Logbook · 6 places

What to see and do in Campo Real

What to see and do in Campo Real (Cuenca del Henares, Madrid): 6 places across monuments, nature, activities and curiosities, with a photo and a Google Maps location.

1 Villages · 1 Monuments · 1 Curiosities · 1 Historical milestones · 2 Food and drink

How far each place is from the centre of Campo Real

Church of Nuestra Señora del Castillo 150 m

Towns near Campo Real

Spain › Community of Madrid › Cuenca del Henares › Campo Real

What to see and do in Campo Real

Campo Real
Village
Campo Real is a town of about 7,000 inhabitants in the Community of Madrid, 35 km from the capital and at 777 m of altitude, famous for its olives with a quality designation, seasoned with garlic, fennel, oregano and thyme, which account for more than three-quarters of Madrid's production, as well as for its sheep's cheese and olive oil. Inhabited since the Neolithic, according to stone axes found near its urban centre, it was first called Aldea del Campo and, in the Islamic period, Campo de Almoacid, until its definitive conquest in 1118 by the archbishop of Toledo. Philip II gave it its definitive name and the title of town in 1580. Its church of Nuestra Señora del Castillo, a Historic-Artistic Monument since 1981, was originally a convent-hospital of the Order of Saint John.
Church of Nuestra Señora del Castillo
Monument
The church of Nuestra Señora del Castillo crowns a high spot in Campo Real, the former site of an Andalusi castle from which it takes its name. Built by the Order of St John of Jerusalem, it preserves a choir from the 12th and 13th centuries, while the bulk of the temple, with three naves on Tuscan columns and barrel vaults, with Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque features, was built in different phases between the 16th and 17th centuries. Twelve statues of the apostles have been installed around it. It was declared a historic-artistic monument, forerunner of today's Bien de Interés Cultural (Spain's highest level of heritage protection), on 4 November 1981.
Olives of Campo Real
Curiosity
The manzanilla olive dressed with garlic, fennel, oregano and thyme has its own quality mark and accounts for more than 75% of all the table olives produced in the Region of Madrid, with a dressing that is still done by hand.
Philip II names Campo Real
Historical milestone
The king granted the place in 1580 the title of town and fixed its present name, which replaced the old Aldea del Campo and Campo de Almoacid. The municipality had passed through Muslim, Segovian and Toledan hands since the 11th century.
Campo Real olive
Food and drink
A table olive covered by its own Quality Designation, which admits the manzanilla de Campo Real and manzanilla cacereña varieties. It accounts for more than seventy-five per cent of all the table olives produced in the region.
The seasoning of the Campo Real olive
Food and drink
The characteristic flavour comes from a craft dressing based on garlic, fennel, oregano and thyme, to which each maker adds a touch of cumin, bay or marjoram. The formula is passed on from house to house and varies from one producer to another.