Alcalá de Henares is located a few miles north of Madrid. It is a city of great importance in the history of Spain.

Alcalá is the place where Miguel de Cervantes was born. Furthermore, it is under the protection of UNESCO.

Its existence is closely related to its university, which was founded in 1499 by Cardinal Cisneros. This city has interesting memories of the past.

Today Alcalá de Henares has about 170,000 citizens. It is a remarkable city about twenty miles from Madrid and well connected with Zaragoza by highway.

History of the city

This is the old Complutum Roman fortified town. However, it was conquered by the Arabs later. Many civilizations dominated over the town and they left important traces in the history of the city. On the other hand, numerous conquerors made this city worthy as a tourist reserve. They contributed to its rich archaeological and historical heritage.

In the late fifteenth century, Cardinal Cisneros established the Universidad Complutense. This university is the first planned University City in the world.

The powerful Cardinal Cisneros was a regent of the Catholic Kings. He was also the driving force in Alcalá and he made the Polyglot Bible and the first Gramática Castellana.
After a brilliant period, Alcalá was in crisis and in the nineteenth century, it moved its famous university to Madrid. 

It was also the home and host city of many important people in the culture of Spain like Francisco de Quevedo, Lope de Vega, etc.

City Attractions

Some of these monuments are: the Oratory of St. Philip Neri, Hospital de Antezana, Cervantes Museum-house, the remains of Santa Maria Maggiore and Magistrate Chapel, home of the interview, walls, etc.

In recent years there has been more restoration of some old houses. On the other hand some buildings of deep historical flavor have been restored as well.
With all this, simply walk through the streets of the old city of Alcalá and you will enjoy the ancient spirit.

The quality of the buildings of the Golden Age, the great university and being the birthplace of Miguel de Cervantes enabled UNESCO to declare Alcala as a World Heritage City in 1998. This city with its university and Miguel de Cervantes made great achievements in the fields of linguistics. Moreover, the city has deep significance for humankind due to the global intellectual development that started here in the 15th century.

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