Huelva
Encyclopedia
Huelva (ˈwelβa) is a city in southwestern Spain
, the capital of the province of Huelva
in the autonomous region of Andalusia
. It is located along the Gulf of Cadiz
coast, at the confluence of the Odiel and Tinto rivers. According to the 2010 census
, the city has a population of 149,410 inhabitants. The city has been inhabited since 3000 BC. The town is home to Recreativo de Huelva
, the oldest football club in Spain.
) and Baetis (modern Guadalquivir
), it was seated on the estuary of the River Luxia
(modern Odiel
), and on the road from the mouth of the Anas
to Augusta Emerita (modern Mérida
).
The city may be the site of Tartessus; by the Phoenicians it was called Onoba. The Greeks
kept the name and rendered it . It was in the hands of the Turdetani
at the time of conquest by Rome
, and before the conquest it issued silver coins with Iberian legends. It was called both Onoba Aestuaria or Onuba (used on coinage) during Roman times, or, simply, Onoba. The city was incorporated into the Roman province of Hispania Baetica
. The Arabs then called it Walbah and ruled between 712-1250. It suffered substantial damage in the 1755 Lisbon earthquake
.
There are still some Roman remains. The city had a mint; and many coins have been found there bearing the name of the town as Onuba. Modern ihabitants are called Onubenses in Spanish.
Mines in the countryside send copper
and pyrite
to the port for export. From about 1873, the most important company in the area was Rio Tinto
, the British mining firm.
During World War II
, the city was a hub of espionage activities led by members of the large British and German communities. German activity centered on reporting British shipping moving in and out of the Atlantic. Most famously, the city was the location where Operation Mincemeat
allowed a body carrying false information to wash ashore.
The body of Glyndwr Michael
, the fictional "Major William Martin, Royal Marines,"
is buried in the San Marco section of the cemetery of Nuestra Senora under a headstone that reads "William Martin, born 29 March 1907, died 24 April 1943, beloved son of John Glyndwyr and the late Antonia Martin of Cardiff, Wales, DULCE ET DECORUM EST PRO PATRIA MORI, R.I.P."
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
in January 1998 added an inscription to the gravestone which reads, "Glyndwr Michael served as Major William Martin."
On October 11, 2005, Hurricane Vince
made landfall in Huelva as a tropical depression.
, is the oldest in Spain. It was founded in 1889 by workers of Rio Tinto Group
, a British mining company.
Inner Port (one wharf). Constructed in 1972, the East Wharf, replaced constructed harbour facilities of inferior quality between 1900 and 1910. At the moment it is the wharf used for smaller traffic including tourist boats.
Outer Port (six wharves). Was built starting in 1965, to the south of the River Tinto.
In the last ten years, immigration both from abroad and from the surrounding area have caused continued growth in the city’s population. In 2007, the city reached the 145,000 mark while the metropolitan area was touching 232,000, encompassing the surrounding areas of Aljaraque
, Moguer
, San Juan del Puerto
, Punta Umbría
, Gibraleón
and Palos de la Frontera
. The 2006 census noted a foreign population of almost 5,000 people in the urban centre, the majority of whom were of Moroccan
origin.
. These sites include the city of Huelva itself, Moguer
, Palos de la Frontera
, and the Rábida Monastery. La Rábida is where Columbus sought the aid of the Franciscan brothers in advancing his project of discovery. They introduced him to local rich sailors (the Pinzón brothers
), and, eventually, arranged a meeting in Seville
with Ferdinand
and Isabella
.
The most outstanding artists in Huelva have been: the poet and prize Nobel of Literature Juan Ramón Jiménez
, the sculptor Antonio León Ortega
, the writer Nicolas Tenorio Cerero
and the painter Daniel Vázquez Díaz
.
Other plastic outstanding artists of Huelva are painting José Caballero, Pedro Gómez y Gómez, Antonio Brunt, Mateo Orduña Castellano, Pablo Martínez Coto, Manuel Moreno Díaz, Juan Manuel Seisdedos Romero, Francisco Doménech, Esperanza Abot, José María Labrador, Sebastián García Vázquez, Pilar Barroso, Juan Carlos Castro Crespo, Lola Martín, Antonio Gómez Feu, Rafael Aguilera and Florencio Aguilera Correa. Miguel Biez, called el Litri is perhaps the town's most famous artist; he was gored in a bullfight in 1929.
