Valdemoro
Valdemoro is a municipal district, located in the Southern zone of the autonomous community of Madrid, Spain. Located 27 kilometers from the capital, Valdemoro is officially part of the comarca of La Sagra, though it is generally also included in the Madrid metropolitan area.
The municipality has experienced strong population growth in the past fifteen years, eventually reaching 74,745 inhabitants. Valdemoro's proximity to the capital has favored the demographic and economic development of the area. Due to the recent population boom, Valdemoro has had to construct new transportation, educational, sanitation, health, and entertainment facilities.
The municipality's recent history is closely linked to that of the Guardia Civil. Valdemoro is home to the Colegio de Guardias Jóvenes Duque de Ahumada, an academy open only to children and orphans of existing guardsmen.
Geography
Valdemoro is a located on the drainage basin of the Tagus River on the Southern slopes of the Sistema Central mountain range. The population of Valdemoro is concentrated in the western parts of the municipal district, "along the road that connects Madrid to Aranjuez".Relief
The region is mostly flat, except in the area of the Espartinas hills in the South and the El Espartal farmland in the East.The highest point of elevation in the municipal district is the Cerro de la Mira at 712 meters. The lowest point of elevation is the La Cañada stream at 543 meters. The average altitude of Valdemoro is 615 meters above sea level. The ground slopes in an Easterly direction, averaging a 3% incline.
Hydrology
The La Cañada stream originates in the municipal district, and then feeds into the Jarama River. The Jarama runs parallel to Valdemoro and never enters its limits.Climate
A part of the Continental Mediterranean climate, Valdemoro's temperatures average between 13 °C and 17 °C annually. Though winters are relatively gentle, the sky remains overcast and the ground frozen from November to April. Summers are hot and dry, averaging 26 °C in July.All precipitation originates over the Atlantic and is heavily influenced by the mountain chains that border the Meseta Central and the anticyclones of the Azores. Rainfall is scarce, making Valdemoro one of the driest regions on the peninsula.
Flora and fauna
Valdemoro does not possess overly abundant populations of flora or fauna, though 794 hectares of the municipal district are part of the Parque Regional del Sureste.Valdemoro is one of the few locations in Europe where the Russian silverberry Elaeagnus angustifolia occurs naturally.
Recent urban growth has significantly diminished the land available for natural forest growth.
The area is also home to 3 species of amphibians, 7 species of reptiles, and 127 varieties of birds. Of these species, 21 are hibernating species and 27 are nomadic.
Human geography
The city of Valdemoro borders the following municipal districts: to the North, Pinto and San Martín de la Vega; to the East, Ciempozuelos; to the South, Seseña and Esquivias; to the West, Torrejón de Velasco.Valdemoro has 12 neighborhoods: Río Nilo, Brezo, Campo Olivar, El Caracol, El Restón I, El Restón II, La Estación, La Villa, Las Vírgenes, Viva Verde, Las Comunidades, and UDE Norte-Oeste.
Origin of the name
According to legend, the indigenous inhabitants' resistance to the Moorish invaders inspired the saying En balde, Moro, te cansas. This saying evolved to become the name of the area—Valdemoro. Taking into consideration the short amount of time it took for the Moors to completely conquer the Iberian Peninsula, it seems more likely that the name comes from Valle de Moro, a name the area received after the Reconquista.History
Origins
artefacts found in the area include arrowheads, knives, stone chips, and sheets of flint and quartzite. During the Bronze Age, certain strategically located areas were populated in a number of temporary settlements. The earliest indications of a continuous human presence in the area known as Valdemoro dates back to the Iron Age on the farmlands of El Espartal in the Eastern parts of the municipal districtWithout a doubt, the most important archeological discovery in the area is the so-called "Ciempozuelo type" of Bell Beaker. Discovered in the extreme southeast of Valdemoro, close to the city of Ciempozuelos, these vases, which date back to c. 1900 BCE, are made of gray or black clay and are decorated with geometric motifs. The remains of Roman villa from the Late Roman period, which operated continuously until the Visigoth invasion, can also be seen in the area.
The farmlands of El Espartal have been declared Bien de Interés Cultural as an Archeological Zone.
Foundation
The discovery of ruins of ancient methods of water transportation confirms Valdemoro's origins as an ancient Moorish settlement. The area was populated before the Moors' arrival, and this indigenous Gothic population resisted the invasion fiercely.After the Reconquista, the bishops of Segovia and Palencia argued about who would control the settlement at Valdemoro. The settlement was eventually annexed into the Segovian communice in 1190 after the intervention of King Alfonso VIII and the mediation of Pope Clement III. Valdemoro soon became one of the most important municipalities in the Sistema Central mountain range, more so than Chinchón, Bayona, Villaconejos, Valdelaguna, Seseña, San Martín de la Vega and Ciempozuelos.
