Vinaròs () is a city located in eastern

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") , i ...

and the capital of the Baix Maestrat in the province of Castelló. It is in the border between the Valencian Country and Catalonia. Vinaròs is a fishing harbour and tourist destination.

History

The first historical record of Vinaròs is in 1233, when the

Moorish The term Moor, derived from the ancient Mauri, is an exonym first used by Christian Europeans to designate the Muslim inhabitants of the Maghreb, the Iberian Peninsula, Sicily and Malta during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a distinct or se ...

hamlet of ''Binarlaros-Ibn Arus'' in eastern

al-Andaluz Al-Andalus translit. ; an, al-Andalus; ast, al-Ándalus; eu, al-Andalus; ber, ⴰⵏⴷⴰⵍⵓⵙ, label=Berber, translit=Andalus; ca, al-Àndalus; gl, al-Andalus; oc, Al Andalús; pt, al-Ândalus; es, al-Ándalus () was the Mus ...

was captured by King

James I of Aragon James I the Conqueror ( es, Jaime el Conquistador, ca, Jaume el Conqueridor; 2 February 1208 – 27 July 1276) was King of Aragon and Lord of Montpellier from 1213 to 1276; King of Majorca from 1231 to 1276; and Valencia from 1238 to 1276 ...

. It was under rule of the Knights templar order between 1294 and 1311, and of the order of Montesa during the 14th century. The town grew during the 16th and 17th centuries, when fortifications and navy yards were built, and attained great prosperity during the following two centuries, due to its involvement in ship building and Valencian wine trade. The town suffered a strong decline in the early 20th century as a consequence of the spread of

phylloxera Grape phylloxera is an insect pest of commercial grapevines worldwide, originally native to eastern North America. Grape phylloxera (''Daktulosphaira vitifoliae'' (Fitch 1855) belong to the family Phylloxeridae, within the order Hemiptera, bugs ...

in the regions

vineyard A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyards ...

s, which devastated wine production. Today, the prosperity of Vinaròs is bound to tourism and fishing, it is renowned for its tasty

prawns Prawn is a common name for small aquatic crustaceans with an exoskeleton and ten legs (which is a member of the order decapoda), some of which can be eaten. The term "prawn"Mortenson, Philip B (2010''This is not a weasel: a close look at nature ...

. Vinaròs is part of the

Taula del Sénia The Taula del Sénia () or Mancomunitat de la Taula del Sénia is a commonwealth or free association of municipalities made up of 22 towns, totalling up to 100,000 people, of some of the comarcas that make up the center of the historical region ...

free association of municipalities.

Main sights

Sights in Vinaròs is the fortress-like ''Església Arxiprestal de l'Assumpció'' (Archpriestal Church of the Assumption of Our Lady), built in the prevailing Renaissance architectural style during 1583-1596, with a 'new'

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

portal added during 1698–1702. Portada de Sant Gregori de Vinaròs

Culture

Carnival

The

Carnival of Vinaròs The Carnival of Vinaròs is an annual festival in Vinaròs, Spain that is held forty days before Lent. In 2007, it was renamed the Valencian Community's Tourist Interest Festivity and it aspires to be Spain's Tourist Interest Festivity. In 2016, ...

usually takes place during January, February, or March. It has 33 troupes composed of many people (the biggest troupe has around 550 members). Each troupe is represented by a queen who creates a spectacular costume.

Calendar

1st day (Friday): in the Town Hall, Carnival starts by a performance decorated with the Carnival's topic (In 2017 "Bollywood") and the "Carnestoltes" presentation ("Carnestoltes" is a huge wooden man dressed in a costume reflecting the Carnival's Topic). Then, the Mayor and the queens open the Carnival's huts enclosure (in the Fóra Forat Walk where each night's parties are held. Each troupe has a hut with free entry where visitors can enjoy the night parties). 2nd day (Saturday): The Queen's Presentation, where they show their fantastic costumes to all the people (until this day, no one knows the form of the queen's costume). It's located on the old football pitch (Boverals H street / Football pitch street. It's placed in front of the river). 3rd day (Sunday): Flour's battle and Disguised pets Competition in the Carnival's huts enclosure (Fóra Forat Walk), placed in the Fóra Forat Walk both. 4th day (Monday): dinner for the elderly. 5th day (Tuesday): some troupes compete in the Karaoke Song Contest. 6th day (Wednesday): people dress up with thematic costumes reflecting the Carnival's theme and they enjoy the night at the Carnival's huts enclosure (Fóra Forat Walk). 7th day (Thursday): everyone wears pajamas and enjoys the night at the Carnival's huts enclosure (Fóra Forat Walk). 8th day (Friday): people wear costumes (There are people who, instead of buying a normal costume, design, make and sew up their own) and enjoy the night at the Carnival's huts enclosure (Fóra Forat Walk). 9th day (Saturday) and 10th day (Sunday): on Saturday (7 p.m.) and Sunday (6 p.m.), troupes parade in a circuit through the major streets of Calle Pilar, Calle Pablo Ruiz Picasso, Calle San Francisco, Avenida País Valencià, Calle Arcipreste Bono, Plaza 1º de Mayo, Calle Costa y Borrás, Avenida País Valencià, Calle Arcipreste Bono, Calle Socorro, Plaza Jovellar and Calle Pilar. 11th day (Monday): Carnival ends at the Town Hall and then the "Carnestoltes" are burned on the beach or in waste ground. Moreover, in August there's the Summer Carnival with The Queen's Presentation to show the tourists how Carnival is like in Vinaròs.

