops who engage with the enemy in close-ranged combat, infantry units bear the largest brunt of warfare, Infantry can enter and maneuver in terrain that is inaccessible to military vehicles and employ crew-served infantry weapons that provide greater and more sustained firepower. In English, the 16th-century term Infantry describes soldiers who walk to the battlefield, and there engage, fight, the term arose in Sixteenth-Century Spain, which boasted one of the first professional standing armies seen in Europe since the days of Rome. It was common to appoint royal princes to military commands, and the men under them became known as Infanteria. in the Canadian Army, the role of the infantry is to close with, and destroy the enemy. In the U. S. Army, the closes with the enemy, by means of fire and maneuver, in order to destroy or capture him, or to repel his assault by fire, close combat. In the U. S. Marine Corps, the role of the infantry is to locate, close with, and destroy the enemy fire and maneuver. Beginning with the Napoleonic Wars of the early 19th century, artillery has become a dominant force on the battlefield. Since World War I, combat aircraft and armoured vehicles have become dominant. In 20th and 21st century warfare, infantry functions most effectively as part of a combined arms team including artillery, armour, Infantry relies on organized formations to be employed in battle. These have evolved over time, but remain a key element to effective infantry development and deployment, until the end of the 19th century, infantry units were for the most part employed in close formations up until contact with the enemy. This allowed commanders to control of the unit, especially while maneuvering. The development of guns and other weapons with increased firepower forced infantry units to disperse in order to make them less vulnerable to such weapons. This decentralization of command was made possible by improved communications equipment, among the various subtypes of infantry is Medium infantry. This refers to infantry which are heavily armed and armored than heavy infantry. In the early period, medium infantry were largely eliminated due to discontinued use of body armour up until the 20th century. In the United States Army, Stryker Infantry is considered Medium Infantry, since they are heavier than light infantry, Infantry doctrine is the concise expression of how infantry forces contribute to campaigns, major operations, battles, and engagements. It is a guide to action, not a set of hard, doctrine provides a very common frame of reference across the military forces, allowing the infantry to function cooperatively in what are now called combined arms operations. Doctrine helps standardise operations, facilitating readiness by establishing common ways of accomplishing infantry tasks, doctrine links theory, history, experimentation, and practice
3.
Madrid
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Madrid is the capital city of the Kingdom of Spain and the largest municipality in both the Community of Madrid and Spain as a whole. The city has a population of almost 3.2 million with an area population of approximately 6.5 million. It is the third-largest city in the European Union after London and Berlin, the municipality itself covers an area of 604.3 km2. Madrid lies on the River Manzanares in the centre of both the country and the Community of Madrid, this community is bordered by the communities of Castile and León. As the capital city of Spain, seat of government, and residence of the Spanish monarch, Madrid is also the political, economic, the current mayor is Manuela Carmena from Ahora Madrid. Madrid is home to two football clubs, Real Madrid and Atlético de Madrid. Madrid is the 17th most liveable city in the according to Monocle magazine. Madrid organises fairs such as FITUR, ARCO, SIMO TCI, while Madrid possesses modern infrastructure, it has preserved the look and feel of many of its historic neighbourhoods and streets. Cibeles Palace and Fountain have become one of the monument symbols of the city, the first documented reference of the city originates in Andalusan times as the Arabic مجريط Majrīṭ, which was retained in Medieval Spanish as Magerit. A wider number of theories have been formulated on possible earlier origins, according to legend, Madrid was founded by Ocno Bianor and was named Metragirta or Mantua Carpetana. The most ancient recorded name of the city Magerit comes from the name of a built on the Manzanares River in the 9th century AD. Nevertheless, it is speculated that the origin of the current name of the city comes from the 2nd century BC. The Roman Empire established a settlement on the banks of the Manzanares river, the name of this first village was Matrice. In the 8th century, the Islamic conquest of the Iberian Peninsula saw the changed to Mayrit, from the Arabic term ميرا Mayra. The modern Madrid evolved from the Mozarabic Matrit, which is still in the Madrilenian gentilic, after the disintegration of the Caliphate of Córdoba, Madrid was integrated in the Taifa of Toledo. With the surrender of Toledo to Alfonso VI of León and Castile, the city was conquered by Christians in 1085, Christians replaced Muslims in the occupation of the centre of the city, while Muslims and Jews settled in the suburbs. The city was thriving and was given the title of Villa, since 1188, Madrid won the right to be a city with representation in the courts of Castile. In 1202, King Alfonso VIII of Castile gave Madrid its first charter to regulate the municipal council, which was expanded in 1222 by Ferdinand III of Castile
4.
