Segorbe

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General view of Segorbe as seen from its castle.
General view of Segorbe as seen from its castle.

Segorbe is a municipality in the mountainous coastal province of Castelló, autonomous community of Valencia, Spain. The former Palace of the Dukes of Medinaceli now houses the city's mayor. Segorbe's bull-running week (semana de Toros) in September attracts 200,000 visitors each year.

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[edit] History

The wall of Segorbe.
The wall of Segorbe.

In the 8th century Segorbe was occupied by Moors from North Africa and its cathedral became a mosque. In 1172 Pedro Ruiz de Azagra, son of the lord of Estella, captured the Moorish city of Albarracín, where he established a bishop (Martín), who added to the title of Arcabricense that of Segobricense. A Catholic legend credits a deposed Muslim king, converted to Christianity, with granting the town to the bishop of Albarracín (April 22, 1236), but Segorbe was not conquered by the aragonesian king Jaume I until 1245, when its church was rededicated and Jimeno, Bishop of Albarracín, took possession of it. On March 18, 1258, the Segorbe bishopric was reestablished, as a suffragan of Valencia, whose bishop opposed the new arrangement, and the new bishop, Arnau of Peralta, entered the church of Segorbe by force of arms. The controversy being referred to Rome, the bishops of Segorbe had part of their territory restored to them; but the Great Schism of the West intervened, and the status quo continued. In 1571 Francisco Soto Salazar being bishop, the diocese of Albarracín was finally separated from Segorbe. Eminent among the bishops of Segorbe was Juan Bautista Pérez, a scholar who identified forgeries among the ancient chronicles.

The cathedral, rebuilt in 1534 and extended in 1795 is connected by a bridge with the old episcopal palace. Its tower and its cloister are built on a trapezoidal ground-plan.

Segorbe's ancient castle, where Martin of Aragon held his court was demolished beginning in 1785, and its materials used for the construction of the hospital and Casa de Misericordia. Convents of the Dominicans, Franciscans, the Augustinian nuns, and the Charterhouse (Cartuja) of Valdecristo have been converted to secular uses.

[edit] Duchy of Segorbe

Torre de la cárcel.
Torre de la cárcel.

The ducal line, in Valencia kingdom, whose members bear the family name of Aragó, was founded by the king Ferdinand I of Aragon who made his eldest son, Enric I, the first lord of Segorbe, duke of Villena, count of Empúries and count of Alburquerque. His son Enric II was created duke of Segorbe and was also count of Empúries, like his son Alfons I. The son of this last one, Francesc I, inherited from his father the duchy of Segorbe and county of Empúries, and from his mother (Joana of Cardona) the duchy of Cardona. He had no sons and the succession passed through his sister Joana, who was married to Diego Fernández de Córdoba, marquis of Comares. His son Lluis Folc de Cardona-Aragó was count of Prades, but he predeceased his mother in 1596 and the heir was the son (grandson of Joana) Enric III d'Aragó Folc de Cardona Cordoba. His son Lluis I succeeded him and deceased in 1670 and his son and successor Joaquin I also deceased in 1670. The heir was Pere Antoni, brother of Lluis I. After his death in 1690, the succession was claimed by Caterina, sister of Joaquin, married with Juan Francisco de la Cerda, duke of Medinaceli. The Medinaceli dukes received the duchy of Segorbe, the duchy of Cardona and the county of Empúries.

Lord:

Dukes:

To dukes of Medinaceli 1690 (and it passed later to the de Medina y Fernandez de Cordoba).

The present holder of the dukedom is don Ignacio de Medina y Fernández de Córdoba, Duke of Segorbe, who is married with Princess Maria da Gloria of Orleans-Braganza.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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Municipalities of Alto Palancia
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Coordinates: 39°51′N, 0°29′W