The municipality ( Spanish : municipio , IPA: [muniˈθipjo] , Catalan : municipi , Galician : concello , Basque : udalerria , Asturian : conceyu ) is one of the two fundamental territorial divisions in Spain , the other being the provinces .
54-425: Castroverde is a municipality in the province of Lugo , in the autonomous community of Galicia , Spain. It belongs to the comarca of Lugo . Castroverde is very rural area. The main economic activity is milk and meat production. There are also a few rabbit and poultry farms. Rural tourism has some importance with a few rural hotels. Because farming is increasingly automated, Castroverde's population shrank during
108-827: A Punic name ("Lofty Mountain" or "Mountain of God ") for Jebel Musa , the southern Pillar of Hercules . The name of the mountain was in fact Habenna ( Punic : 𐤀𐤁𐤍 , ʾbn , "Stone" or " Stele ") or ʾAbin-ḥīq ( 𐤀𐤁𐤍𐤇𐤒 , ʾbnḥq , "Rock of the Bay"), about the nearby Bay of Benzú . The name was hellenized variously as Ápini ( ‹See Tfd› Greek : Ἄπινι ), Abýla ( Ἀβύλα ), Abýlē ( Ἀβύλη ), Ablýx ( Ἀβλύξ ), and Abilē Stḗlē ( Ἀβίλη Στήλη , "Pillar of Abyla") and in Latin as Abyla Mons ("Mount Abyla") or Abyla Columna ("the Pillar of Abyla"). The settlement below Jebel Musa
162-440: A large degree of autonomy in their local affairs: many of the functions of the comarcas and provinces are municipal powers pooled together. All citizens of Spain are required to register in the municipality they live in, and after doing so, they are juridically considered "neighbors" (residents) of the municipality, a designation that grants them various rights and privileges, and which entail certain obligations as well, including
216-625: A location in the autonomous community of Galicia, Spain is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Municipalities of Spain Although provinces are groupings of municipalities , there is no implied hierarchy or primacy of one over the other. Instead the two entities are defined according to the authority or jurisdiction of each ( Spanish : competencias ). Some autonomous communities also group municipalities into entities known as comarcas (districts) or mancomunidades (commonwealths). The governing body in most municipalities
270-523: A maritime-influenced Mediterranean climate , similar to nearby Spanish and Moroccan cities such as Tarifa , Algeciras or Tangiers . The average diurnal temperature variation is relatively low; the average annual temperature is 18.8 °C (65.8 °F) with average yearly highs of 21.4 °C (70.5 °F) and lows of 15.7 °C (60.3 °F) though the Ceuta weather station has only been in operation since 2003. Ceuta has relatively mild winters for
324-543: A period of political instability persisted, under competing interests from the Marinids and Granada as well as autonomous rule under the native Banu al-Azafi . The Fez finally conquered the region in 1387, with assistance from Aragon . On the morning of 21 August 1415, King John I of Portugal led his sons and their assembled forces in a surprise assault that would come to be known as the Conquest of Ceuta . The battle
378-528: A population of three in 2022 ). Almost 40% of the Spanish population resides in just 62 municipalities with more than 100,000 inhabitants. 84% (6,817) of municipalities have less than 5,000 inhabitants. Castile and León alone account for 28% of municipalities but they constitute less than 6% of the population of Spain. A European report said that one of the most important problems facing local governments in Spain
432-407: A small Hindu community that had existed in Ceuta since 1893, connected to Gibraltar's. When Spain recognized the independence of Spanish Morocco in 1956, Ceuta and the other plazas de soberanía remained under Spanish rule. Spain considered them integral parts of the Spanish state, but Morocco has disputed this point. Culturally, modern Ceuta is part of the Spanish region of Andalusia . It
486-582: A small village of Muslims and Christians surrounded by ruins until its resettlement in the 9th century by Mâjakas, chief of the Majkasa Berber tribe, who started the short-lived Banu Isam dynasty. His great-grandson briefly allied his tribe with the Idrisids , but Banu Isam rule ended in 931 when he abdicated in favor of Abd ar-Rahman III , the Umayyad ruler of Córdoba, Spain . Chaos ensued with
540-547: A total of 8,131 municipalities in Spain, including the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla . In the Principality of Asturias , municipalities are officially named concejos (councils). The average population of a municipality is about 5,300, but this figure masks a huge range: the most populous Spanish municipality is the city of Madrid , with a population of 3,305,408 (2022) , while several rural municipalities have fewer than ten inhabitants ( Illán de Vacas , had
