Getafe

History

The history of Getafe can be split into three clearly defined eras. In the first era, which lasted from Prehistory until 1326, there existed distinct villages in the area, though Getafe itself did not exist as a municipality. The second era lasted from the 14th century until the 20th century, during which Getafe was established as a town and developed slowly. In the third era, which began in the 20th century and continues to the present day, Getafe changed in nature from a small agricultural town to a large industrial city, with a noticeable increase in commerce, industry, population and size. The presence of humans in the area of Getafe dates back to the Lower Paleolithic period (before 100,000 BCE). Various stone tools, pots, and bracelets from this period have been excavated from the banks of the Manzanares River. In late antiquity, a Roman villa was developed in the site of within the current-day municipal limits. Alfonso VI wrestled the area from Muslim control in 1085 in the context of the conquest of the Taifa of Toledo. The placename was early mentioned in 1259. Other medieval settlements in the territory include Alarnes, Acedinos, La Aldehuela, Ayúden, Covanuebles, , and Torre de Iván Crispín. Over the remainder of the Middle Ages, Getafe was a hamlet attached to the sexmo of Villaverde, one of the rural subdivisions of the Land of Madrid. Getafe experienced demographic and economic growth since the mid 15th century, enabling larger degrees of societal complexity and fuelling more intense trade with Madrid. By the end of the century it had a population of around one thousand. In 1492, famine and disease devastated Getafe, prompting the construction of the Hospitalillo de San José in 1529. In 1549, the architect Alonso de Covarrubias began building the…

Geography

Getafe is located in the southern zone of the autonomous community of Madrid, Spain, in southwestern Europe. It is physically located in the centre of the Iberian Peninsula, north of the Southern Submeseta (part of the Meseta Central), in the Manzanares River basin. Its elevation is 610 – 640 meters above sea level (2000–2100 feet). Its coordinates are 40° 18' N 3° 43' W. The municipal district is 78.74 km2, with a perimeter of 46.5 km. The easternmost part of the municipal district is located within the Parque Regional del Sureste, a protected forest region. Due to its central location within the Iberian Peninsula, Getafe is no more than 725.6 km from any Spanish provincial capital in mainland Spain. The following are the distances to a few major cities, the oceans which surround the Spanish coasts, and the national borders of Portugal and France. {| style="margin: 1em auto;" |- style="vertical-align: top;" | *Puerta del Sol of Madrid: 13 km *Toledo: 59 km (capital of the nearest province other than Madrid) *Girona: 725,6 km (capital of the furthest province on the mainland) *Center of Leganés (adjacent municipality): 4,3 km *Fuenlabrada (adjacent municipality): 7,5 km *Parla (adjacent municipality): 8 km |    | *Mediterranean Sea (Valencia): 348 km *Bay of Biscay (Santander): 398 km *Atlantic Ocean (Cádiz): 640 km *Portuguese Border: 402 km *French Border: 510 km |} The municipal district is mostly flat, with a minor inclination of 5% to the east and an elevation of 631 m (2070 ft) above sea level. The lowest altitude can be found to the extreme east, at the Manzanares River at 540 m (1772 ft). The highest elevation is found on the extreme west, on…

Most-observed species

• Eurasian Magpie

  Pica pica (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  42,826
• Common Wood-Pigeon

  Columba palumbus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  39,413
• House Sparrow

  Passer domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  37,171
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  35,420
• Spotless Starling

  Sturnus unicolor Temminck, 1820 · Aves
  32,269
• Monk Parakeet

  Myiopsitta monachus (Boddaert, 1783) · Aves
  28,434
• Rock Pigeon

  Columba livia J.F.Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
  28,160
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  24,998

Most recent

• M 3.4 — 2013-11-05
  2 km SSE of Alcorcón, Spain
• M 2.6 — 2008-06-21
  7 km SW of Guadalix de la Sierra, Spain
• M 3.5 — 2008-05-06
  5 km E of Tembleque, Spain
• M 2.9 — 2008-04-28
  Spain
• M 4.1 — 2008-04-28
  4 km ENE of Tembleque, Spain
• M 3.2 — 2008-02-26
  1 km NE of Tembleque, Spain