Écija

Template:Template other Écija () is a city and municipality of Spain belonging to the province of Seville, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is in the countryside, 85 km east of the city of Seville. According to the 2008 census, Écija had a total population of 40,100 inhabitants, ranking as the fifth most populous municipality in the province. The river Genil, the main tributary of the river Guadalquivir, runs through the city.

The economy of Écija is based on agriculture (olives, cereals and vegetables), cattle (cows and horses) and textile industry.

The most distinctive feature of the urban landscape of Écija are the city's Baroque bell towers.Template:Sfn

History

Roman Astigi

File:Amazona herida 2016001.jpg

The so-called wounded amazon, a sculpture from the Colonia Firma Astigi found in the Plaza Mayor de Écija on 7 February 2002,Template:Sfn exhibited at the Municipal History Museum of Écija.

Ancient Iberian finds date back to the 8th century BC, and there are several archaeological remains of later Greek and Roman settlements. In Roman times the town was at first known as Astigi. During the Roman civil war Écija stood "firmly" at the side of Julius Caesar in the Battle of Munda. As a reward Caesar ordered the town's fortification and refounded it as a Julian colony, possibly Colonia Iulia Firma Astigitana. Under the reign of Octavian, the later emperor Augustus, the colony was strengthened according to Caesar's construction plans, and its name was finalised as Colonia Iulia Augusta Firma Astigitana. According to Pliny the Elder and Pomponius Mela, who both wrote in the 1st century AD, it was the rival of Cordova and Seville.

Astigi was an important town of Hispania Baetica, as well as the seat of the Astigitanus, one of the four conventi where the chief men met together at fixed times of the year under the eye of the proconsul to oversee the administration of justice. It was also, from an early date, the seat of a diocese. Fulgentius of Cartagena (died before 633) was named to the see by his brother Isidore of Seville. With the Reconquista, the archdiocese of Seville was restored, leading to the overshadowing of nearby Astigi, whose territory was joined to that of the archdiocese in 1144. Astigi thus ceased to be a residential diocese and is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see.

Post-Roman

After the Romans, it was ruled by successively by Suevs and Visigoths.

In 711, Écija was conquered by an Islamic army on its way to Córdoba, meeting strong opposition from the population,Template:Sfn who offered a 6-month-long resistance before capitulating.Template:Sfn Capital of an extensive Kūra, Écija (known as Istiǧǧa during the Muslim era) preserved its condition as a centre of high agricultural productivity,Template:Sfn featuring a cereal-based production (wheat, barley, sorghum).Template:Sfn Due to its productive agricultural systems able to sustain several harvests a year, Écija served as a food provider for Córdoba and Seville.Template:Sfn The city walls were demolished in the early 10th century as punishment for the local support to the rebellion against Umayyad rule led by Umar ibn Hafsun.Template:Sfn New walls, enclosing a smaller area than the Roman era Astigi were built by Almohads, tightening the size of the medina.Template:Sfn

The place was seized by Christians on 3 May 1240.Template:Sfn The proximity to the newly born Nasrid Kingdom of Granada turned Écija into a border town for years to come.Template:Sfn Écija soon became a realengo,Template:Sfn a territory directly dependent on the Crown (of Castile). Most of the mudéjar population was expelled in 1263.Template:Sfn The countryside of Écija greatly suffered from the Marinid razzias in the Guadalquivir Valley initiated in 1275.Template:Sfn The Jewish population of Écija apparently suffered the antisemitic revolt initiated after the assault on the jewry of Seville in June 1391, that spread across Andalusia and much of the Iberian Peninsula.Template:Sfn Écija consolidated its status as border town during the 14th century.Template:Sfn Écija was granted the title of city in 1402.Template:Sfn It was not until 1410, with the conquest of Antequera, that Écija stopped being the head of a borderland territory.Template:Sfn During the 15th century, Écija was the third most important urban centre of the Kingdom of Seville after Seville and Jerez, progressively evening the distance with the latter.Template:Sfn Estimations for the 15th century yield a population of about 18,000.Template:Sfn

Modern era

File:Braun Ecija HAAB.jpg

View of Écija circa 1567 by Joris Hoefnagel, published in the Civitates orbis terrarum.Template:Sfn

During the transition from the late middle ages to the early modern period, Écija remained integrated, within the Crown of Castile, in the Kingdom of Seville.Template:Sfn A significant community of "new christians" of Portuguese origin settled in Écija in the Early Modern period, acquiring a notable influence in the city.Template:Sfn Olive oil production grew at the expense of the relative dominance of the traditional cereal crops starting by the 17th century.Template:Sfn

