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**Santander**
	Santander
Flag	Coat of Arms
Location
	; Location of Santander
	Coordinates :
Administration
Country	Spain
Autonomous Community	Cantabria
Province	Cantabria
Comarca	Santander Bay
Mayor	Íñigo de la Serna (PP)
Geography
Land Area	35 km2
Altitude	0-15 m AMSL
Population
Population	182.926 (2007)
Density	5.226 hab./km2 (2007)
General information
Native name	Santander (Spanish)
Spanish name	Santander
Postal code	39.0XX
Website	http://portal.ayto-santander.es/

The port city of Santander is the capital of the autonomous community of Cantabria situated on the north coast of Spain between Asturias (to the west) and the Basque Country (to the east). Population in 2007 was about 184,000. Just over a third of Cantabrians live in Santander. The city is the home of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Santander.

[edit] History

Santander, circa 1590 - by Joris Hoefnagel.

In the Roman Empire, the town was known as Portus Victoriae Iuliobrigensium. Its present name is derived from St Emeterio (Santemter, Santenter, Santander), a martyr whose head was brought there in the 3rd century, along with that of St Celedonio, according to legend.^[1]

In 1187, King Alfonso VIII made the abbot of San Emeterio lord of the town, and in 1248 Santander participated in the battle for Seville, receiving a coat of arms as reward.

The city owes its existence to the excellent harbour of the Bay of Santander. Santander was an important port for Castile in the later Middle Ages, and also for trade with the New World. It officially became a city in 1755.

Palacio de la Magdalena

Paseo Pereda

Gran Casino de Sardinero

In 1893 the freighter Cabo Machichaco exploded in the harbor, killing 500 people.

In the early 1900's Santander became the favored summer residence of King Alfonso XIII, who built the Palacio de la Magdalena as the residence of the royal family during the holidays. The city gained great popularity from this and from the Victorian enthusiasm for sea bathing and it remains popular with the Spanish for beach holidays today.

[edit] Great Fire of 1941

Santander fell victim to a great fire in 1941. Fanned by a strong south wind, the fire burned for two days. There was only one casualty, a firefighter killed in the line of duty, but thousands of families were left homeless and the city was plunged into chaos.

When it was over, the historic part of Santander was almost completely destroyed. The fire destroyed the greater part of the medieval downtown and gutted the city’s Romanesque cathedral.

[edit] Demography

As of 2004^[update], Santander has a population of 183,800. The number has remained fairly steady since 1981. Spain's low fecundity rate and aging population have combined with rising immigration figures to keep the population growth fairly stagnant. Nevertheless, the Santander conurbation continues to sprawl as young families move away from the high cost of living in the heart of the city.

El Sardinero

Demographic evolution of Santander, Cantabria between 1981 and 2006
1981	1986	1991	1996	2000	2004	2006
180 328	186 145	191 079	185 410	184 264	183 799	183 955

La Magdalena

[edit] Education

University of Cantabria is the largest university in Cantabria.
Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo (UIMP) specializes in teaching foreigners about Spanish language and culture

[edit] Sport

The La Liga club Racing Santander, founded in 1913, is based in the city.

[edit] Tourism

Today Santander remains a popular tourist destination. It is renowned for its mild, (though rainy) climate.

[edit] Gallery

Palacio de la Magdalena	Santander Cathedral	Banco Mercantil	Ayuntamiento
Lighthouse of Cabo Mayor	Edificio de Correos	Plaza de Italia	Monument at José María de Pereda
Ships in Puertochico, in the city of Santander	Monument at the wreckers in Puertochico	El Puente del Diablo in Cueto, Santander	Panoramic of Cabo Menor

[edit] Climate

Weather data for Santander
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Average high °C (°F)	11.6 (53)	13.8 (57)	17.4 (63)	20.2 (68)	23.0 (73)	26.1 (79)	26.6 (80)	25.8 (78)	21.7 (71)	18.0 (64)	15.5 (60)	12.5 (55)
Average low °C (°F)	6.1 (43)	7.2 (45)	9.0 (48)	11.1 (52)	12.7 (55)	15.7 (60)	17.0 (63)	16.6 (62)	14.4 (58)	11.1 (52)	8.9 (48)	6.3 (43)
Precipitation mm (inches)	154.2 (6.07)	127.5 (5.02)	100.8 (3.97)	100.4 (3.95)	72.9 (2.87)	50.7 (2)	42.1 (1.66)	47.5 (1.87)	72.8 (2.87)	94.0 (3.7)	142.2 (5.6)	140.0 (5.51)
Source: Agencia Estatal de Meteorología España 2007

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Santander

Webcams de Santander y Cantabria — Live webcams Santander and Cantabria.
Ayuntamiento de Santander — Official website of the Santander Ayuntamiento (In Spanish).
Santander - Cantabria 102 Municipios
Webcam en Puertochico — Live webcam of Santander's Puertochico district.
Tiempo y webcam de Santander desde El Sardinero — Live webcam and weather station at Sardinero beach
Municipios de Cantabria, incluyendo Santander—All the cities and villages in Cantabria, including Santander: History, Demography and more exhaustive information
Pictures of Santander — More than 100 photos of this city.
Santander, rutas y monumentos — Touristic routes, museums, monuments...

Coordinates: 43°27′40″N 3°48′34″W / 43.4611°N 3.8094°W / 43.4611; -3.8094

[edit] Notes

^ CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Santander

[0] CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Santander

[1]

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