CIUDAD REAL

city, capital of Ciudad Real province, in the Castile-La Mancha comunidad autnoma (autonomous community), south-central Spain, on a fertile plain watered by the Guadiana and Jabaln rivers. It was founded in 1255 by Alfonso X the Wise as Villa Real and was given the status of a ciudad (city) by John II in 1420. Late in the 15th century it became the seat of the Inquisition Tribunal, subsequently moved to Toledo, 65 miles (105 km) north. Notable landmarks include remains of the 14th-century walls; the mudejar Gate of Toledo (Puerta de Toledo; built 1328), a national monument; and the 15th-century Gothic Cathedral of Santa Mara del Prado. Ciudad Real is the focus of a road network and an agricultural processing and market centre; lumbering, flour milling, and liquor distilling are carried on. Pop. (1986 est.) 53,233. province, in the Castile-La Mancha comunidad autnoma (autonomous community), south-central Spain, one of five provinces formed from the ancient Kingdom of New Castile. It has an area of 7,625 square miles (19,749 square km). In the east and centre, high plains form part of the flat, dry windmill region known as La Mancha, characterized in Cervantes' novel Don Quixote. The remainder of the province is mountainous, crossed by the Sierra Morena (south) and the Toledo Mountains (northwest). The Guadiana and Guadalquivir river systems drain the region. Cereals, grapes, and olives are cultivated, and wine, especially that of Valdepeas, is the region's main product. Sheep pasturing is carried on in La Mancha. Mercury is mined at Almadn and coal at Puertollano, near which a modern industrial complex has been built. Industrial development, however, apart from that based on agriculture, is slight and is concentrated in the provincial capital of Ciudad Real (q.v.). Other principal towns are Puertollano, Tomelloso, Valdepeas, and Alczar de San Juan. Pop. (1986 est.) 481,320.