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Baeza

Baeza
Municipality
CondeRomanones.jpg
Flag of Baeza
Flag
Coat of arms of Baeza
Coat of arms
Baeza is located in Andalusia
Baeza
Baeza
Location in Andalusia
Coordinates: 37°59′N 3°28′W / 37.983°N 3.467°W / 37.983; -3.467
Country  Spain
Autonomous community  Andalusia
Province Jaén
Comarca La Loma
Judicial district Baeza
Government
 • Mayor Leocadio Marín Rodríguez (PSOE)
Area
 • Total 194.3 km2 (75.0 sq mi)
Elevation 769 m (2,523 ft)
Population (2009)
 • Total 16,253
 • Density 84/km2 (220/sq mi)
Demonym(s) Baezanos
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code 23440
Website Official website
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of Úbeda and Baeza
Name as inscribed on the World Heritage List
Santa María fountain and cathedral of Baeza
Location Spain
Type Cultural
Criteria ii, iv
Reference 522
UNESCO region Europe and North America
Inscription history
Inscription 2003 (27th Session)

Baeza (Spanish pronunciation: [ba.ˈe.θa]), formerly also written as Baéza, is an Andalusian town in the province of Jaén in southern Spain. It lies perched on a cliff in the Loma de Úbeda, the range separating the Guadalquivir River to its south from the Guadalimar to its north. It is now principally famed for having some of the best-preserved examples of Italian Renaissance architecture in Spain. Along with Úbeda, it was added to UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites in 2003.

The town stands at a high elevation about 3 miles (4.8 km) from the right bank of the Guadalquivir in the Loma de Úbeda. Under the Romans, the town was known as Beatia. Following its conquest by the Visigoths, Beatia was the seat of a bishop between AD 656 and 675. This diocese had earlier been located at Castulo and appropriated territory formerly held by Tucci. The diocese was suppressed in 900.

Baeza reached its greatest prosperity under Islamic rule, when it formed the capital of an effectively independent kingdom and reached a population of around 50,000. Remnants of the Moors' fortifications include the town's Jaén and Úbeda gates and the Arch of Baeza. The Christian diocese was reëstablished in 1127 or 1147 following the town's conquest by Alfonso VII of Castile, but it was then reconquered by the Muslims and its cathedral adopted as a mosque. The town never recovered from the destruction endured upon its conquest by Ferdinand III of Castile in 1227 or 1239. The diocese of Baeza was merged with Jaén in 1248 or 1249, but continues to function as a titular see of the Roman Catholic Church.


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Wikipedia

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