Modern age
In the middle of the 14th century, Adelantado Hernán Pérez de Portocarrero of Castile assimilated Valdemoro into his other holdings. By the end of that century, Valdemoro was assimilated into the ecclesiastical dominion of the Archbishop of Toledo. Soon after, King Henry III of Castile awarded Valdemoro the privileges of the designation of Villa, which facilitate the area's social and economic development.In 1577, King Philip II became so infuriated with the Archbishop of Toledo that he declared Valdemoro realengo. Soon after, Melchor de Herrera, the Marquess of Auñón, assumed control of Valdemoro. During this time, the Convento del Carmen religious community is founded. In 1602, de Herrera's heirs sold the village to Francisco Goméz de Sandoval y Rojas, Duke of Lerma and favourite of King Philip III. Under the Duke's rule, the area undergoes significant social development, including the foundation of the Feria Barroca. In 1605, the Fuente de la Villa, one of the area's most emblematic monuments, is built. In 1616, the Convento de Santa Clara is inaugurated. The most important works of art in the Church of Nuestra Señora de la Asunción are created during the second half of the 17th century.
Due to the efforts of hidalgo José Aguado Correa during the 18th century, Valdemoro emerged from a period of deterioration and poverty. The arrival of the House of Bourbon to Spain brought a wave of industrial revolution, giving Aguado Correa the opportunity to establish a textile factory in Valdemoro. By the end of the 18th century, Pedro López de Lerena, a Minister in the Courts of Kings Charles III and Charles IV, founded a number of public schools in 1792, and funded the redecoration the Church of Nuestra Señora de la Asunción by artists such as Francisco de Goya, Francisco Bayeu, and Ramón Bayeu. López de Lerena also attempts to revitalize Aguado Correa's factory, but fails, as the population retains its Medieval mindset.
Though the area's economy remained primarily agricultural during the 19th century, the gypsum mining industry began to slowly develop. During this time, Valdemoran wines gained some fame throughout La Sagra. These timid attempts at industrialization were interrupted by the Peninsular War. The French army's occupation of Valdemoro resulted in a significant loss of life, art, and contemporary documentation.
In 1822, during the reign of King Ferdinand VII, Valdemoro was officially declared to be a part of the province of Madrid. In 1851, the ferry line connecting Madrid to Aranjuez is rerouted to stop in Valdemoro. Soon after, in 1855, the Colegio de Guardias Jóvenes "Duque de Ahumada" is constructed on the foundations of the old textile factory. The Colegio remained at this location until it was moved out of the municipality in 1972. The grounds now make up the Parque Duque de Ahumada.
20th century and the present
Valdemoro saw a significant loss of life and artistic heritage during the 20th century and especially during the Spanish Civil War. Economic stability wasn't re-established until well into the 1950s.The restoration of the democracy in 1975 heralded a new era for the district, ushering in widespread urban and industrial growth. The construction of new industrial parks and new neighborhoods facilitated Valdemoro's transition from rural municipality to commuter town. This growth continues today, and the population is expected to continue to increase.
Politics and government
The current mayor of Valdemoro is José Carlos Boza Lechuga of the Partido Popular, who was elected in 2011. In the 2011 regional elections, the PP received 45.16% of the vote and 14 town councillors. Other parties in the area include the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party, who received 18.3% of the vote and 5 councillors; the United Left, with 10.31% and 3 councillors; and, with 1 councillor each, the Union, Progress and Democracy with 6.09%, the local Partido Independiente Vecinos de Valdemoro, with 5.46% and the local Proyecto Transparencia Utilidad y Distribución with 5.45%.Demographics
The earliest demographic information available for Valdemoro dates back to 1530, when the official population is recorded to be 2,216 inhabitants. Population remained relatively stable for the next few centuries, oscillating between 2,000 and 4,000 inhabitants depending on living conditions at the time.In the 1970s, Valdemoro's population began to grow rapidly due to the district's budding industrial sector and its proximity to Madrid. The most notable population increase has occurred since the start of the 21st century: in 2001, the population of Valdemoro was 30,986 inhabitants; by 2007, the population had grown to 53,188. According to these statistics, the relative population growth during the 21st century has been 9%, one of the highest rates in the entire Comunidad de Madrid. Between 2006 and 2007, Valdemoro was one of the top five municipal districts with the largest absolute population growth in all of Spain. The only districts with higher growth rates were Palma de Mallorca, Rivas-Vaciamadrid, Murcia and Zaragoza.
In 2006, the population was divided into 24,351 men and 24,166 women. 20.51% of the population was younger than 15 years old. 6.4% of the population was older than 65, a percentage that was significantly smaller than the 14.45% average of the rest of the Comunidad de Madrid. The birth rate was 18.95% and the death rate was 3.63%.
Foreign immigration has increased significantly in recent years, going from 20.61 people per 1000 inhabitants in 1998 to 110.87 people per 1000 inhabitants in 2006. These immigrants are primarily from Latin America and non-EU Europe.
Valdemoro is the 17th-most populous city in the Comunidad de Madrid and the 131st-most populous city in Spain.