What is "valladolid"

Valladolid ( or , ) is a city in Spain and the de facto capital of the autonomous region of Castile and Leon. It has a population of 309,714 people (2013 est.), making it Spain's 13th most populous municipality and northwestern Spain's biggest city. Its metropolitan area ranks 20th in Spain with a population of 414,244 people in 23 municipalities.

The city is situated at the confluence of the Pisuerga and Esgueva rivers, and located within five winegrowing regions: Ribera del Duero, Rueda, Toro, Tierra de León, and Cigales. Valladolid was originally settled in pre- Roman times by the Celtic Vaccaei people, and later the Romans themselves. It remained a small settlement until being re-established by King Alfonso VI of Castile as a Lordship for the Count Pedro Ansúrez in 1072. It grew to prominence in the Middle Ages as the seat of the Court of Castile and being endowed with fairs and different institutions as a collegiate church, University (1241), Royal Court and Chancery and the Royal Mint. The Catholic Monarchs, Isabel I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon, married in Valladolid in 1469 and established it as the capital of the Kingdom of Castile and later of united Spain. Christopher Columbus died in Valladolid in 1506, while authors Francisco de Quevedo and Miguel de Cervantes lived and worked in the city. The city was briefly the capital of Habsburg Spain under Phillip III between 1601 and 1606, before returning indefinitely to Madrid. The city then declined until the arrival of the railway in the 19th century, and with its industrialisation into the 20th century.

The Old Town is made up of a variety of historic houses, palaces, churches, plazas, avenues and parks, and includes the National Museum of Sculpture, the Museum of Contemporary Art Patio Herreriano or the Oriental Museum, as well as the houses of José Zorrilla and Cervantes which are open as museums. Among the events that are held each year in the city there is Holy Week, Valladolid International Film Week ( Seminci), and the Theatre Festival and street arts (TAC).

Valladolid may refer to:

In Spain:

• Valladolid, an industrial city in the autonomous community of Castile-León.
• Valladolid Province, a province of Castile and León, Spain.
• Real Valladolid, a football club based in Valladolid.

In Ecuador:

• Valladolid Parish

In Honduras:

• Valladolid, Lempira.

In Mexico:

• Valladolid, Yucatán
• Valladolid Municipality, Yucatan
• Morelia, Michoacán, known as Valladolid between 1578 and 1828.

In the Philippines:

• Valladolid, Negros Occidental.

Other:

• Valladolid debate, a 16th-century theological debate concerning the souls of the natives of the so-called New World.
• Marcela Valladolid, celebrity chef

Valladolid is one of the 52 electoral districts used for the Spanish Congress of Deputies - the lower chamber of the Spanish Parliament, the Cortes Generales. It is one of the nine electoral districts which correspond to the provinces of Castile and León. Valladolid is the largest municipality accounting for 275,000 voters - nearly two thirds of the total electorate. Medina del Campo and Laguna de Duero are the next largest municipalities although both have less than 20,000 voters.

Valladolid produced a close result in 2004 and was a key PSOE target seat in the 2008 election however in the end the People's Party (PP) increased their lead over the PSOE.