(iii. p. 170), called by Steph. B.
(s. v.), now Isla Saltés.
with:, Genoa
, Viganella
, Verbano-Cusio-Ossola
, New Orleans
, Houston
, Cádiz
, Tánger
, Faro
, Piteşti
, Győr
}
}
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, the capital of the province of Huelva
Huelva (province)
Huelva is a province of southern Spain, in the western part of the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is bordered by Portugal, the provinces of Badajoz, Seville, and Cádiz, and the Atlantic Ocean. Its capital is Huelva....
in the autonomous region of Andalusia
Andalusia
Andalusia is the most populous and the second largest in area of the autonomous communities of Spain. The Andalusian autonomous community is officially recognised as a nationality of Spain. The territory is divided into eight provinces: Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Córdoba, Málaga, Jaén, Granada and...
. It is located along the Gulf of Cadiz
Gulf of Cadiz
The Gulf of Cádiz is the arm of the Atlantic Ocean between Cape St. Vincent in Portugal and Cape Trafalgar at the western end of the Strait of Gibraltar...
coast, at the confluence of the Odiel and Tinto rivers. According to the 2010 census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, the city has a population of 149,410 inhabitants. The city has been inhabited since 3000 BC. The town is home to Recreativo de Huelva
Recreativo de Huelva
Real Club Recreativo de Huelva, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Huelva, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded on 23 December 1889, it is the oldest football team in Spain, and currently plays in the second division, holding home games at Estadio Nuevo Colombino, which has a...
, the oldest football club in Spain.
Location and history
A maritime town between the rivers Anas (modern GuadianaGuadiana
The Guadiana , or Odiana, is an international river located on the Portuguese–Spanish border, separating Extremadura and Andalucia from Alentejo and Algarve...
) and Baetis (modern Guadalquivir
Guadalquivir
The Guadalquivir is the fifth longest river in the Iberian peninsula and the second longest river to be its whole length in Spain. The Guadalquivir is 657 kilometers long and drains an area of about 58,000 square kilometers...
), it was seated on the estuary of the River Luxia
Odiel
The Odiel River, River Odiel, or simply Odiel is a river in the Atlantic basin in southern Spain, more precisely in the province of Huelva, Andalusia, Spain. It originates at Marimateos in the Sierra de Aracena at an altitude of above sea level. At the Punta del Sebo, it joins the Rio Tinto to...
(modern Odiel
Odiel
The Odiel River, River Odiel, or simply Odiel is a river in the Atlantic basin in southern Spain, more precisely in the province of Huelva, Andalusia, Spain. It originates at Marimateos in the Sierra de Aracena at an altitude of above sea level. At the Punta del Sebo, it joins the Rio Tinto to...
), and on the road from the mouth of the Anas
Guadiana
The Guadiana , or Odiana, is an international river located on the Portuguese–Spanish border, separating Extremadura and Andalucia from Alentejo and Algarve...
to Augusta Emerita (modern Mérida
Mérida, Spain
Mérida is the capital of the autonomous community of Extremadura, western central Spain. It has a population of 57,127 . The Archaeological Ensemble of Mérida is a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1993.- Climate :...
).
The city may be the site of Tartessus; by the Phoenicians it was called Onoba. The Greeks
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
kept the name and rendered it . It was in the hands of the Turdetani
Turdetani
The Turdetani were ancient people of the Iberian peninsula , living in the valley of the Guadalquivir in what was to become the Roman Province of Hispania Baetica...
at the time of conquest by Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, and before the conquest it issued silver coins with Iberian legends. It was called both Onoba Aestuaria or Onuba (used on coinage) during Roman times, or, simply, Onoba. The city was incorporated into the Roman province of Hispania Baetica
Hispania Baetica
Hispania Baetica was one of three Imperial Roman provinces in Hispania, . Hispania Baetica was bordered to the west by Lusitania, and to the northeast by Hispania Tarraconensis. Baetica was part of Al-Andalus under the Moors in the 8th century and approximately corresponds to modern Andalucia...
