Last modified: 2019-09-16 by ivan sache
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The municipality of Almuradiel (859 inhabitants in 2014; 6,616 ha) is located on the border with Andalusia, 75 km south-east of Ciudad Real.
Almuradiel is of Moorish origin, its name coming from the Arabic word
el muradal, "the wall". The wall is here the northern entrance of the
Pass of Muradal, renamed Pass of Despeñaperros after the reconquest.
Made of a gorge of river Magaña, the pass still forms the only local
road (once the Andalusia Royal Road, rebuilt in 1781 as the New Royal
Road) and railroad access to Andalusia. The pass was crossed by the
Christian troops commanded by King Alfonso VIII, heading to Las Navas de
Tolosa, where they would win on 16 July 1212 a decisive battle.
Almuradiel was granted the status of villa in 1780 by Charles III.
Ivan Sache, 8 May 2019
The flag of Almuradiel (photo) by a Decree adopted on 4 December
2007 by the Government of Castilla-La Mancha and published on 18
December 2007 in the official gazette of Castilla-La Mancha, No. 263, p.
30,354 (text).
The flag is described as follows:
Flag: Rectangular, in proportions 2:3, diagonally divided from the upper hoist to the lower fly in three parts of unspecified width, the upper blue, the central white and the lower red, charged in the center with the crowned coat of arms of the municipality.
The coat of arms of Almuradiel is prescribed by Royal Decree No. 2,925,
adopted on 26 November 1976 by the Spanish government and published on
22 December 1976 in the Spanish official gazette, No. 306, pp.
25,488-25,489 (text).
The coat of arms is described as follows:
Coat of arms: Per fess, 1a. Argent a Cross of Calatrava gules, 1b. Or the cypher of Charles III azure, 2. Azure an anchor argent. The shield surmounted by a Royal crown closed.
The Royal Academy of History validated the proposed coat of arms,
recommending to remove the castle (most probably, from the first
quarter), for the sake of differentiation from the numerous municipal
arms that feature both a castle and the Cross of Calatrava.
[Boletín de la Real Academia de la Historia 175:1, 207-208. 1978]
The anchor represents the Navy Monument of Almuradiel, made of the
mainmast of the mine-sweeper Marte, operated by the Naval School
Afloat. The monument was erected in 1973 by the University Naval
Militia, as the counterpart of the Navy Museum established in the Palace
of the Marquess of Santa Cruz in the neighboring town of El Viso del Marqués.
[El Mástil de Amuradiel]
Ivan Sache, 8 May 2019
