Madrid

Madrid
capital city and municipality
From upper left: Gran Vía, Plaza Mayor, business districts of AZCA and CTBA, Puerta de Alcalá and the Royal Palace, Almudena Cathedral
Flag Coat of arms
Motto(s):  "Fui sobre agua edificada, mis muros de fuego son. Esta es mi insignia y blasón" ("On water I was built, my walls are made of fire. This is my ensign and escutcheon")
Madrid Location within Spain Show map of Spain Madrid Location within Europe Show map of Europe
Coordinates: 40°25′N 3°43′W / 40.417°N 3.717°W / 40.417; -3.717
Country	Spain
Autonomous community	Community of Madrid
Founded	9th century[1]
Government
• Type	ayuntamiento
• Body	Ayuntamiento de Madrid
• Mayor	José Luis Martínez-Almeida (PP)
Area
• capital city and municipality	604.31 km2 (233.33 sq mi)
Elevation	820 m (2,690 ft)
Population  (2018)[4]
• capital city and municipality	3,223,334
• Rank	1st (2nd in EU)
• Density	5,300/km2 (14,000/sq mi)
• Urban	6,345,000 (2019)[3]
• Metro	6,791,667 (2018)[2]
Demonym(s)	Madrilenian, Madrilene madrileño, -ña; matritense gato, -a
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	28001–28080
Area code	+34 (ES) + 91 (M)
HDI (2018)	0.928[5] – very high
Website	madrid.es

Madrid (pronounced: “mah-drid or /məˈdrɪd/) is the capital and largest city of Spain. Madrid is in the middle of Spain, in the Community of Madrid. The Community is a large area that includes the city as well as small towns and villages outside the city. 7 million people live in the Community. More than 3 million live in the city itself. It is the largest city of Spain and, at 655 m (2,100 ft) above sea level, the second highest capital in Europe (after the Andorran capital Andorra la Vella). It is the second largest city in the European Union. As it is the capital city, Madrid is where the monarch lives and also where the government meets. Madrid is the financial centre of Spain. Many large businesses have their main offices there. It has four important footballs teams, Real Madrid, Atlético Madrid, Getafe, and Rayo Vallecano. People who live in Madrid are called madrileños.

Madrid was ruled by the Romans from the 2nd century. After AD 711 it was occupied by the Moors. In 1083 Spain was ruled again by Spaniards. Catholic kings ruled the country. By the mid-16th century it had become the capital of a very large empire. Spain was ruled by monarchs from the House of Habsburg, then the House of Bourbon. After the Spanish Civil War it was ruled by a dictator until the mid-1970s when it became a democracy.

Although it is a modern city, a lot of its history can be seen and felt as one walks along the streets and in the large squares of the city. There are beautiful parks, famous buildings, art galleries and concert halls.

1. ↑ "History of Madrid". Madrid Traveller. Archived from the original on 29 August 2014. Retrieved 27 August 2014.
2. ↑ "Population on 1 January by age groups and sex - functional urban areas". Eurostat. Archived from the original on 2015-09-03. Retrieved 2021-01-27.
3. ↑ "Demographia World Urban Areas" (PDF). Demographia. 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2020-02-07. Retrieved 2013-10-17.
4. ↑ Municipal Register of Spain 2018. National Statistics Institute.
5. ↑ "Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab". hdi.globaldatalab.org. Archived from the original on 2018-09-23. Retrieved 2021-01-27.