594-586: Is a transition zone between the plateau and the Sierras Eastern. The field is gaining height towards the east, Sierras de Moneiro, from O Mirador (with a height of 1034 meters in Pradairo), from A Baqueriza with a height of 836 meters and from Puñago. Numerous rivulets run down from these mountains. The rivers Guimaras, Azúmara, Romean, Outeiro and Tórdea are all tributaries of the Minho river. The climate
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#1732790632944648-401: Is called ayuntamiento ( municipal council or corporation ), a term often also used to refer to the municipal headquarters (city/town hall). The ayuntamiento is composed of the mayor (Spanish: alcalde ), the deputy mayors (Spanish: tenientes de alcalde ) and the deliberative assembly ( pleno ) of councillors ( concejales ). Another form of local government used in small municipalities
702-694: Is known officially in Spanish as Ciudad Autónoma de Ceuta (English: Autonomous City of Ceuta ), with a rank between a standard municipality and an autonomous community . Ceuta is part of the territory of the European Union . The city was a free port before Spain joined the European Union in 1986. Now it has a low-tax system within the Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union . Since 1979, Ceuta has held elections to its 25-seat assembly every four years. The leader of its government
756-552: Is oceanic with continental nuances. It has a temperature variation of up to 13 °C between low winter temperatures (5.6 °C in January) and mild summer (17.7 °C). Rainfall measures at about 1,000 millimeters. The king Silo of Asturias, who reign from 774 until 783, overturn a rebellion of Galician nobles in the parish of Montecubeiro, Castroverde. 43°01′52″N 7°19′30″W / 43.031°N 7.325°W / 43.031; -7.325 This article about
810-470: Is the concejo abierto (open council), in which the deliberative assembly is formed by all the electors in the municipality. The operation of the municipalities is broadly outlined by the 1985 Local Government Act. The Statutes of Autonomy of the various autonomous communities also contain provisions and many sectorial laws from national and autonomous community government determine the functions and powers of ayuntamientos. In general, municipalities enjoy
864-419: Is the very high number of little towns with a low number of inhabitants. The area of the municipal territory (Spanish: término municipal ) usually ranges 2–40 km , but some municipalities span across a much larger area, up to the 1,750.33 km of Cáceres ', the largest municipality in the country. The average land area of a Spanish municipality is about 62.23 km (24.03 sq mi), while
918-700: The Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea , the Strait of Gibraltar is an important military and commercial chokepoint . The Phoenicians realized the extremely narrow isthmus joining the Peninsula of Almina to the African mainland made Ceuta eminently defensible and established an outpost there early in the 1st millennium BC. The Greek geographers record it by variations of Abyla ,
972-588: The Congress of Deputies , the lower house of the Cortes Generales (the Spanish Parliament). As of the November 2019 election, this post is held by María Teresa López of Vox . Ceuta is subdivided into 63 barriadas ("neighborhoods"), such as Barriada de Berizu, Barriada de P. Alfonso, Barriada del Sarchal, and El Hacho. Ceuta maintains its own police force. The defence of
1026-691: The Iberian Union . During the Iberian Union, 1580 to 1640, Ceuta attracted many settlers of Spanish origin and became the only city of the Portuguese Empire that sided with Spain when Portugal regained its independence in the Portuguese Restoration War of 1640. On 1 January 1668, King Afonso VI of Portugal recognised the formal allegiance of Ceuta to Spain and ceded Ceuta to King Carlos II of Spain by
1080-571: The Islamic conquest of the Maghreb around 710. Instead, the rapid Muslim conquest of Spain produced romances concerning Count Julian of Septem and his betrayal of Christendom in revenge for the dishonor that befell his daughter at King Roderick 's court. Allegedly with Julian's encouragement and instructions, the Berber convert and freedman Tariq ibn Ziyad took his garrison from Tangiers across
1134-698: The North African coast. Bordered by Morocco, it lies along the boundary between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean . Ceuta is one of the special member state territories of the European Union , and it is one of several Spanish territories in Africa , which include Melilla and the Canary Islands . It was a regular municipality belonging to the province of Cádiz prior to the passing of its Statute of Autonomy in March 1995, as provided by