Zaragoza
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Zaragoza, also called Saragossa in English, is the capital city of the Zaragoza province and of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributaries, the Huerva, on 1 September 2010 the population of the city of Zaragoza was 701,090, within its administrative limits on a land area of 1,062.64 square kilometres, ranking fifth in Spain. It is the 32nd most populous municipality in the European Union, the population of the metropolitan area was estimated in 2006 at 783,763 inhabitants. The municipality is home to more than 50 percent of the Aragonese population, the city lies at an elevation of 199 metres above sea level. Zaragoza hosted Expo 2008 in the summer of 2008, a fair on water. It was also a candidate for the European Capital of Culture in 2012, the city is famous for its folklore, local gastronomy, and landmarks such as the Basílica del Pilar, La Seo Cathedral and the Aljafería Palace. Together with La Seo and the Aljafería, several other buildings part of the Mudéjar Architecture of Aragon which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Fiestas del Pilar are among the most celebrated festivals in Spain, the city was called by the ancient Romans Caesaraugusta, from which the present name derives. The Iberian town that predated the Roman city was called Salduie, see also, Caesar Augusta The Sedetani, a tribe of ancient Iberians, populated a village called Salduie. Later on, Augustus founded a city called Caesaraugusta at the location to settle army veterans from the Cantabrian wars. The foundation date of Caesaraugusta has not been set with exact precision, the city did not suffer any decline during the last centuries of the Roman empire and was captured peacefully by the Goths in the fifth century AD. From 1018 to 1118, Zaragoza was one of the taifa kingdoms, during the first three decades of this period, 1018–1038, the city was ruled by the Banu Tujibi. After the death of El Cid his kingdom was overrun by the Almoravids, who, by 1100, had managed to cross the Ebro into Barbastro, the Banu Hud stubbornly resisted the Almoravids and ruled until they were eventually defeated by them in May 1110. On 18 December 1118, the Aragonese led by Alfonso I conquered the city from the Almoravids, after Alfonsos death without heirs in 1134, Zaragoza was swiftly occupied by Alfonso VII of León and Castile. The wedding never happened, as Petronila ended up marrying Ramon Berenguer IV, the marriage union was the origin of the Crown of Aragón. While the reality of the existence of Saint Dominguito del Val is questioned, despite a decline in the outlying rural economy, Zaragoza has continued to grow. The General Military Academy, a training center of the Spanish Army, was re-established on September 27,1940 by Minister of the Army José Enrique Varela Iglesias. During the second half of the 20th century, Zaragozas population boomed as a number of factories opened in the region, in 1979, the Hotel Corona de Aragón fire killed at least 80
5.
