Torrelavega ( Asturian: ''Torlavega'') is a

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

and important industrial and commercial hub in the single province

Autonomous Community The autonomous communities () are the first-level administrative divisions of Spain, created in accordance with the Spanish Constitution of 1978, with the aim of guaranteeing limited autonomy to the nationalities and regions that make up Sp ...

Cantabria Cantabria (, ; ) is an autonomous community and Provinces of Spain, province in northern Spain with Santander, Cantabria, Santander as its capital city. It is called a , a Nationalities and regions of Spain, historic community, in its current ...

, northern

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. It is situated roughly 8 kilometres from the Cantabrian Coast and 27.5 kilometres from the capital of the Autonomous Community, Santander, halfway between the

Principality of Asturias Asturias (; ; ) officially the Principality of Asturias, is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwest Spain. It is coextensive with the provinces of Spain, province of Asturias and contains some of the territory t ...

and the Basque Country. The rivers Saja and flow through the city. It is the capital of the

comarca A ''comarca'' (, , , ) is a traditional region or local administrative division found in Portugal, Spain, and some of their former colonies, like Brazil, Nicaragua, and Panama. The term is derived from the term ''marca'', meaning a "march, mark ...

(county, but with no administrative role) of Valle del Besaya which includes also composed of the municipalities of Suances, Polanco, Cartes, Los Corrales de Buelna, Cieza, Arenas de Iguña,

Bárcena de Pie de Concha Bárcena de Pie de Concha is a municipality that is located in the autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain. According to the 2024 census, there were 674 inhabitants as compared to the 2007 census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') ...

, Molledo, Anievas and San Felices de Buelna. Its highest point is 606 metres and its lowest point is 12 metres. Torrelavega is a regional centre for industry and transport, and its weekly livestock fair is famous in Spain. Its stadium is known as El Malecon. The

Cave of Altamira The Cave of Altamira ( ; ) is a cave complex, located near the historic town of Santillana del Mar in Cantabria, Spain. It is renowned for prehistoric cave painting, cave art featuring charcoal drawings and polychrome paintings of contemporary ...

, famed for the prehistoric paintings found inside, is about 10 kilometres northwest of the city.

History

Torrelavega was founded at the end of the thirteenth century by Garci Lasso de la Vega I (the elder), Adelantado Mayor of the

Kingdom of Castile The Kingdom of Castile (; : ) was a polity in the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages. It traces its origins to the 9th-century County of Castile (, ), as an eastern frontier lordship of the Kingdom of León. During the 10th century, the Ca ...

in the name of King Alfonso XI of Castile. Its current name is due to the contraction of the original

eponym An eponym is a noun after which or for which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. Adjectives derived from the word ''eponym'' include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Eponyms are commonly used for time periods, places, innovati ...

of "Torre de la Vega". The Castle or Tower of the Vega's was built by

Leonor Lasso de la Vega Leonor Lasso de la Vega (b. before 1367 - d. 1432) was a Spanish noble woman from Cantabria and head of the prestigious House of Lasso de la Vega from 1367 - 1432. Family origins Leonor was the paternal great-granddaughter of Garci Lasso ...

, daughter of Garci Lasso de la Vega II, the younger, and mother of the

Íñigo López de Mendoza, marqués de Santillana Inigo is a masculine given name deriving from the Castilian rendering (Íñigo) of the medieval Basque name Eneko. Ultimately, the name means "my little (man)". While mostly seen among the Iberian diaspora, it also gained a limited popularity ...

in order to administer the tax and privilege due in the family's territory. The name of the

, Valle del Besaya is derived from the Astur-Leonese ''Bisalia'', which in turn derives from the Celtic, Bis-salia (the second Salia or Saja) from the two rivers that flow through the city. Torrelavega was an important agricultural hub in the

since medieval times. Continuous population growth and industrial development enabled Torrelavega to attain city status in 1895 from the Queen Regent Maria Christina of Bourbon, Princess of the Two Sicilies. The city is home to the main seat of the Spanish

anarcho-syndicalist Anarcho-syndicalism is an anarchist organisational model that centres trade unions as a vehicle for class conflict. Drawing from the theory of libertarian socialism and the practice of syndicalism, anarcho-syndicalism sees trade unions as both ...

labour union the

Confederación Nacional del Trabajo The (CNT; ) is a Spanish anarcho-syndicalist national trade union center, trade union confederation. Founded in 1910 in Barcelona from groups brought together by the trade union ''Solidaridad Obrera (historical union), Solidaridad Obrera'', ...

Geography

Divisions

* Barreda * Campuzano * Duález * Ganzo * La Montaña * Sierrapando * Tanos * Torrelavega (Metro) * Torres * Viérnoles

Neighbourhoods within the Metropolitan Area

* La Inmobiliaria * El Barrio de Sorravides * El Barrio Covadonga * La Nueva Ciudad * El Zapatón * El Poblado

Neighbouring municipalities

* North: Santillana del Mar, Suances and Polanco. * South: Los Corrales de Buelna and San Felices de Buelna. * East: Piélagos and

Puente Viesgo Puente Viesgo is a municipality in Cantabria, Spain. Caves have been discovered near Puente Viesgo that contain rock art and artefacts dating back to the Middle Paleolithic, Middle and Upper Paleolithic. History The various populations of Puente ...

. * West: Reocín and Cartes.

Notable people

* Óscar Freire, spanish cyclist. * Juanjo Cobo, spanish cyclist. * Dani Sordo, Rally Driver. * Antonio Resines, Actor.

Twin towns – sister cities

Torrelavega is twinned with: *

Louga Louga (; Wolof: Luga) is a city in northwestern Senegal. Louga is a cattle market centre, and has road and rail links with the port city of Saint-Louis to the northwest and Dakar to the southwest. The area surrounding Louga is at the northe ...

, Senegal * Old Havana, Cuba * Rochefort, France *

Zug Zug (Standard German: , Alemannic German: ; ; ; ; )Named in the 16th century. is the largest List of cities in Switzerland, town and capital of the Swiss canton of Zug. Zug is renowned as a hub for some of the wealthiest individuals in the wor ...

, Western Sahara

References

External links

Ayuntamiento de Torrelavega
* http://www.oviedo.es/index.php/es/la-ciudad/ciudades-hermanadas Oviedo´s sister city is Torrevieja, not Torrelavega. * http://www.eldiariomontanes.es/20110324/local/torrelavega-besaya/torrelavega-louga-hermanas-201103241319.html {{Authority control Municipalities in Cantabria