Strategically located in between Seville and Córdoba, Écija remained one of the most important Andalusian cities, economically thriving in the 17th and 18th centuries.Template:Sfn It also stood out for its wool trade,Template:Sfn with the lavaderos in control of Flemish merchants.Template:Sfn Écija featured a relatively multicultural society, allowing for Peninsular and European denizens, and even from the Americas, to share a common space of interchange.Template:Sfn

The effects of the 1755 earthquake forced a deep urban renewal in Écija.Template:Sfn The city had an urban population of 29,343 circa 1786–1787.Template:Sfn

Although Astigi was one of the most complete Roman cities to have been discovered, the city council decided in 1998 to bulldoze Écija's Roman ruins, including "a well-preserved Roman forum, bath house, gymnasium and temple as well as dozens of private homes and hundreds of mosaics and statues" and replace them with a 299-car parking lot.

Geography

Location

File:Ecija 2.jpg

Aerial view of Écija (March 2021)

The urban nucleus of Écija lies on the left bank of the Genil, over the river's fluvial terraces, built in the Roman era on a location apt for the control of the river and its meadows.

Climate

Écija has a hot summer mediterranean climate, with mild wet winters and very hot, dry summers. Écija is one of the cities considered to be "the frying pan" of Spain, due to its location on the guadalquivir valley. Precipitation is relatively low compared to the other regions on the valley. However, Écija suffered several floods in December 2010.

Population

Development of the Écija population since 1900

<timeline> Colors= id:a value:gray(0.9) id:b value:gray(0.7) id:c value:rgb(1,1,1) id:d value:rgb(0.6,0.7,1) ImageSize = width:650 height:300 PlotArea = left:50 bottom:30 top:30 right:30 DateFormat = x.y Period = from:0 till:55000 TimeAxis = orientation:vertical AlignBars = justify ScaleMajor = gridcolor:b increment:5000 start:0 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:a increment:2500 start:0 BackgroundColors = canvas:c BarData= bar:1900 text:1900 bar:1910 text:1910 bar:1920 text:1920 bar:1930 text:1930 bar:1940 text:1940 bar:1950 text:1950 bar:1960 text:1960 bar:1970 text:1970 bar:1981 text:1981 bar:1991 text:1991 bar:2000 text:2000 bar:2010 text:2010 PlotData= color:d width:20 align:left bar:1900 from:0 till: 24372 bar:1910 from:0 till: 24542 bar:1920 from:0 till: 29934 bar:1930 from:0 till: 29884 bar:1940 from:0 till: 34944 bar:1950 from:0 till: 41679 bar:1960 from:0 till: 49762 bar:1970 from:0 till: 36056 bar:1981 from:0 till: 34619 bar:1991 from:0 till: 35727 bar:2000 from:0 till: 37652 bar:2010 from:0 till: 40534 PlotData= bar:1900 at: 24372 fontsize:s text: 24.372 shift:(-10,5) bar:1910 at: 24542 fontsize:s text: 24.542 shift:(-10,5) bar:1920 at: 29934 fontsize:s text: 29.934 shift:(-10,5) bar:1930 at: 29884 fontsize:s text: 29.884 shift:(-10,5) bar:1940 at: 34944 fontsize:s text: 34.944 shift:(-10,5) bar:1950 at: 41679 fontsize:s text: 41.679 shift:(-10,5) bar:1960 at: 49762 fontsize:s text: 49.762 shift:(-10,5) bar:1970 at: 36056 fontsize:s text: 36.056 shift:(-10,5) bar:1981 at: 34619 fontsize:s text: 34.619 shift:(-10,5) bar:1991 at: 35727 fontsize:s text: 35.727 shift:(-10,5) bar:2000 at: 37652 fontsize:s text: 37.652 shift:(-10,5) bar:2010 at: 40534 fontsize:s text: 40.534 shift:(-10,5) </timeline>

Landmarks

• Convento de la Santísima Trinidad y Purísima Concepción
• Real Monasterio de Santa Inés del Valle
• Church of Santa María
• St. James' Church
• Holy Cross Church
• St John the Baptist's Church
• Peñaflor House
• Benamejí Palace
• Vallehermoso House

See also

• List of municipalities in Seville

References

Citations

Bibliography

• Template:Cbignore

External links

• Turismo Écija, in English.
• EcijaWeb, in Spanish.
• Astigi Romana
• Bishops of Astigi: list
• Catholic Hierarchy: Astigi (titular see)