Guadalajara, Castilla-La Mancha
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Guadalajara is a city and municipality in the autonomous community of Castile–La Mancha, Spain, and in the natural region of La Alcarria. It is the capital of the province of Guadalajara and it is located roughly 60 kilometres northeast of Madrid on the Henares River, and has a population of 84,803. A Roman town called Arriaca, possibly founded by a culture, is known to have been located in that region. There is however no proof of its existence, only references in texts such as the Ruta Antonina. The city, as Caracca, was incorporated into the Roman province of Hispania Tarraconensis, the city was on the high road from Emerita to Caesaraugusta,22 M. P. northeast of Complutum. The town of Guadalajara was founded by the Andalusians in the 8th century and they named it Wādī-al-Ḥajāra, meaning Valley of Stones, in theory the literal translation of the Iberian name, meaning Stony River. The history of the town during the Al-Andalus period was significant and they built monuments including the Moorish Bridge over the Henares River, the now ruined old Alcázar, and a mosque which later became the former Cathedral of St. Mary. In 1085, Guadalajara was taken by the Christian forces of Alfonso VI, the chronicles say that the Christian army was led by Alvar Fanez de Minaya, one of the lieutenants of El Cid. From 1085 until the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in 1212, the city suffered wars against the Almoravid, in 1219, the king Fernando III gave a new fuero to the city. During the reign of Alfonso X of Castile, the protection of the king allowed the city to develop its economy by protecting merchants, during the 14th century, the Mendoza family was prominent in Guadalajara. This family included Íñigo López de Mendoza, also known as Marqués de Santillana, the Mendoza family held the title of Dukes and Duchesses of El Infantado from 1475. In 1460, King Henry IV gave Guadalajara the title of City, Guadalajara was the birthplace of conquistador Nuño de Guzmán, who commissioned in 1542 the foundation of Guadalajara, Mexico. During the War of the Spanish Succession, Guadalajara was sacked, King Philip V ordered the establishment of the Real Fábrica de Paños which was situated in the Alcazar till the early 19th century. In this period, the Mendoza Family ordered the building of El Palacio del Infantado as their main residence and it was completed in the early 1480s and it is considered by many the oldest surviving building built in a pure Renaissance style outside Italy. The 19th century started with two setbacks, the damages caused by the Peninsular War and the closing of the Real Fábrica de Paños in 1822. In 1808, Guadalajara was taken by the French Army led by General Hugo, in 1840 Guadalajara was established as the capital of the province with the same name by the Plan de Burgos. The Academy of Military Engineers was brought to the city, Guadalajara was the scene of many actions during the Spanish Civil War. On 24 July 1936, during the phase after the revolt of 19 July
6.
Renaissance Revival architecture
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The divergent forms of Renaissance architecture in different parts of Europe, particularly in France and Italy, has added to the difficulty of defining and recognizing Neo-Renaissance architecture. The movement grew from scientific observations of nature, in human anatomy. Neo-Renaissance architecture is formed by not only the original Italian architecture, in England the Renaissance tended to manifest itself in large square tall houses such as Longleat House. Often these buildings had symmetrical towers which hint at the evolution from medieval fortified architecture and this is particularly evident at Hatfield House built between 1607 and 1611, where medieval towers jostle with a large Italian cupola. If this were not confusing enough, the new Neo-Renaissance then frequently borrowed architectural elements from the succeeding Mannerist period, mannerism and Baroque being two very opposing styles of architecture. Mannerism was exemplified by the Palazzo del Te and Baroque by the Wurzburg Residenz, as a consequence a self-consciously Neo-Renaissance manner first began to appear circa 1840. By 1890 this movement was already in decline, the Hagues Peace Palace completed in 1913, in a heavy French Neo-Renaissance manner was one of the last notable buildings in this style. Charles Barry introduced the Neo-Renaissance to England with his design of the Travellers Club, the style is characterized by original Renaissance motifs, taken from such Quattrocento architects as Alberti. These motifs included rusticated masonry and quoins, windows framed by architraves and doors crowned by pediments, if a building were of several floors the uppermost floor usually had small square windows representing the minor mezzanine floor of the original Renaissance designs. However, the Neo-renaissance style later came to incorporate Romanesque and Baroque features not found in the original Renaissance architecture which was more severe in its design. Like all architectural styles the Neo-Renaissance did not appear overnight fully formed but evolved slowly, one of the very first signs of its emergence was the Würzburg Womens Prison, which was erected in 1809 designed by Peter Speeth. This building foreshadows similar effects in the work of the American architect Henry Hobson Richardson whose work in the Neo-Renaissance style was popular in the USA during the 1880s, richardsons style at the end or the revival era was a severe mix of both Romanesque and Renaissance features. This was exemplified by his Marshall Field Warehouse in Chicago, however, while the beginning of Neo-Renaissance period can be defined by its simplicity and severity, what came between was far more ornate in its design. This period can be defined by some of the opera houses of the Europe, such as Gottfried Sempers Burgtheater in Vienna. This ornate form of the Neo-Renaissance, originating from France, is known as the Second Empire style. By 1875 it had become the style in Europe for all public and bureaucratic buildings. In England, where Sir George Gilbert Scott designed the London Foreign Office in this style between 1860 and 1875, it also incorporated certain Palladian features. In Austria, it was pioneered by such names as Rudolf Eitelberger
7.
