Cartago () is the head city of
Cartago canton of the
Cartago Province
Cartago (), which means Carthage in Spanish, is a province of central Costa Rica. It is one of the smallest provinces, however probably the richest of the Spanish Colonial era sites and traditions.
Geography
It is located in the central part ...
, and is composed of the
Oriental
The Orient is a term for the East in relation to Europe, traditionally comprising anything belonging to the Eastern world. It is the antonym of ''Occident'', the Western World. In English, it is largely a metonym for, and coterminous with, the ...
and
Occidental districts as stated in the
administrative divisions of Costa Rica
According to the Political Constitution of Costa Rica of 1949, in article 168, the territorial division of Costa Rica is organized by law into three types of subnational entity:
For the purposes of the Public Administration, the national territo ...
. It was the capital of Costa Rica from 1574 to 1824.
History
Founded in 1563 by Juan Vasquez de Coronado, it was the first successful establishment in Costa Rica.
The city was granted a coat of arms by King
Philip II of Spain
Philip II) in Spain, while in Portugal and his Italian kingdoms he ruled as Philip I ( pt, Filipe I). (21 May 152713 September 1598), also known as Philip the Prudent ( es, Felipe el Prudente), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from ...
in 1565, and the title of Muy Noble y Muy Leal ("Very Noble and Very Loyal") by the
Cortes
Cortes, Cortés, Cortês, Corts, or Cortès may refer to:
People
* Cortes (surname), including a list of people with the name
** Hernán Cortés (1485–1547), a Spanish conquistador
Places
* Cortes, Navarre, a village in the South border of ...
(Spanish Parliament) in 1814. It served as the first capital of Costa Rica until 1823, when Republican leader
Gregorio José Ramírez
Gregorio José Ramírez y Castro was a Costa Rican politician, merchant and marine who was most notable for being the 2nd General Commander of Arms of Costa Rica from April 5 to April 16, 1823.
Biography Personal life
He was born in San José ...
, moved the capital to the bigger city of San José, because Cartago wanted to unite the newly independent province of
Costa Rica
Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...
to the
Iturbide's Mexican Empire Mexican Empire may refer to:
* First Mexican Empire, the regime under Agustín de Iturbide (Agustín I) from 1821 to 1823
* Second Mexican Empire
The Second Mexican Empire (), officially the Mexican Empire (), was a constitutional monarchy est ...
while San Jose and Alajuela supported a Republican system.
The city was
severely damaged by major
earthquake
An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...
s in 1822, 1841 and
1910. In 1963, a volcanic eruption of Irazu Volcano which for two years covered San José in
ash
Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...
badly damaged some agricultural areas around Cartago, but not the city.
Many
pilgrims come to Cartago annually, to visit the nation's principal
church
Church may refer to:
Religion
* Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities
* Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination
* Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship
* C ...
, the enormous
Basílica de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles, on the feast day of the Virgin of the Angels (August 2). The church has a statue of a
Black Madonna
The term ''Black Madonna'' or ''Black Virgin'' tends to refer to statues or paintings in Western Christendom of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Infant Jesus, where both figures are depicted with dark skin. The Black Madonna can be found both ...
known as La Negrita, who supposedly had great healing powers. The sick come to her statue in hope of a
miracle
A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divin ...
from La Negrita.
According to folklore in Costa Rica, the statue was found by an indigenous girl in 1635. But, in reality, the only inhabitants were black and mulatto slaves who lived in a village named La Puebla, away from the white masters in Cartago. The legend says that she brought the statue home several times, but it mysteriously reappeared at its original site. The rock where she found it is now kept in a backroom in the basilica and is revered as a sacred relic and object of inspiration. The rock is supposed to be in the same location it was when La Negrita was found, but it has been moved as the basilica was rebuilt (see below). It is common for pilgrims to touch the rock in reverence.
The Plaza Mayor in Cartago includes the
Santiago Apóstol Parish Ruins
Santiago Apóstol (St. James Apostle) Parish Ruins is a Costa Rican Cultural Heritage Site, located in the city of Cartago, Costa Rica.
History
Several churches have existed on this site since 1575. The first building was damaged in 1630 by an ...
