Almansa () is a Spanish town and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

in the

province of Albacete Albacete ( es, Provincia de Albacete, ) is a province of central Spain, in the southern part of the autonomous community of Castile–La Mancha. As of 2012, Albacete had a population of 402,837 people. Its capital city, also called Albacete, is ...

, part of the

autonomous community eu, autonomia erkidegoa ca, comunitat autònoma gl, comunidade autónoma oc, comunautat autonòma an, comunidat autonoma ast, comunidá autónoma , alt_name = , map = , category = Autonomous administra ...

of Castile-La Mancha. The name "Almansa" stems from the

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

(al-manṣaf), "half way of the road". The municipality borders with

Alicante Alicante ( ca-valencia, Alacant) is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Alicante and a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city was 337,482 , the second-largest in t ...

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...

and

Murcia Murcia (, , ) is a city in south-eastern Spain, the capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of the Region of Murcia, and the seventh largest city in the country. It has a population of 460,349 inhabitants in 2021 (about one ...

. Almansa is famous for its '' Moros y cristianos'' festival from celebrated from 1 to 6 May. Almansa is built at the foot of a white limestone crag, which is surmounted by a Moorish castle, and rises abruptly in the midst of a fertile and irrigated plain. About south of the town centre stands an obelisk commemorating the

Battle of Almansa The Battle of Almansa took place on 25 April 1707, during the War of the Spanish Succession. It was fought between an army loyal to Philip V of Spain, House of Bourbon, Bourbon claimant to the Spanish throne, and one supporting his House of Habs ...

fought there on 25 April 1707 during the

War of Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...

, in which a French, Spanish and Irish army under the command of

duke of Berwick Duke of Berwick () ''()'' is a title that was created in the Peerage of England on 19 March 1687 for James FitzJames, the illegitimate son of James II and VII, King of England, Scotland, and Ireland and Arabella Churchill. The title's name ...

, a natural son of James II, routed the allied British, Portuguese and ''Spanish'' troops. Annual reenactments of that battle have been formally listed in the Spanish cultural register. The

Sierra del Mugrón Sierra del Mugrón is a long mountain range located between the shire of Valle de Cofrentes ( ca-valencia, Vall de Cofrents), Valencian Community, and Almansa, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. It is an isolated range between the Iberian System and th ...

is located within the Almansa city limits.

Main sights

The main sightseeing attraction is the 14th-century Castle of Almansa. There are other important monuments, such as: * Church of la Asunción (16th-19th century) *Palace of ''Los Condes de Cirat'' (16th century), today the Town Hall *Church of the ''Agustinas'' Convent (18th century) *The Convent of ''San Francisco'' (17th century) *Clock Tower (1780) 8 km from the city is the reservoir of Almansa, built in 1584. This reservoir is the oldest one in Europe. 12 km from the city is the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Belen (17th century). Torreiglesiaasuncionalmansaespaña

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Almansa 1823 Edward Hawke Locker (cropped)

Camino de Santiago

Two pilgrim routes on the

Camino de Santiago The Camino de Santiago ( la, Peregrinatio Compostellana, "Pilgrimage of Compostela"; gl, O Camiño de Santiago), known in English as the Way of St James, is a network of pilgrims' ways or pilgrimages leading to the shrine of the apostle Saint ...

meet in Almansa. From the south comes the ''Camino de la Lana'' and from the east, the ''Camino de Levante''. The ''Camino de la Lana'' joins

with

Burgos Burgos () is a city in Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the province of Burgos. Burgos is situated in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, on the confluence of t ...

, and the ''Camino de Levante'' joins

with Zamora.

References

External links

*
Portal of Almansa
{{Authority control Municipalities of the Province of Albacete

Main sights

Camino de Santiago

See also

References

External links