Puerta de Bisagra Nueva
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The Puerta de Bisagra Nueva is the best known city gate of Toledo, Spain. The gate is of Moorish origin, but the part was built in 1559 by Alonso de Covarrubias. It carries the coat of arms of the emperor Charles V and it superseded the Puerta Bisagra Antigua as the main entrance to the city
8.
Monastery of San Juan de los Reyes
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The Monastery of San Juan de los Reyes is an Isabelline style monastery in Toledo, in Castile-La Mancha, Spain, built by the Catholic Monarchs. Prince John of Portugal also celebrated his victory over the Castilian army of the Catholic monarchs with a procession on each anniversary of the battle. Undoubtedly, the battle represented a political victory for the Catholic Monarchs, assuring them the throne. As summarized by the Spanish academic historian Rafael Casas and this monastery was initially named San Juan de la Reyna and was conceived to be the mausoleum of the Catholic Monarchs. They would change their plans later, choosing Granada as their burial place, the monasterys construction began in 1477 following plans drawn by architect Juan Guas, and was completed in 1504. It was dedicated to Saint John the Evangelist for use by Franciscan friars, in 1809 the monastery was badly damaged by Napoleons troops during their occupation of Toledo, and abandoned in 1835. Restoration began in 1883 but was not completed until 1967, the monastery was restored to the Franciscan order in 1954. The monastery is an example of Gothic style with Spanish and Flemish influences, the church is notable for its decoration of the coats of arms of the Catholic Monarchs held by eagles. Its cloister has a small garden, the ground floors ceiling is formed of German cross vaults set with figures of saints interspersed with animal and plant motifs, all created by the Toledo sculptor Cecilio Béjar in the 20th century. Articles Beretta, Antonio Ballesteros- Fernando el Católico, Ejército revue, Ministerio del Ejercito, Madrid, nr 16, p. 54-66, May,1941. Casas, Rafael Dominguez San Juan de los reyes, espacio funerário y aposento régio – in Boletín del Seminário de Estúdios de Arte y Arqueologia, number 56, p. 364-383, duro, Cesáreo Fernández La batalla de Toro. Datos y documentos para su monografía histórica, Madrid, Boletín de la Real Academia de la Historia, tomo 38. Palenzuela, Vicente Ángel Alvarez La guerra civil y el enfrentamiento con Portugal Serrano, António Macia- San Juan de los Reyes y la batalla de Toro. Toledo, Real Academia de Bellas Artes y Ciencias Históricas de Toledo, ISSN, 0210-6310 Spanish Wikipedia article Books Dumont, Jean La “imcomparable” Isabel la Catolica, Madrid, Encuentro Editiones, printed by Rogar-Fuenlabrada. González, Justo L. Historia del Cristianismo, Miami, Editorial Unilit, ISBN1560634766 Manchado, Ana Isabel Carrasco Isabel I de Castilla y la sombra de la ilegitimidad. Propaganda y representación en el conflicto sucesorio, Madrid, Sílex ediciones, mendonça, Manuela O Sonho da União Ibérica - guerra Luso-Castelhana 1475/1479, Lisboa, Quidnovi, book description. ISBN 978-9728998882 Chronicles Mariana, Juan de Historia General de España, tome V Barcelona, pina, Ruy de Chronica de El- rei D. Affonso V, Project Gutenberg Ebook, Biblioteca de Clássicos Portugueses, 3rd book, Lisboa. Pulgar, Hernando del Crónica de los Señores Reyes Católicos Don Fernando y Doña Isabel de Castilla y de Aragón, Valencia, resende, Garcia de - Vida e feitos d’El Rei D. João II electronic version, wikisource