. The Arabs then called it Walbah and ruled between 712-1250. It suffered substantial damage in the 1755 Lisbon earthquake
1755 Lisbon earthquake
The 1755 Lisbon earthquake, also known as the Great Lisbon Earthquake, was a megathrust earthquake that took place on Saturday 1 November 1755, at around 9:40 in the morning. The earthquake was followed by fires and a tsunami, which almost totally destroyed Lisbon in the Kingdom of Portugal, and...
.
There are still some Roman remains. The city had a mint; and many coins have been found there bearing the name of the town as Onuba. Modern ihabitants are called Onubenses in Spanish.
Mines in the countryside send copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
and pyrite
Pyrite
The mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, is an iron sulfide with the formula FeS2. This mineral's metallic luster and pale-to-normal, brass-yellow hue have earned it the nickname fool's gold because of its resemblance to gold...
to the port for export. From about 1873, the most important company in the area was Rio Tinto
Rio Tinto Group
The Rio Tinto Group is a diversified, British-Australian, multinational mining and resources group with headquarters in London and Melbourne. The company was founded in 1873, when a multinational consortium of investors purchased a mine complex on the Rio Tinto river, in Huelva, Spain from the...
, the British mining firm.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the city was a hub of espionage activities led by members of the large British and German communities. German activity centered on reporting British shipping moving in and out of the Atlantic. Most famously, the city was the location where Operation Mincemeat
Operation Mincemeat
Operation Mincemeat was a successful British deception plan during World War II. As part of the widespread deception plan Operation Barclay to cover the intended invasion of Italy from North Africa, Mincemeat helped to convince the German high command that the Allies planned to invade Greece and...
allowed a body carrying false information to wash ashore.
The body of Glyndwr Michael
Glyndwr Michael
Glyndwr Michael was an illiterate homeless man whose body was used in Operation Mincemeat, the successful World War II deception plan that lured German forces to Greece prior to the Allied invasion of Sicily...
, the fictional "Major William Martin, Royal Marines,"
Operation Mincemeat
Operation Mincemeat was a successful British deception plan during World War II. As part of the widespread deception plan Operation Barclay to cover the intended invasion of Italy from North Africa, Mincemeat helped to convince the German high command that the Allies planned to invade Greece and...
is buried in the San Marco section of the cemetery of Nuestra Senora under a headstone that reads "William Martin, born 29 March 1907, died 24 April 1943, beloved son of John Glyndwyr and the late Antonia Martin of Cardiff, Wales, DULCE ET DECORUM EST PRO PATRIA MORI, R.I.P."
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves, and places of commemoration, of Commonwealth of Nations military service members who died in the two World Wars...
in January 1998 added an inscription to the gravestone which reads, "Glyndwr Michael served as Major William Martin."
On October 11, 2005, Hurricane Vince
Hurricane Vince (2005)
Hurricane Vince was an unusual hurricane that developed in the northeastern Atlantic basin. Forming in October during the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, the waters over which it developed were considered too cold for tropical development...
made landfall in Huelva as a tropical depression.
Modern Huelva
The local football club, Recreativo de HuelvaRecreativo de Huelva
Real Club Recreativo de Huelva, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Huelva, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded on 23 December 1889, it is the oldest football team in Spain, and currently plays in the second division, holding home games at Estadio Nuevo Colombino, which has a...
, is the oldest in Spain. It was founded in 1889 by workers of Rio Tinto Group
Rio Tinto Group
The Rio Tinto Group is a diversified, British-Australian, multinational mining and resources group with headquarters in London and Melbourne. The company was founded in 1873, when a multinational consortium of investors purchased a mine complex on the Rio Tinto river, in Huelva, Spain from the...
, a British mining company.
Port
The Port of Huelva is divided in two sectors: the inner port (in the city) and the outer port (the main one)Inner Port (one wharf). Constructed in 1972, the East Wharf, replaced constructed harbour facilities of inferior quality between 1900 and 1910. At the moment it is the wharf used for smaller traffic including tourist boats.
Outer Port (six wharves). Was built starting in 1965, to the south of the River Tinto.
