Alcalá de Guadaíra

Alcalá de Guadaíra
Municipality
Towers of the city's fortress
Flag Coat of arms
Alcalá de Guadaíra Location in Spain
Coordinates: 37°20′00″N 5°51′00″W / 37.33333°N 5.85000°W / 37.33333; -5.85000
Country	Spain
Autonomous community	Andalusia
Province	Sevilla
Comarca	Los Alcores
Government
• Alcalde	Antonio Gutiérrez Limones (PSOE)
Area
• Total	284.61 km2 (109.89 sq mi)
Elevation	46 m (151 ft)
Population (2009)
• Total	74,404
Demonym(s)	Alcalareños
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	41500
Website	Official website

Alcalá de Guadaíra is a town located approximately 10 km southeast of Seville, Spain; in recent years the expansion of Seville has meant that Alcalá has become a suburb of that city. Alcalá used to be known as Alcalá de los Panaderos (Alcalá of the bakers) because it provided most of Seville's bread. The town is located on the banks of the Guadaíra River, and watermills built during the Moorish period of Spain can still be found in the area.

The town was known as Hienipo by the early Greek settlers, and later Hienipensis by the Romans. Remains of both these cultures have been discovered by local archeological investigation. Alcalá was occupied by Muslim forces in the 7th century and their name has held to modern times.

Alcalá de Guadaíra was under the domination of the Muslim rulers of al-Andalus (and later the taifa of Seville) until its capture by the Almohads, who built extensive fortifications around the town. These fortifications on a promontory overlooking the river continue to dominate the south-west side of the town. In 1244, Alcalá de Guadaíra was captured by Ferdinand III of Castile. The latter was responsible for the refurbishing of the castle and town fortifications, which were subsequently used as a royal prison with a military presence. Following Ferdinand's death it fell into disrepair and ceased to be a prison or military barracks.

Alcalá was home to a small but important Jewish community. In December, 1390, Archdeacon Ferand Martinez led a mob that razed the synagogue to the ground. The members of the Jewish community were soon after put to the sword.

This town was the birthplace of Leandro José de Flores (1776–1839), priest and historian.

The current walls date to the 13th and 14th century.

In the castle precincts is The Hermitage of Our Lady of the Eagle (Nuestra Señora del Águila), this building dates from the mid-13th century when it was the principal church of the town. Over subsequent centuries, as the town expanded, more churches were constructed and the church of Santiago became the principal parish. Many of the valuable artifacts were taken from the hermitage to Santiago but the image of "La Virgin del Águila" remains there. The image of the virgin is a replica of the original that was destroyed in 1936.