Almagro lies in the county
of Campo de Calatrava near Ciudad Real. The history
of this town in La Mancha is closely linked to the
history of the theatre, as you can appreciate in
the Open Air Theatre, the National Theatre Museum
and the International Festival held every year.
The Open Air Theatre, declared a National
Monument, dates from the 16th century and is a classical
site where theatrical works were performed during
the Spanish Golden Age. Its galleries, stage and
dressing rooms can be visited and, in addition,
every year they house the International Classical
Theatre Festival. The Hospital of San Juan, the
Municipal Theatre, Los Fúcares courtyard
and the Dominican Cloister are added to the street
stages which, for about a month, transport Almagro
back to the time of Lope de Vega, Tirso de Molina
or Calderón de la Barca.
Almagro, as in almost all Castilian towns, has its
centre in the Plaza Mayor. This is a rectangular
building, with stone porches and wooden balconies
running round it. Here are the most symbolic buildings
in Almagro, like the Open Air Theatre, the National
Theatre Museum and the Town Hall.
A typical large La Mancha building houses the National
Theatre Museum, which has interesting collections
dedicated to scenery, 18th century theatrical costume
and model theatres and stages, as well as a complete
pictorial and musical archive. For its part, the
Town Hall has a Roman memorial tablet from Granátula
de Calatrava.
A tour round the Aristocratic District takes us
back to the town's most splendid centuries. Here
we can admire the emblazoned houses El Mayorazgo
de los Molina, Los Rosales, La Casa del Prior or
that of the Casa del Capellán de las Bernardas.
As examples of La Mancha palatial architecture there
are the palaces of Maestri, the Marquises of Torremejía
or the Palace of the Counts of Valparaíso.
The grain and mercury store of Los Fúcares
is also called a palace because of the quality of
its construction.
Almagro also offers us the chance to look at important
religious buildings like the churches of San Bartolomé
(Jesuit), San Agustín (declared of cultural
interest), or Madre de Dios. The convents of La
Encarnación and La Asunción de Calatrava
(historic-artistic monument) tell us of the importance
of the ecclesiastical class in this town. The former
Convent of San Francisco is nowadays Almagro's Parador
de Turismo. Stone, brick, wood and lattices are
the main elements for courtyards and rooms where
the history of La Mancha comes alive. The cuisine
of Ciudad Real offers us the chance to taste "migas"
(made with breadcrumbs), "tisnao" (cod
stew), and "pisto" (vegetable stew). And
to accompany La Mancha lamb, aubergines from Almagro
and wines from La Mancha or Valdepeñas.
Campo de Calatrava also offers us castles, palaces
and places of great historical-artistic importance,
like El Viso del Marqués, Almuradiel or Ballesteros
de Calatrava. For its part, in the county of Campo
de Montiel, you will discover the medieval remains
of Motile and places like Villanueva de los Infants
and Villamanrique.
From Almagro you can go to the countryside of lakes
and islands of the National Park of Las Tablas de
Daimiel or the Nature Reserve of Lagunas de Ruidera,
an important wetland in Castilla-La Mancha.
The spas at Fuencaliente and Santa Cruz make their
excellent facilities available for the enjoyment
of travelers.
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