Photos from my car in Calatayud (Zaragoza) (September 2024)

=> Photos from September 2024

Calatayud (in Roman times it was called Bílbilis, which is why its demonym is 'bilbilitano') is a city and municipality in the western part of the province of Zaragoza, in Aragón (Spain, Europe). It is currently the capital of the Calatayud Community comarca and also serves as the judicial district headquarters, being the judicial district No. 1 of the province of Zaragoza.

Calatayud is one of the most important and famous cities in all of Aragón. However, between 1822 and 1823, Calatayud was the capital of the old Spanish province of Calatayud, created on January 27, 1822, during the Liberal Triennium, making Calatayud, for a brief time, the fourth provincial capital of Aragón. Unfortunately, in 1823, the province of Calatayud was dissolved and merged into the provinces of Zaragoza, Soria, and Guadalajara.

Originating from the 19th century is the famous local legend of Dolores. The story of Dolores is based on an anonymous couplet about the adventures of a beautiful and kind young woman named Dolores Peinador who worked at an inn in Calatayud. Among her numerous suitors are a barber named Melchor, a wealthy merchant named Patricio, and a sergeant named Rojas. “If you go to Calatayud, ask for Dolores, who is a very beautiful girl and a friend of doing favors,” goes the famous couplet that emerged around the years 1840 and 1850, which supposedly forced Dolores Peinador to move to Madrid.

According to data from the INE in 2023, it has a population of 19,850 inhabitants (making it the fourth most populated city in all of Aragón, and also the most populated city that is not a provincial capital in Aragón) and a surface area of 154.25 km². The bilbilitano municipality is divided between the city of Calatayud (the municipal capital) and the hamlets of Huérmeda, Torres, and Embid de la Ribera.

The beautiful Collegiate Church of Calatayud, designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001 for its stunning Mudejar Aragonese architecture, is dedicated to Santa María la Mayor; it was built starting in 1120, although it was reconstructed in the 14th century and, as previously mentioned, is of Aragonese Mudejar style.