Demographics
Huelva had a population of 149,410 in 2010. The city experienced a population boom in the 19th century, due to the exploitation of mineral resources in the area and another with to the construction of the Polo de Desarrollo in the 1960s. The city had only 5,377 inhabitants in 1787 which had only risen to 8,519 by 1857. From 1887, the city experienced rapid growth reaching 21,539 residents in 1900 and 56,427 forty years later. By 1970 this figure had risen to 96,689. Further rapid expansion occurred and the number of inhabitants had reached 141,479 by 1991.In the last ten years, immigration both from abroad and from the surrounding area have caused continued growth in the city’s population. In 2007, the city reached the 145,000 mark while the metropolitan area was touching 232,000, encompassing the surrounding areas of Aljaraque
Aljaraque
Aljaraque is a city located in the province of Huelva, Spain. According to the 2005 census, the city has a population of 14,846 inhabitants.-Demographics:- Main sights :* Church of Nuestra Señora de Los Remedios...
, Moguer
Moguer
Moguer is a municipality and small city located in the province of Huelva, Andalusia, Spain. According to the 2007 census, it has a population of 18,381. Its surface area is , and its population density is ....
, San Juan del Puerto
San Juan del Puerto, Spain
San Juan del Puerto, Spain is a municipality located in the province of Huelva, Spain. In 2005 it had a population of 6,881.-External links:* - Multiterritorial Information System of Andalusia...
, Punta Umbría
Punta Umbría
Punta Umbría is a town and municipality in the province of Huelva, part of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia.The Punta in its name comes from the long point going out to the sea from the beach....
, Gibraleón
Gibraleón
Gibraleón is a town and municipality located in the province of Huelva, Spain. According to the 2005 census, the municipality has a population of 11,202 inhabitants.-External links:* - Sistema de Información Multiterritorial de Andalucía...
and Palos de la Frontera
Palos de la Frontera
Palos de la Frontera is a town and municipality located in the southwestern Spanish province of Huelva, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is situated some from the provincial capital, Huelva...
. The 2006 census noted a foreign population of almost 5,000 people in the urban centre, the majority of whom were of Moroccan
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
origin.
Climate
Christopher Columbus
Among the attractions to visit in this province are the Columbus sitesChristopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus was an explorer, colonizer, and navigator, born in the Republic of Genoa, in northwestern Italy. Under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, he completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean that led to general European awareness of the American continents in the...
. These sites include the city of Huelva itself, Moguer
Moguer
Moguer is a municipality and small city located in the province of Huelva, Andalusia, Spain. According to the 2007 census, it has a population of 18,381. Its surface area is , and its population density is ....
, Palos de la Frontera
Palos de la Frontera
Palos de la Frontera is a town and municipality located in the southwestern Spanish province of Huelva, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is situated some from the provincial capital, Huelva...
, and the Rábida Monastery. La Rábida is where Columbus sought the aid of the Franciscan brothers in advancing his project of discovery. They introduced him to local rich sailors (the Pinzón brothers
The Pinzon Brothers
The Pinzón brothers were Spanish sailors, explorers and fishermen, natives of Palos de la Frontera, Huelva, Spain. All three, Martín Alonso, Francisco Martín and Vicente Yañez, participated in Christopher Columbus's first expedition to the New World and in other voyages of discovery and...
), and, eventually, arranged a meeting in Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
with Ferdinand
Ferdinand II of Aragon
Ferdinand the Catholic was King of Aragon , Sicily , Naples , Valencia, Sardinia, and Navarre, Count of Barcelona, jure uxoris King of Castile and then regent of that country also from 1508 to his death, in the name of...
and Isabella
Isabella I of Castile
Isabella I was Queen of Castile and León. She and her husband Ferdinand II of Aragon brought stability to both kingdoms that became the basis for the unification of Spain. Later the two laid the foundations for the political unification of Spain under their grandson, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor...
.
Artists
Juan Ramón Jiménez
Juan Ramón Jiménez Mantecón was a Spanish poet, a prolific writer who received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1956. One of Jiménez's most important contributions to modern poetry was his advocacy of the French concept of "pure poetry."-Biography:Jiménez was born in Moguer, near Huelva, in...
, the sculptor Antonio León Ortega
Antonio León Ortega
Antonio León Ortega, Ayamonte , December 7, 1907 - Huelva, January 9, 1991, Spanish sculptor, he had his professional education in Madrid and he created a personal style in the Andalusian imagery of the 20th century.- Biography :...
