Ocaña, a town and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...

of central

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

, in the

province of Toledo Toledo is a province of central Spain, in the western part of the autonomous community of Castile–La Mancha. It is bordered by the provinces of Madrid, Cuenca, Ciudad Real, Badajoz, Cáceres, and Ávila. Its capital is the city of Toledo. ...

. It is located on the extreme north of the tableland known as the Mesa de Ocaña, and has a station on the

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a p ...

from

Aranjuez Aranjuez () is a city and municipality of Spain, part of the Community of Madrid. Located in the southern end of the region, the main urban nucleus lies on the left bank of Tagus, a bit upstream the discharge of the Jarama. , the municipality h ...

to Cuenca.

Toponymy

The term ''Ocaña'' seems to have the base word ''olca-'' that originates from the Celtiberian 'fertile ground, meadow', and could have evolved into: ''Olcania > Ocania < Ocaña''. There are other theories, like the one by Nieto Ballester, who states that ''Ocaña'' is a pre-Roman term, maybe Indo-European, but not Celtic. On the other hand, Menéndez Pidal quotes the name of ''Ocaña'' to support his thesis of the Ligurian substratum in the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, def ...

Geography

This town is located on the north side of the plain known as ''

Mesa de Ocaña Mesa de Ocaña is a comarca in Castilla-La Mancha, Spain, in the province of Toledo. Its capital and administrative center is Ocaña. The comarca is located in the northeast part of the province, and encompasses an area that includes several h ...

'', where you can find many towns of the region. It is close to other towns and cities as

in the northeast,

Ontígola Ontígola is a municipality located in the province of Toledo, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. According to the 2015 census (INE INE, Ine or ine may refer to: Institutions * Institut für Nukleare Entsorgung, a German nuclear research center * In ...

in the north,

Noblejas Noblejas is a municipality of Spain located in the province of Toledo, Castilla–La Mancha. The municipality spans across a total area of 69.67 km2 and, as of 1 January 2021, it has a registered population of 3,721. Radio Exterior (the Spani ...

in the east,

Villatobas Villatobas is a municipality located in the province of Toledo, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. According to the 2006 census (INE INE, Ine or ine may refer to: Institutions * Institut für Nukleare Entsorgung, a German nuclear research center * I ...

in the southeast,

Dosbarrios Dosbarrios is a municipality located in the province of Toledo, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. According to the 2006 census (INE INE, Ine or ine may refer to: Institutions * Institut für Nukleare Entsorgung, a German nuclear research center * I ...

Cabañas de Yepes Cabañas de Yepes is a municipality located in the province of Toledo, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. According to the 2006 census (INE INE, Ine or ine may refer to: Institutions * Institut für Nukleare Entsorgung, a German nuclear research cent ...

and

Huerta de Valdecarábanos Huerta de Valdecarábanos is a municipality located in the province of Toledo, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. According to the 2006 census (INE INE, Ine or ine may refer to: Institutions * Institut für Nukleare Entsorgung, a German nuclear resear ...

in the south and

Yepes Yepes is a ''villa'' (town) in the northern region of the province of Toledo, in the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha, Spain. Population *The first numbers about the population of Yepes date back to 1534 and account for some 4000 ...

and

Ciruelos Ciruelos (Spanish for ''plum trees'', ) is a Chilean village located southeast of Pichilemu, Cardenal Caro Province Cardenal Caro Province ( es, Provincia Cardenal Caro) is one of the three provinces of the central Chilean region of O'Higgins (V ...

in the west.

History

The town is surrounded by ruined walls which contain the remains of an old castle. Ocaña is the ''Vicus Cuminarius'' of the

Romans 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 ...

. The

Battle of Ocaña The Battle of Ocaña was fought on 19 November 1809 between French forces under Marshal Jean de Dieu Soult, Duke of Dalmatia and King Joseph Bonaparte and the Spanish army under Juan Carlos de Aréizaga, which suffered its greatest single d ...

was fought near here, on 19 November 1809; the Spanish under

Juan Carlos de Aréizaga Juan Carlos de Aréizaga (born 17 January 1756; died 1816) was a Spanish general, who fought in the Peninsular War. In 1808 he was a retired colonel, residing in Pamplona, where he made friends with a young Francisco Javier Mina. After the outbr ...

were routed by the French under

Joseph Bonaparte it, Giuseppe-Napoleone Buonaparte es, José Napoleón Bonaparte , house = Bonaparte , father = Carlo Buonaparte , mother = Letizia Ramolino , birth_date = 7 January 1768 , birth_place = Corte, Corsica, Republic ...

and Marshal Soult.

Main sights

*Convent of ''Santa Catalina de Siena'', in Renaissance style *Convent of St. Dominic, in Renaissance style (1535–1605) *''Fuente Grande'' ("Great Spring"), built in the 16th century *''Fuente Vieja'' ("Old Spring"), probably of

Roman 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 lett ...

origins *Parish church of ''Santa María de la Asunción'', built over a 12th-century mosque *Parish church of St. John the Baptist (13th century) *Convent of the Carmelites (16th century) *''Palacio de los Cárdenas'' (16th century) *''Rollo de Justicia'' (15th century)

Transportation

Ocaña is a major hub in the Spanish motorway network. The autovías A-4 and A-40 and toll roads R-4 and AP-36 all intersect each other at Ocaña. In addition, the Madrid–Levante high-speed rail line passes by Ocaña, but does not have a station there.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ocana, Spain Municipalities in the Province of Toledo