Zaragoza is the capital of the Autonomous Community of Aragon and the province of Zaragoza. It is located in the centre of a large valley on the banks of the rivers Ebro, Huerva and Gállego. Its strategic geographical location, around 300km (200mi) from Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Bilbao and Toulouse, makes the city a very important logistical and communications hub. It is the fifth largest city in Spain, in terms of population.

The modern name comes from the Roman place name Caesaraugusta, after Caesar Augustus. The city is also mentioned by the name of “Salduvia” by Pliny the Elder. The city’s economyis augmented greatly by the presence of the Opel car factory, owned by General Motors. Among the main tourist attractions there is the Basilica of Our Lady of the Pilllar (Catedral-Basílica de Nuestra Señora de El Pilar), which is the country’s largest baroque temple, the recently renovated La Seo Cathedral (Catedral del Salvador), which houses the museum of art and history, and the Aljafería Palace, an Arabic building, which was the palace of king Al-Muqtadir in the 11th century and was also used by certain monarchs, like Peter IV and Ferdinand II of Aragon. It was then used as the seat of the Inquisition and now houses the Aragon courts.

Accommodation in Zaragoza’s student residences

All the student residences in the city are assigned to the University of Zaragoza and are generally located within the city centre. It should be understood that these residences are designed primarily for students and not children or adults expecting a high level of luxury. However, with this in mind, the halls do meet a level of comfort that we expect most visitors to be happy with, and we will welcome any feedback where this is not the case.

Getting around Zaragoza

There are excellent motorway links between Zaragoza and places like Barcelona, Madrid, Bilbao and Valencia. There is also a high speed (AVE) train line Madrid-Zaragoza-Lérida, with a journey time of around 90 minutes to get to Madrid. Since 2007 the city’s new train station, Zaragoza-Delicias, also houses the central bus station of Zaragoza. There are plans in place to build the first metro line, however, official approval has still not been established. There is also a tourist boat ride service, which runs along the river between the harbour and the Expo zone.

The first known population of the are dates back to the 7th century BCE, to the remains of a Bronze-Age settlement. The Roman city of Caesaraugusta was a colony founded around the existing settlement in around 14 BCE. In 714 the city became an important muslim centre and was named "Medina al-Baida Saraqusta" (The White Zaragoza), however, with the breaking down of the Caliphate of Cordoba in 1031, the city the capital of growing Taifa de Saraqusta. With the help of Aragon and Castille, Alfonso I (the Battler) was able to conquer the city in 1118, which transformed it into the capital of the Kingdom of Aragon.

The dynastic union of the Crown of Castille and that of Aragon made the city into an important monarchy. The reign of Ferdinand II of Aragon saw the establishment of the city’s university and the foundation of the famous market. The expulsion of Jews in 1492 and of the Moorish in 1609 significantly slowed down the city’s development, but it never stopped being the very important city that it has become. During the War of Independence (1808-1814), Zaragoza resisted Napoleon’s armies. It is said that more than 40,000 people lost their lives, due to the outbreak of typhus inside the city.

The 19th century, saw the signs of the first transformations that were to establish the modern city, such as the construction of the railway station. At the end of the century, the city became a focal point for many immigrants coming from the surrounding countryside, who were attracted by the recent process of industrialisation. During the Franco dictatorship, the General Military Academy was reopened and the Confederación Hidrográfica del Ebro, a body looking after the river’s waters, was established. In the last 3 decades of the 19th century there was an enormous growth of the city, which eventually exceeded the natural barrier formed by the river Ebro. From then until modern times, Zaragoza has been growing steadily and is now the fifth-largest city in the country.