Cádiz is on a peninsula jetting into the Atlantic in southwestern Spain. This coastal position made it an important seaport since it was founded as Gadir by the Phoenicians in 1100 BC. The city was sequentially controlled by the Carthaginians, Romans, Visigoths and Moors. Starting in 1500 and extending for 300 years, the city grew wealthy as the primary Spanish trading center with the New World. To protect their riches, Cádiz was encased by a network of formidable walls and forts. Their prosperity continued until occupied by the French in the Napoleonic Wars (1803 – 1815). This led to the Spanish Constitution of 1812 being written in Cádiz. Although overturned, this proclamation became the foundation for Spain’s constitutional monarchy ratified in 1978. This is now the capital city of the Province of Cádiz. Seen in the background from along Avenue Campo del Sur is Cádiz Cathedral.