, about seven blocks west from the basilica. Despite their beauty, they are not real ruins but an unfinished building, which was badly damaged by the
1910 earthquake and then interrupted. The city's government is declaring 100 blocks as Cartago's "historical center." This is a way to keep the historical buildings alive in the future, as many cities in the world have done. On the other hand, the government of the city and JASEC (the company that produces and distributes electricity to Cartago and surrounding areas) have been working to light some of the most important historical buildings as a way to attract inhabitants and tourists to the city at night time.
On April 24, 2010 the former "Cuartel de la Ciudad", home of the local police, finally opened after a two-year restoration as the new City Museum. It is located 2 blocks north of the Plaza Mayor.
The Chilean biochemist and biophysicist
Jorge Allende
Jorge Eduardo Allende Rivera, (born 11 November 1934) is a Chilean biochemist and biophysicist known for his contributions to the understanding of proteic biosynthesis and how transfer RNA is generated, and the regulation of maturation of ...
was born in Cartago in 1934.
Economy
Agricultural products make up the base of the economy of the rural areas around the city. There is an industrial park where a few Costa Rican and international companies are located. However, a large portion of the locals do not work in the city itself but in San José metropolitan area. Those who do work within the city limits concentrate largely in the service and commerce sectors of the economy.
Cartago is home of the
Costa Rica Institute of Technology
The Costa Rica Institute of Technology (TEC) ( es, Tecnológico de Costa Rica) is a university in Costa Rica specializing in engineering and advanced science and research, modeled as an institute of technology. Its main campus is located in the Du ...
(TEC), one of the most prestigious higher education institutions in the country and one of Central America's most important engineering schools. It is located in
Dulce Nombre
Dulce Nombre () is a municipality in the Honduran department of Copán
Copán is an archaeological site of the Maya civilization in the Copán Department of western Honduras, not far from the border with Guatemala. This ancient Maya city ...
district, not far from Los Angeles Basilica.
Tourism
Places tourists often visit in the city include the Basilica of Los Angeles, the "Ruins of Santiago Apostle Church", The City Museum, Maria Auxiliadora church, the Costa Rica Institute of Technology, The Central Market (especially on Thursdays and Saturdays), and the main building of San Luis Gonzaga High School, site of the first Central American Supreme Court. Cultural activities take place at the "Casa de la Ciudad" and the "Casa de la Cultura", as well as in the campus of the Costa Rica Institute of Technology.
The province is known for its rich ecological diversity and dense tropical rainforests along the mountain ranges near the
Irazu and
Turrialba volcanoes.
Sports
The city's football club is
Cartaginés, who have won the Costa Rican league four times. They play their home games at the
Estadio José Rafael Fello Meza Ivankovich
Estadio Jose Rafael "Fello" Meza Ivankovich is a multi-use stadium in Cartago, Costa Rica. It is currently used mostly for football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. U ...
.
Geography
It has an elevation of above
sea level
Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...
, at the base of the
Irazú Volcano
The Irazú Volcano ( es, Volcán Irazú) is an active volcano in Costa Rica, situated in the Cordillera Central close to the city of Cartago.
The name could come from either the combination of "ara" (point) and "tzu" (thunder) or a corruptio ...
.
Climate
Cartago has a borderline
tropical monsoon climate
An area of tropical monsoon climate (occasionally known as a sub-equatorial, tropical wet climate or a tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate) is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category ...
(''Am'') and dry winter
subtropical highland climate
An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ...
(''Cwb''). Coinciding with the tropical monsoon classification, it has noticeably cooler weather than most places of this climate type, owing to its high elevation. It has steadily very warm temperatures throughout the year, with heavy rainfall in most months and a short dry season in the winter.
See also
*
Cartago Agrarian Union Party
The Cartago Agrarian Union Party ( es, Partido Unión Agrícola Cartaginés) is a political party in Cartago Province, Costa Rica.
The party was founded in 1969 by Juan Guillermo Brenes Castillo. It first contested a general election in 1970, ...
*
Provincial Integration Party Three
*
Cartago in Spanish
References
External links
*
*
{{Authority control
Populated places in Cartago Province
Greater Metropolitan Area (Costa Rica)
Populated places established in 1563
1563 establishments in the Spanish Empire