, the writer Nicolas Tenorio Cerero
Nicolas Tenorio Cerero
Nicolás Tenorio Cerero , Justice Judge and Spanish Historian.- Biography :...
and the painter Daniel Vázquez Díaz
Daniel Vázquez Díaz
Daniel Vázquez Díaz was a Spanish painter.Born in Nerva, Spain, Vázquez Díaz settled in Paris in 1918, where he found cubism to be the ideal form of expression...
.
Other plastic outstanding artists of Huelva are painting José Caballero, Pedro Gómez y Gómez, Antonio Brunt, Mateo Orduña Castellano, Pablo Martínez Coto, Manuel Moreno Díaz, Juan Manuel Seisdedos Romero, Francisco Doménech, Esperanza Abot, José María Labrador, Sebastián García Vázquez, Pilar Barroso, Juan Carlos Castro Crespo, Lola Martín, Antonio Gómez Feu, Rafael Aguilera and Florencio Aguilera Correa. Miguel Biez, called el Litri is perhaps the town's most famous artist; he was gored in a bullfight in 1929.
Events
- Carnaval, fiesta
- Festival de Cine Iberoamericano de HuelvaFestival de Cine Iberoamericano de HuelvaThe Festival de Cine Iberoamericano de Huelva is a film festival, celebrated since 1974 in Huelva, Spain) dedicated to promoting Latin American cinema in Europe. The festival is chiefly publicly funded. The grand prize is the Colón de Oro for best feature...
- Fiestas Colombinas, fiesta first week of August
- Fiestas de la Cinta, between 3–8 September
- San Sebastián, festival 20 January
- Semana Santa (Easter Week)
- Virgen de la Cinta, fiesta 8 September
- El Rocio
Nearby
Near Huelva lay Herculis Insula, mentioned by StraboStrabo
Strabo, also written Strabon was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher.-Life:Strabo was born to an affluent family from Amaseia in Pontus , a city which he said was situated the approximate equivalent of 75 km from the Black Sea...
(iii. p. 170), called by Steph. B.
Stephanus of Byzantium
Stephen of Byzantium, also known as Stephanus Byzantinus , was the author of an important geographical dictionary entitled Ethnica...
(s. v.), now Isla Saltés.
Twin towns
Huelva is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with:, Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
, Viganella
Viganella
thumb|ViganellaViganella is a comune in the Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 120 km northeast of Turin and about 30 km northwest of Verbania...
, Verbano-Cusio-Ossola
, New Orleans
, Houston
, Cádiz
Cádiz
Cadiz is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the homonymous province, one of eight which make up the autonomous community of Andalusia....
, Tánger
, Faro
Faro, Portugal
Faro is the southernmost city in Portugal. It is located in the Faro Municipality in southern Portugal. The city proper has 41,934 inhabitants and the entire municipality has 58,305. It is the seat of the Faro District and capital of the Algarve region...
, Piteşti
Pitesti
Pitești is a city in Romania, located on the Argeș River. The capital and largest city of Argeș County, it is an important commercial and industrial center, as well as the home of two universities. Pitești is situated on the A1 freeway connecting it directly to the national capital Bucharest,...
, Győr
Gyor
-Climate:-Main sights:The ancient core of the city is Káptalan Hill at the confluence of three rivers: the Danube, Rába and Rábca. Püspökvár, the residence of Győr’s bishops can be easily recognised by its incomplete tower. Győr’s oldest buildings are the 13th-century dwelling tower and the...
External links
- Información sobre la Sierra de Aracena
- Huelva - Sistema de Información Multiterritorial de Andalucía
- City of Huelva Andalucia Destination
- Huelva municipal government Official Website
- A Travel Guide to Huelva (English)
- City of Huelva Andalucia Destination
- Huelva Hoy Daily Events in Spanish
- Huelva Cultura in Spanish
- Port Authority of Huelva Official web page with information about the port, its history and technical characteristics.
- Maps
}
}
- Guía de autores onubenses (Local writers) Juntadeandalucia.es. Juan David Ayllón Burguillo
- Santa Bárbara de casa Huelva
- Adrian Fletcher’s Paradoxplace - Convento de la Rábida Photo and History page
- Doñana Natural Park
- Sierra de Aracena Natural Park