Village
Municipality of the comarca of Valle de Alcudia, in the province of Ciudad Real, cited as Acud in 1031 under the taifa of Toledo and under the rule of the Order of Calatrava between 1189 and 1269; it preserves the Casa del Comendador, a building of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries that was the seat of the Greater Commandery, with a doorway of pilasters topped by a triangular pediment, and the chapel of San Blas, on a plateau from which the neighbouring Extremaduran villages can be seen. Juan de Villarreal was from here, who accompanied Francisco Vázquez de Coronado on the expedition of 1540-1542 as far as the plains of Kansas.
Monument
A 16th- and 17th-century building that was the seat of the Encomienda Mayor, built in masonry and brick, with a notable doorway of pilasters crowned by a triangular pediment.
Monument
A 16th-century single-nave building with a polygonal apse and barrel vault, in late Gothic style. It was remodelled in the 19th century and consolidated in 1978. According to the Diccionario de Madoz, and in keeping with the inscriptions visible on the bell tower, the church was built in 1553; its barrel vault with lunettes rests on six transverse arches, and the parish post was filled by competitive examination through the Consejo de las Órdenes Militares.
Monument
The sanctuary of the patron saint, with two building phases: an original structure predating 1575 with Renaissance schemes and later additions of Baroque character.
Monument
A hermitage on a raised plateau from which the neighbouring Extremaduran villages of Baterno, Tamurejo and Garbayuela can be seen. It works as one of the finest viewpoints in the municipal district.
Nature
Mountain ranges that mark the boundary of the municipality and reach around 874 metres in altitude, covered with Mediterranean holm-oak woodland and rockrose scrub. Together with the sierra del Castillejo, they mark the boundary with the neighbouring municipality of Puebla de Don Rodrigo; on this same mountain ridge lies the monte Quejigo, at 847 metres, the highest point in the area.
Nature
The River Agudo, also called the River Siruela, is the main watercourse of the municipal district, although it is seasonal. The Riofrío stream brings permanent flow towards the River Esteras.
Curiosity
A native of Agudo, he accompanied Captain Francisco Vázquez de Coronado on the expedition of 1540-1542 through New Mexico and Arizona as far as the plains of Kansas. He was later mayor of Guadalajara and a knight of the Order of Calatrava.
Curiosity
Juan de Mestanza was born in 1534 in Agudo, in the Valle de Alcudia, and studied law at the Universidad de Sevilla, where he must have met Miguel de Cervantes, who praised him in the Canto de Calíope of La Galatea (1585) and later in the Viaje del Parnaso. He sailed for America in 1555 and went on to serve as prosecutor and judge of the Audiencia de Guatemala and as alcalde mayor of Sonsonate between 1585 and 1589. Of his work, barely a single laudatory sonnet dedicated to Eugenio de Salazar survives.
Curiosity
The town appears cited as Acud in 1031, under the taifa of Toledo, passing afterwards to the kingdoms of Seville and Badajoz before coming under the rule of the Order of Calatrava between 1189 and 1269.
Activity
Summer patron-saint festivities in honour of the Virgen de la Estrella, held from 14 to 18 August in Agudo (Valle de Alcudia, Ciudad Real) and the most important on the local calendar. They are dedicated to the town's patron saint, venerated in the hermitage of the Virgen de la Estrella, built in the 16th century with Renaissance and Baroque elements. This sanctuary also had a historical role: in 1811, during the War of Independence, it was used to administer the oath to the newly created Junta de Subsidios.
Activity
A traditional June fair with religious ceremonies, a market and popular festivities.
Activity
Winter festival of Agudo (Ciudad Real) in honour of San Blas, celebrated on 3 February with a pilgrimage to the saint's hermitage. The hermitage stands on a flat-topped hill, from which extensive views of the surroundings can be seen, including bordering areas of Extremadura.
Food and drink
Beekeeping is a traditional activity in the sierras of the valley, where heather, rockrose, rosemary and the holm oak wood mark out very different harvests according to the flowering. The dark heather honeys and the wildflower ones are the most usual.