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The primitive settlement was founded by the Roman Empire asAugusta Emerita in the 1st century BCE to allocate discharged soldiers, eventually prospering as one of the largest cities ofHispania and the capital of the province ofLusitania. Its ecclesiastical metropolitan seat was taken away by theArchdiocese of Santiago de Compostela in 1119. Conquered by theKingdom of León in 1230, shortly before the latter's final integration into theCrown of Castile, it was handed over to theOrder of Santiago. On numerous occasions over the course of the middle ages and the Modern Period, it suffered from the effects of warfare due to its location close to the border with Portugal.[2]
The place name ofMérida derives from theLatinEmerita, with a meaning ofretired orveteran. It is part of the name that the city received after its foundation by the emperorAugustus in25 BC,Augusta Emerita,colony in which veteran soldiers or emeritus settled.
Mérida has been populated since prehistoric times, as demonstrated by a prestigioushoard of gold jewellery excavated from a girl's grave in 1870. Consisting of twopenannular bracelets, an armlet, and a chain of six spiral wire rings, the hoard is now preserved at theBritish Museum.[3]
The town was founded in 25 BC under the nameEmerita Augusta (meaning "veterans of Augustus"), by order ofEmperor Augustus, to settle discharged soldiers of theV Alaudae andX Gemina. Established to guard a strategic pass and theGuadiana river bridge, it quickly became one of the most important cities in RomanHispania. It was the capital of theLusitaniaprovince and later, in the 4th century, served as the capital of theDiocese of Hispania.
Jewish historical tradition, as recorded inAbraham ibn Daud'sSefer ha-Qabbala (a 12th-century source) holds that a group of noble Jewish exiles arrived in Mérida following thedestruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. One of these exiles, Baruch, a silk craftsman, is described as the progenitor of the influential Albalia family of medievalCórdoba.[4]
In 409, during theinvasion of Iberia, the city became the capital of the short-livedKingdom of the Alans under KingAttaces. His death in 418 in battle against theVisigoths led to the city's absorption into the neighboringVandal kingdom. In 469, it was taken by the Visigoths and remained an important city in theVisigothic Kingdom.
In the early 13th century, underAlmohad control, Mérida supported the rival leaderIbn Hud. In 1230, it was conquered byAlfonso IX of León and returned to Christian rule. The city then became the seat of the priory of San Marcos de León of theOrder of Santiago. A period of recovery began in the 15th century following the unification of the crowns ofAragon andCastile, aided byAlonso de Cárdenas, Grand Master of the Order.
During theNapoleonic Wars, many of Mérida’s historic monuments were damaged or destroyed. In the aftermath, the city developed as a railway hub and underwent significant industrialization.
Mérida has aMediterranean climate withAtlantic influences (Köppen:Csa;Trewartha:Csak), due to the proximity of the Portuguese coast.[6] The winters are mild, with minimum temperature rarely below 0 °C (32 °F), and summers are hot with maximum temperatures occasionally exceeding 40 °C (104 °F).
Precipitation is normally between 300 and 400 mm (11.8 and 15.7 in) annually. The months with most rainfall are November and December. Summers are dry, and in Mérida, as in the rest of southern Spain, cycles ofdrought are common, ranging in duration from 2 to 5 years.
In autumn the climate is more changeable than in the rest of the year. Storms occur with some frequency, but the weather is often dry.
Both humidity and winds are low. However, there is frequent fog, especially in the central months ofautumn andwinter.
Each year the city holds a week-long event to celebrate the Roman history of the area. The "games"(lvdica) include scheduled events throughout the city during the day and into Mérida's comfortable evenings. They include parades, brightly-costumed attendees, fiercely-armored gladiators, mock battles in the ancient amphitheater, plus some simulation of the daily life in that period. The schedule is roughly the last week of May until the first weekend in June and should be checked in advance by visiting the city's schedule of events page.[11]
ThePuente Romano, a bridge over theGuadiana River that is still used by pedestrians, and the longest of all existingRoman bridges.[12] Annexed is a fortification (theAlcazaba), built by the Muslim emirAbd ar-Rahman II in 835 on the Roman walls and Roman-Visigothic edifices in the area. The court houses Roman mosaics, while underground is a Visigothic cistern.
theAmphitheatre, and theRoman theatre, where a summer festival ofClassical theatre is presented, usually with versions of Greco-Roman classics or modern plays set in ancient times.
Gothic church ofNuestra Señora de la Antigua (15th-16th centuries)
Baroque church ofNuestra Señora del Carmen (18th century)
Several notable buildings were built more recently, including the Escuela de la Administración Pública (Public Administration College), the Consejerías y Asamblea de Junta de Extremadura (councils and parliament of Extremadura), the Agencía de la Vivienda de Extremadura (Housing Agency of Extremadura), the Biblioteca del Estado (State Library), the Palacio de Congresos y Exposiciones (auditorium), the Factoría de Ocio y Creación Joven (cultural and leisure center for youth), the Complejo Cultural Hernán Cortés (cultural centre), the Ciudad Deportiva (sports city), the Universidad de Mérida (Mérida University), the Confederación Hidrografica del Guadiana (Guadiana Hydrographic Confederation designed byRafael Moneo), theLusitania Bridge over the Guadiana River designed bySantiago Calatrava), the Palacio de Justicia (Justice Hall), etc.
AD Mérida is the principal football team of the city, founded in 2013 as a successor toMérida UD, which itself was a successor toCP Mérida. The last of these teams played two seasons in Spain's top division,La Liga, in the late 1990s.
All three clubs played at the city's 14,600-capacityEstadio Romano. On 9 September 2009, it hosted theSpanish national team as they defeated Estonia 3–0 to qualify for the2010 FIFA World Cup, which they went on to win. Mayor of Mérida Ángel Calle said, "We want to use the Estonia match to promote Mérida and Extremadura, we will welcome the players as if they were 21st-century gladiators."[13]
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