Alcalà de Xivert (; ) is a town and

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

in the

Baix Maestrat Baix Maestrat (; ) is a coastal Comarques of the Valencian Community, ''comarca'' located in the north of the Provinces of Spain, province of Castellón (province), Castellón, Valencian Community, Spain. The capital of the ''comarca'' is Vinarò ...

comarca, province of Castelló,

Valencian Community The Valencian Community is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid wit ...

, Spain.

Geography

The main town is located inland in a flat valley between the two mountain ranges of

Serra d'Irta Serra d'Irta (, ) is an 18.8 km long mountain range in the Baix Maestrat comarca, Valencian Community, Spain. Its highest point is Pico Campanelles (573 m). Location The Serra d'Irta stretches in a northeast-southwest direction south of ...

and Serra de les Talaies. There is no river in the valley; instead, the water emerges in natural ponds known as ''basses''.

History

Its castle occupied a strong position for the control of the routes along the Mediterranean coast. Here stood a Moorish castle (the name of the town derives from Arabic ''al-qalat'' = "the castle") that was captured by

James I of Aragon James I the Conqueror ( Catalan/Valencian: ''Jaume I or Jaume el Conqueridor''; Aragonese: ''Chaime I'' ''o Conqueridor''; ; 2 February 1208 – 27 July 1276) was King of Aragon, Count of Barcelona, and Lord of Montpellier from 1213 to 1 ...

in 1234, who also resettled the place with Christian villagers. On 30 August 1905, scientists came from all over the world to Alcalà de Xivert to watch a

total solar eclipse A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby obscuring the view of the Sun from a small part of Earth, totally or partially. Such an alignment occurs approximately every six months, during the eclipse season i ...

which covered an area from the coast of North Africa to the North-East of Spain. In contemporary times the economy of the town is devoted mainly to tourism, with several beaches and a busy marina at the villages located on the coast,

Alcossebre Alcossebre () is a seaside village in the Valencian Community located on the Costa del Azahar along the eastern Mediterranean coast of Spain in the province of Castelló (province), Castelló. This town falls within the municipal limits of Alcala ...

, Capicorb and Les Fonts.

Villages

*Alcalà de Xivert, 3,971 INE 2008 census *

, 2,151 * Capicorb, 260 * Les Fonts, 1,502

Sites of interest

The landmark of the town is the ''Esglèsia de Sant Joan Baptista'' (Church of Saint John the Baptist), built in 1736–1766, with a large dome, a noteworthy Baroque portal, and a 68-metre-high tower, which is visible from many miles away. The castle of Xivert, was built by the Moors in the 12th century and later conquered by the

Knights Templar The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, mainly known as the Knights Templar, was a Military order (religious society), military order of the Catholic Church, Catholic faith, and one of the most important military ord ...

References

External links

Web de l'Ajuntament d'Alcalà de Xivert

Institut Valencià d'Estadística

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alcala De Xivert Municipalities in the Province of Castellón Baix Maestrat