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#17327906329441188-805: The Peninsula of Almina overlooking the port is one of the possible locations of the southern pillar of the Pillars of Hercules of Greek legend (the other possibility being Jebel Musa ). The Ceuta Peninsula has been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because the site is part of a migratory bottleneck, or choke point, at the western end of the Mediterranean for large numbers of raptors , storks and other birds flying between Europe and Africa. These include European honey buzzards , black kites , short-toed snake eagles , Egyptian vultures , griffon vultures , black storks , white storks and Audouin's gulls . Ceuta has
1242-536: The Spanish Army of Africa and rebelled against the Spanish republican government; his military uprising led to the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939. Franco transported troops to mainland Spain in an airlift using transport aircraft supplied by Germany and Italy . Ceuta became one of the first battlegrounds of the uprising: General Franco's rebel nationalist forces seized Ceuta, while at the same time
1296-570: The Treaty of Lisbon . The city was attacked by Moroccan forces under Moulay Ismail during the Siege of Ceuta (1694–1727) . During the longest siege in history, the city underwent changes leading to the loss of its Portuguese character. While most of the military operations took place around the Royal Walls of Ceuta , there were also small-scale penetrations by Spanish forces at various points on
1350-469: The hinterland and made the more defensible Septem their regional capital in place of Tingis. Epidemics , less capable successors and overstretched supply lines forced a retrenchment and left Septem isolated. It is likely that its count ( comes ) was obliged to pay homage to the Visigoth Kingdom in Spain in the early 7th century. There are no reliable contemporary accounts of the end of
1404-455: The province of Cádiz on the Spanish mainland by the Strait of Gibraltar and it shares a 6.4 km (4 mi) land border with M'diq-Fnideq Prefecture in the Kingdom of Morocco . It has an area of 18.5 km (7 sq mi; 4,571 acres). It is dominated by Monte Anyera, a hill along its western frontier with Morocco, which is guarded by a Spanish military fort. Monte Hacho on
1458-469: The 20th century, and prospects say that this process will continue until the present century. Administrative subdivisions are called parishes; it has its origin in church organization. These 37 parishes are rich in archeological vestiges, churches and chapels, waterwheels and pazos (a type of Galician traditional house). Remains of an important castle are also present in Castroverde. The territory
1512-617: The Mauretanian king Ptolemy in AD 40 and seized his kingdom, which Claudius organized in AD ;42, placing Septem in the province of Tingitana and raising it to the level of a colony . It subsequently was Romanized and thrived into the late 3rd century, trading heavily with Roman Spain and becoming well known for its salted fish . Roads connected it overland with Tingis (Tangiers) and Volubilis . Under Theodosius I in
1566-726: The Moroccan coast, and seizure of shipping in the Strait of Gibraltar. During the Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) , Spain allowed Britain to occupy Ceuta. Occupation began in 1810, with Ceuta being returned at the conclusion of the wars. Disagreements regarding the border of Ceuta resulted in the Hispano-Moroccan War (1859–60) , which ended at the Battle of Tetuán . In July 1936, General Francisco Franco took command of
1620-614: The Romans eventually accepted his conquests and he continued to raid them anyway, he soon lost control of Tingis and Septem in a series of Berber revolts. When Justinian decided to reconquer the Vandal lands , his victorious general Belisarius continued along the coast, making Septem a westernmost outpost of the Byzantine Empire around 533. Unlike the former ancient Roman administration, however, Eastern Rome did not push far into
1674-546: The Spanish Constitution, henceforth becoming an autonomous city. Ceuta, like Melilla and the Canary Islands , was classified as a free port before Spain joined the European Union . Its population is predominantly Christian and Muslim , with a small minority of Sephardic Jews and Sindhi Hindus , from Pakistan. Spanish is the official language. Spanish and Darija Arabic are the two main spoken languages. The name Abyla has been said to have been
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1728-566: The ancient name of nearby Jebel Musa . Beside Calpe , the other Pillar of Hercules now known as the Rock of Gibraltar , the Phoenicians established Kart at what is now San Roque , Spain . Other good anchorages nearby became Phoenician and then Carthaginian ports at what are now Tangiers and Cádiz . After Carthage 's destruction in the Punic Wars , most of northwest Africa
