It is the largest town of Extremadura. It is frontier city with Portugal. Old capital of the Aftasí kingdom. Take into account an important historical inheritance. It is a city besieged many times by the Portuguese kingdom, which conquered it in 1169.

Badajoz as had a religious importance, the proof is as to 16 convents were open at the same time, in addition to parishes, hermitages, the cathedral and a seminar. Badajoz has the trace of monk like San Juan of the Cross and San Pedro d' Alcántara. And artists as Shine Morals and Zurbarán.

Badajoz as much as with various Museums: Archaeology, Catedralíceo, that of Beautiful Arts and the Contemporary.

Between its monuments it is necessary to underline the Arab Fortress, the Cathedral, and the Wall with the doors of Mérida, the Trinity, the Pillar and monumental Porte of Palmas

The Fortress

It acts of an oval fortification, built by the almohades to defend the population.

The walls are crowned by almenas. Several turns are Albarranas, those more famous are the tower Alpéndiz or the Tower of monitoring, that Horca, of Seven Windows and that of the Virgins. As Albarrana is the tower of Espantaperros, located in the Eastern part of the Fortress, one of the monuments most representative as Badajoz. It is a tower on eight sides of plant and 30 meters height and is perfectly preserved, recalls by its style to the tower of the Gold of Seville, the latter was posterior and used as model with that of Badajoz. Albarrana means that the tower was located in front of the wall and was connected it through an arc and a narrow corridor. With the end of the tower one added a final improvement rose at the time of the Christian time, of style mudéjar which still remains, and in which is to show a marvellous bell until the last century. The tower is not opened with the public.

The Fortress had a large Library; in it one wrote the largest encyclopaedia of all that is Arab in Spain. At that time of the kingdom of Taifa, it underlined the culture of the letters, sciences and arts.

The Cathedral

Is in the Place of Spain, the centre of the city. Since outside that resembles a fortress, but inside it keeps treasures.

Its strengthened style, characterized by the ramparts which crown their walls, that is due to the fact that during this time the wars were sudden continuously, being given Portuguese harassing.

There are three entrance doors. In its interior an invaluable cloister, with Gothic safe deposits, columns of style Portuguese Manuelino, the mausoleum of the Menacho General, paintings, stained glasses, bases of squares "trianeros". In the central court, lemon trees, orange trees, vines, and much of flowers and plants. In the museum of the cathedral, paintings Shine of Morals, the Divine one, ivories Filipinos, alabaster relieves, drink, money, gilded money, images, other paintings, etc.

And the best of the cathedral: its chorus, with head offices of Hieronymite de Valence.

Take into account the invaluable monumental bodies of case baroque, used currently to offer concerts of music baroque.

The altarpiece of the Cathedral is another work baroque style churrigueresco, abundance heights and figures, reloaded with beautiful ornamentations, but very appreciably used, which gives him a special elegance.

But the monument most representative of Badajoz, with the Fortress it is the Door of Palm trees. It is same time as the bridge on Guadiana. It was originally integrated with the walls which surrounded the city.

It is made up of two turns of the crenulations cylindrical, for defence, which flanks a body where with the continuation the arc opens. In the part external an imperial shield of Charles V and in an interior hood devoted to Notre dame of the angels. Its turns were: place of monitoring, housing of troops, prison, customs, etc.

The Bridge that it is also called of the Palm trees, it was built during the same time that the Door of Palm trees, was smoothed by the risings of the Guadiana river more than one once, which coated more than one rebuilding. In another time it had artistic values of defences in the ends. Take into account 30 eyes.

Another famous building with Badajoz is the old Market of Provisioning, built in 1899, a large functional building of which the structure are pilasters and iron columns which support a system of metal clothes hangers, on which one lays out the cover. It takes into account three ships, is centred more from the incorporation of the side ones, which allows higher attics. In the top of the principal frontage appear decorative shields.

Badajoz counts in its cultural history of the characters of great artistic importance like: Luis de Morals, Renaissance painter of style rafaelista and posterior evolution towards the mannerism. In the provincial museum of beautiful arts we have a Piety of their creation.

This museum contains also works of Zurbarán, Alonso Murex and Estrada. And in these rooms of current painters there are works of Grouse Muñoz, Naranjo, Narbón, Quintana, etc. As well as sculptures of Pérez Comendador, Will pull up and Avalos, inter alia. Foreign painters like Caravaggio, Coregio, Conca, etc.

Another character celebrates pacense was Manuel Godoy, so known like the prince of peace, to have saved with the king Louis XVI, and to impose peace in Basle. But engagements also against Portuguese in the War called of oranges, by obtaining the fortress of Olivenza.

Badajoz has celebration of events like the International Folk Festival of Extremadura which takes place annually; in which already took share 50 countries of the five continents. It also takes into account the IFEBA, calm where annually trade fairs take place like: the Portuguese Hispanic fair, Iberia etc.

Badajoz is very well known by its Carnivals, because they are fifth better world. Four days when Badajoz gets dressed with colours, by underlining the contest of murgas, Friday, the large procession of comparsas, Sunday, and the burial of sardine, Tuesday.