Castillos is a small city in the
Rocha Department of southeastern
Uruguay
Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
.
Geography
The city is located on the junction of
Route 9 with Route 16, about northeast of the city of
Rocha Rocha may refer to:
* Rocha (surname), a Portuguese surname
* Rocha, Moca, Puerto Rico, a barrio in the municipality of Moca, Puerto Rico
* Rocha, Rio de Janeiro, a neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
* Rocha, Uruguay, capital city of the Rocha ...
. Other settlements in the area include
Barrio Torres
''Barrio'' () is a Spanish word that means "quarter" or "neighborhood". In the modern Spanish language, it is generally defined as each area of a city, usually delimited by functional (e.g. residential, commercial, industrial, etc.), social, arch ...
, about one kilometre southeast of Castillo,
La Esmeralda, several kilometres to the northeast and
Aguas Dulces
Aguas Dulces is a resort in the Rocha Department of southeastern Uruguay.
Location
The resort is located at the east end (on Km. 277.5) of Route 10 and the south end of Route 16, on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, about southeast of Castillos ...
several kilometres to the southeast along the Route 16.
Castillo is located in the eastern part of the department of Rocha. The land is low lying, located not far from the coast, with an average altitude of 44 metres.
Laguna de Castillos
Laguna de Castillos is an important water body in the Rocha Department of Uruguay. It is located south of Castillos and northeast of Rocha. It is considered an important wildlife refuge and bird sanctuary.
References
Castillos
Castillos ...
is located to the southwest of the city, while north of it is the
Cerro de los Rocha
Cerro is Spanish for "hill" or "mountain".
Toponyms
;Bolivia:
* Cerro Rico, the "Rich Mountain" containing silver ore near Potosi, Bolivia
;Brazil:
*Cerro Branco, a municipality of Rio Grande do Sul
*Cerro Grande, Rio Grande do Sul, a municipa ...
.
History
It was founded on 19 April 1866 under the name "San Vicente de Castillos", derived from the chapel ''San Vicente Mártir de Castillos''. On 3 May 1909, its status was elevated to "Villa" (town) by decree Ley N° 3.453,
[ and on 3 November 1952, to "Ciudad" (city) by decree Ley N° 11.875.
]
Population
In 2011 Castillos had a population of 7,541.
Source: ''Instituto Nacional de Estadística de Uruguay''
Landmarks
The main plaza of the town is called Plaza Artigas and there is a cemetery in the southeast of town near the junction of Routes 9 and 16. Most of the streets are named after prominent dates in Uruguayan history and heroic figures, e.g. 25 de Mayo and General Rivera.
Government
As of 2011, the local mayor is Raúl Servetto.
Places of worship
* Parish Church of Mary Help of Christians and St. Vincent Martyr (Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
)
Notable people
* Irineu Riet Correa Irineu is the Portuguese version of the name Irenaeus.
This name is borne by:
People
*Irineu Calixto Couto
*Irineu Evangelista de Sousa
*Victor Irineu de Souza
Victor Irineu de Souza (born 3 April 1989 in Belo Horizonte), or simply Victor, is ...
, politician
* Nelson "Pindingo" Pereyra
Nelson may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey
* ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers
* ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...
, musician
* Jesús Perdomo, historian
References
External links
INE map of Castillos and Barrio Torres
{{Authority control
Populated places in the Rocha Department