1782-431: The average population is about 5,988 people. Municipalities were first created by decree on 23 May 1812 as part of the liberal reforms associated with the new Spanish Constitution of 1812 and based on similar actions in revolutionary France. The idea was to rationalise and homogenise territorial organisation, do away with the prior feudal system and provide equality before the law of all citizens. Between 1812 and 1931,
1836-489: The bastions of Coraza Alta, Bandera and Mallorquines. Luís de Camões lived in Ceuta between 1549 and 1551, losing his right eye in battle, which influenced his work of poetry Os Lusíadas . In 1578 King Sebastian of Portugal died at the Battle of Alcácer Quibir (known as the Battle of Three Kings) in what is today northern Morocco, without descendants, triggering the 1580 Portuguese succession crisis . His granduncle,
1890-511: The city came under fire from the air and sea forces of the official republican government. The Llano Amarillo monument was erected to honor Francisco Franco ; it was inaugurated on 13 July 1940. The tall obelisk has since been abandoned, but the shield symbols of the Falange and Imperial Eagle remain visible. Following the 1947 Partition of India , a substantial number of Sindhi Hindus from current-day Pakistan settled in Ceuta, adding to
1944-480: The city to pursue further enterprises in the area. From 1415 to 1437, Pedro de Meneses became the first governor of Ceuta. The Marinid Sultanate started the 1419 siege but was defeated by the first governor of Ceuta before reinforcements arrived in the form of John, Constable of Portugal and his brother Henry the Navigator , who were sent with troops to defend Ceuta. Under King John I 's son, Duarte ,
1998-516: The coat of arms derived from that of the Kingdom of Portugal was added to the center; the original Portuguese flag and coat of arms of Ceuta remained unchanged, and the modern-day Ceuta flag features the configuration of the Portuguese shield . John's son Henry the Navigator distinguished himself in the battle, being wounded during the conquest. The looting of the city proved to be less profitable than expected for John I, so he decided to keep
2052-590: The colony at Ceuta rapidly became a drain on the Portuguese treasury. Trans-Saharan trade journeyed instead to Tangier . It was soon realized that without the city of Tangier, possession of Ceuta was worthless. In 1437, Duarte's brothers Henry the Navigator and Fernando, the Saint Prince persuaded him to launch an attack on the Marinid sultanate. The resulting Battle of Tangier (1437) , led by Henry,
2106-404: The elderly Cardinal Henry , succeeded him as King, but Henry also had no descendants, having taken holy orders . When the cardinal-king died two years after Sebastian's death, three grandchildren of King Manuel I of Portugal claimed the throne: Philip prevailed and was crowned King Philip I of Portugal in 1581, uniting the two crowns and overseas empires in what is historically referred to as
2160-648: The enclave is the responsibility of the Spanish Armed Forces ' General Command of Ceuta (COMGECEU). The Spanish Army 's combat components of the command include: The command also includes its headquarters battalion as well as logistics elements. In 2023, the Spanish Navy replaced the Aresa -class patrol boat P-114 in the territory with the Rodman -class patrol boat Isla de León . Ceuta itself
2214-720: The fall of the Caliphate of Córdoba in 1031. Following this, Ceuta and Muslim Iberia were controlled by successive North African dynasties. Starting in 1084, the Almoravid Berbers ruled the region until 1147, when the Almohads conquered the land. Apart from Ibn Hud 's rebellion in 1232, they ruled until the Tunisian Hafsids established control. The Hafsids' influence in the west rapidly waned, and Ceuta's inhabitants eventually expelled them in 1249. After this,
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2268-418: The late 4th century, Septem still had 10,000 inhabitants, nearly all Christian citizens speaking African Romance , a local dialect of Latin. Vandals , probably invited by Count Boniface as protection against the empress dowager , crossed the strait near Tingis around 425 and swiftly overran Roman North Africa . Their king, Gaiseric , focused his attention on the rich lands around Carthage ; although
2322-463: The latitude, while summers are warm yet milder than in the interior of Southern Spain, due to the moderating effect of the Straits of Gibraltar. Summers are very dry, but yearly precipitation is still at 849 mm (33.4 in), which could be considered a humid climate if the summers were not so arid. Since 1995, Ceuta is, along with Melilla , one of the two autonomous cities of Spain. Ceuta
