Coria, Cáceres

Coria () is a municipality of Spain belonging to the province of Cáceres, Extremadura. In addition to the town of the same name, the municipality also comprises the settlements of Puebla de Argeme and Rincón del Obispo. With a population of has 12,531 inhabitants, Coria is the fourth most-populated municipality in the province.

It is located on the Alagón river bank.

Coria preserves several monuments and holds an annual national tourist interest festival in honor of San Juan.

History

Founded before the Romans occupied the Iberian Peninsula, and called Caura, the Romans gave it its present name in Latin, Caurium, and later the city was granted Roman citizenship. Later under the Visigoths, the Diocese of Coria was created. The centuries in which Coria was the only capital of the diocese were of great prosperity for the city.

Ordoño I of Asturias raided Coria and its surroundings circa 859−860, returning to the north with a loot that included the local Christian Mozarab population.

During the time that Muslim Coria was a borderland city, it had probably an average demographic importance, offset by a larger geostrategic notability, located in between the Tagus and the Sistema Central. Arabic sources hint towards a larger importance of agrarian activities rather than livestock. Christian sources suggest the existence of a scattered mode of population with the probable proliferation of '' alquerías'' around the medina.

Coria was conquered by Christians in 1077, and held briefly. It was conquered by the Almoravids just after 1109 and unsuccessfully besieged in 1138. A successful Christian conquest followed after a two-month siege in 1142, after which the diocese was restored. In 1174, the place was taken over by the troops of Almohad general Abu Hafs, returning to Christian rule after 1184. While it is understood the place should have already enjoyed its own ''fuero'' by the early 13th-century, the first evidence about the existence of a local fuero (presumably modelled after the second ''fuero'' of Ciudad Rodrigo) traces back to 1227.

Coria became the capital of a lordship to which some towns are still named after, such as Guijo de Coria or Casillas de Coria.

During the 1640−1668 War against Portugal, the land of Coria suffered greatly; although the city was not taken by the Portuguese, the countryside was reiterately raided, causing the impoverishment of the region.

Climate

Coria has a hot summer mediterranean climate (''Csa'' in Köppen climate classification), with mild wet winters and very hot, dry summers. During the summer temperatures often exceed and can reach over during heat waves. During winter, temperatures below are rare, but can occur during the coldest nights of the year. Precipitation is concentrated in the autumn and winter months.

Sights

*Roman walls (3rd-4th centuries AD)
* Cathedral of ''Santa María de la Asunción'', in transitional Gothic style
*Bishop's palace (1628)
*Castle of Coria (1472–1478)
*Baroque Hermitage of ''Nuestra Señora de Argeme'' (17th century)
*Royal Prisons (1686)
*Old Bridge (''Puente Viejo''), dating to the 15th-16th centuries
*Convent of the ''Madre de Dios'', founded in the 13th century. The current structure dates to the 14th-16th centuries
*Church of Santiago, in Baroque style (16th-18th centuries)
*Palaces of the Dukes of Alba (15th-16th centuries)

See also

* Roman Catholic Diocese of Coria-Cáceres
*List of municipalities in Cáceres

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coria, Caceres
Municipalities in the Province of Cáceres