Madrid

is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.3 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.5 million.

Although the site of modern-day Madrid has been occupied since prehistoric times,[31][32][33] and there are archaeological remains of Carpetani settlement,[31] Roman villas,[34] a Visigoth basilica near the church of Santa María de la Almudena[35][36] and three Visigoth necropoleis near Casa de Campo, Tetúan and Vicálvaro,[37] the first historical document about the existence of an established settlement in Madrid dates from the Muslim age. At the second half of the 9th century,[38] Emir Muhammad I of Córdoba built a fortress on a headland near the river Manzanares,[39] as one of the many fortresses he ordered to be built on the border between Al-Andalus and the kingdoms of León and Castile, with the objective of protecting Toledo from the Christian invasions and also as a starting point for Muslim offensives. After the disintegration of the Caliphate of Córdoba, Madrid was integrated in the Taifa of Toledo.