Politics

In the 2007 Spanish local elections, the People's Party obtained ten city councillors, the

PSPV-PSOE The Socialist Party of the Valencian Country ( ca-valencia, Partit Socialista del País Valencià; es, Partido Socialista del País Valenciano, PSPV–PSOE) is a social-democratic political party in the Valencian Community, and is a regional bran ...

, seven, the Partit de Vinaròs Independent (PVI), three, and the

Valencian Nationalist Bloc The Valencian Nationalist Bloc ( ca-valencia, Bloc Nacionalista Valencià, Bloc or ''BNV''; ) was a Valencian nationalist party in the Valencian Country, Spain. It was the largest party in the Coalició Compromís until 2021, when it was replaced ...

, one. In the 2011 Spanish local elections, the People's Party obtained an absolute majority with 11 councillors elected. The

obtained 6 city councillors, the

2. The PVI lost two seats, obtaining just one councillor while

Republican Left of the Valencian Country Republican Left of the Valencian Country ( ca, Esquerra Republicana del País Valencià, ERPV) is a Valencian left nationalist and republican party. The original ERPV was founded in 1933, then disbanded in 1935. In 2000 the vacant ERPV name was t ...

obtained 1 city councillor. In the 2015 Spanish local elections, the People's Party lost three city councillors, obtaining 8 seats. The

lost two city councillors, receiving 4. The electors association Each and every one are Vinaròs (TSV) got 5 city councillors and the other political parties obtained the same number of councillors (2 Compromís, 1 Independent Party of Vinaròs and 1 Civic Agreement). The

, Commitment Coalition and Each and every one are Vinaròs (TSV) signed the "Stables Covenant" in order to form a government with absolute majority, that is with 11 city councillors (5 of TSV, 4 of

and 2 of Compromís). In this document, they agreed that the leader of the most-voted list would be the mayor, Mr. Enric Pla Vall, and the other leaders would be the first and second deputy mayors depending on the elected city councillors they had. So the first deputy mayor was Mr. Guillem Alsina Gilabert from the

and the second one was Mr. Domènec Fontanet from Compromís.

People

Louis Joseph, Duke of Vendôme Louis Joseph de Bourbon, Duke of Vendôme, often simply called Vendôme (1 July 165411 June 1712) was a French general and Marshal of France. One of the great generals of his era, he was one of Louis XIV's most successful commanders in the War of ...

(1654 - 1712), marshal in the War of the Spanish Succession fighting on the side of the Bourbons. He died at Vinaròs from indigestion after eating a serving of king prawns. *

Vicent Guilló Barceló Vicent is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include: Surname *Francesc Vicent (1450 – c. 1512), Spanish chess player *Francesc Vicent Garcia (1582–1623), Catalan poet * Josep Vicent (born 1970), Spanish music directo ...

(Vinaròs, 1647 - València, 1698),

painter. * Maria Conesa (Vinaròs, 189x -

México Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, 197x) actress in

as "la gatita blanca". *

Carles Santos Carles Santos (; 1 July 1940 – 4 December 2017) was a Spanish artist who began his career as a pianist and later worked in many other creative disciplines, including musical composition, filmmaking, screenwriting, acting, scenic musical shows ...

Ventura (born 1940), pianist, composer, painter, sculptor and performer. *

Leopoldo Querol Leopoldo Querol (November 15, 1899August 26, 1985) was a Spanish classical pianist. Querol was born in Vinaròs, Castellón in 1899. He was a graduate of the Valencia Conservatory. In 1936 he was the soloist at the premiere of Federico Eliz ...

: pianist and professor at the National Conservatory of Music. *

Joan Elies Adell i Pitarch Joan Elies Adell i Pitarch (born 1968) is a Catalan-language poet and essayist. Biography Joan Elies Adell was born in Vinaròs, Baix Maestrat, Castellón Province, Valencian Community. A graduate in audiovisual communication with a doctorate ...

: poet *José María Salaverría: writer.

References

External links

Official Vinaròs website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vinaros Municipalities in the Province of Castellón Baix Maestrat