2376-399: The legislation regarding municipal organisation was changed more than 20 times, and there were 20 addition and unsuccessful proposals for change. Ceuta Ceuta ( UK : / ˈ sj uː t ə / , US : / ˈ s eɪ uː t ə / , Spanish: [ˈθewta, ˈsewta] ; Arabic : سَبْتَة , romanized : Sabtah ) is an autonomous city of Spain on
2430-459: The position of the city was consolidated with the taking of Ksar es-Seghir (1458), Arzila and Tangier (1471) by the Portuguese. The city was recognized as a Portuguese possession by the Treaty of Alcáçovas (1479) and by the Treaty of Tordesillas (1494). In the 1540s the Portuguese began building the Royal Walls of Ceuta as they are today including bastions , a navigable moat and a drawbridge. Some of these bastions are still standing, like
2484-441: The right to vote or be elected for public office in said municipality. The right to vote in municipal elections is extended to Spanish citizens living abroad. A Spaniard abroad, upon registering in a consulate , has the right to vote in the local elections of the last municipality they resided in. A Spanish citizen born abroad must choose between the last municipality his or her mother or father last lived in. As of 2022, there were
2538-639: The strait and overran the Spanish so swiftly that both he and his master Musa bin Nusayr fell afoul of a jealous caliph , who stripped them of their wealth and titles. After the death of Julian, sometimes also described as a king of the Ghomara Berbers , Berber converts to Islam took direct control of what they called Sebta. It was then destroyed during their great revolt against the Umayyad Caliphate around 740. Sebta subsequently remained
2592-586: Was a debacle. In the resulting treaty, Henry promised to deliver Ceuta back to the Marinids in return for allowing the Portuguese army to depart unmolested, which he reneged on. Possession of Ceuta indirectly led to further Portuguese expansion . The main area of Portuguese expansion, at this time, was the coast of the Maghreb , where there was grain, cattle, sugar, and textiles, as well as fish, hides, wax, and honey. Ceuta had to endure alone for 43 years, until
2646-420: Was almost anticlimactic, because the 45,000 men who traveled on 200 Portuguese ships caught the defenders of Ceuta off guard and suffered only eight casualties. By nightfall the town was captured. On the morning of 22 August, Ceuta was in Portuguese hands. Álvaro Vaz de Almada, 1st Count of Avranches was asked to hoist what was to become the flag of Ceuta , which is identical to the flag of Lisbon , but in which
2700-403: Was attached to the province of Cádiz until 1995, the Spanish coast being only 20 km (12.5 miles) away. It is a cosmopolitan city, with a large ethnic Arab-Berber Muslim minority as well as Sephardic Jewish and Hindu minorities. On 5 November 2007, King Juan Carlos I visited the city, sparking great enthusiasm from the local population and protests from the Moroccan government. It
2754-848: Was later renamed for the seven hills around the site, collectively referred to as the "Seven Brothers" ( ‹See Tfd› Greek : Ἑπτάδελφοι , translit. Heptádelphoi ; Latin : Septem Fratres ). In particular, the Roman stronghold at the site took the name "Fort at the Seven Brothers" ( Castellum ad Septem Fratres ). This was gradually shortened to Septem ( Σέπτον Sépton ) or, occasionally, Septum or Septa . These clipped forms continued as Berber Sebta and Arabic Sabtan or Sabtah ( سبتة ), which themselves became Ceuta in Portuguese ( pronounced [ˈseu̯tɐ] ) and Spanish (locally pronounced [ˈseu̯ta] ). Controlling access between
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#17327906329442808-515: Was left to the Roman client states of Numidia and—around Abyla— Mauretania . Punic culture continued to thrive in what the Romans knew as "Septem". After the Battle of Thapsus in 46 BC, Caesar and his heirs began annexing North Africa directly as Roman provinces but, as late as Augustus , most of Septem's Berber residents continued to speak and write in Punic . Caligula assassinated
2862-642: Was the Mayor until the Autonomy Statute provided for the new title of Mayor-President . As of 2011 , the People's Party (PP) won 18 seats, keeping Juan Jesús Vivas as Mayor-President, which he has been since 2001. The remaining seats are held by the regionalist Caballas Coalition (4) and the Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE, 3). Owing to its small population, Ceuta elects only one member of
2916-583: Was the first time a Spanish head of state had visited Ceuta in 80 years. Since 2010, Ceuta (and Melilla) have declared the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha , or Feast of the Sacrifice, an official public holiday. It is the first time a non-Christian religious festival has been officially celebrated in Spanish ruled territory since the Reconquista . Ceuta is separated by 17 km (11 mi) from
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