Arganda del Rey

Arganda del Rey is a municipality in Madrid, Spain. It is connected to Madrid by metro line 9, underground.

History

The first definitive habitation in the area dates back to the Arabic presence in the Iberian Peninsula. Nevertheless, archaeological remains from the Roman era have been found, and some philologists argue that the name of the municipality comes from the Latin for "area canda" ("white area"). In the Roman texts of Ptolomeo several cities are mentioned as preroman habitations (Carpetanos) with Alternia (Arganda) among them.

In the 11th century, Arganda was conquered by the Christians, but there was no notable population expansion until the 14th century. It is possible that this expansion was due to the abandonment of Valtierra and Vilchesdue due to an invasion of termites.Fact|date=February 2007 The majority of historians believe that the population increase was due to the pestilence of 1348.

Until 1581, Arganda belonged to the archbishopric of Toledo. Philip II granted the title of Villa to the population, but the municipalities economic problems led to it being sold to the Duke of Lerma in 1613. The people rebelled in what is known as Arganda's Riot.

The municipality grew due to wine industry and because of the construction of a railroad that connected Arganda to Madrid in 1843. The beginning of the 20th century saw the development of a sugar plantation, which started a process of industrialization and of great demographic expansion. The Battle of the Jarama took place near the town.

In the 1960s there was another population explosion, due to industrial growth. In 1960, Arganda had 6,000 inhabitants, and this grew to 22,000 inhabitants in 1981. The majority of the expansion came from the immigration of people of Andalusian and Extremaduran origin. More recently another inflow of migrants, mainly from Eastern Europe, has led to a population in excess of 40,000 inhabitants.

Tourism

Historical buildings

* San Juan Bautista Church - Built between 1696 and 1714, mixing gothic, baroque, and renacencist. One of the best conservated churches around the area. It's faccade can be seen on the Buñuel's film "Viridiana" as exteriors were filmed here.
* Valtierra's hermitage - session in Valtierra's former medieval village, the hermitage of Mudéjar style was constructed in the first half of the 13th century. Presently in ruins, remains include the north front wall, the south wall and part of the west wall.
* Vilches's hermitage - building of the 17th century, of baroque style. Remains are 3 kilometres of the urban centre of Arganda.