Getafe

Getafe is a municipality and a city in Spain belonging to the Community of Madrid. Located 13 km south of Madrid's city centre, the city sits within a flat area of central Iberia's Meseta Central in the Manzanares River basin.

A pivotal historical turning point arrived in 1326, when villagers from distinct settlements united into a single town along the royal road linking Madrid with Toledo. This thoroughfare was called Xatafi, derived from the Arab word for something long. That administrative unification transformed scattered medieval hamlets into a unified community that experienced demographic and economic growth from the mid-15th century onward.

Trade with Madrid intensified as the local population reached around one thousand by the end of the 15th century. Over subsequent eras, the territory transitioned from a small agricultural town into a large industrial city, eventually hosting an Airbus factory and expanding through new neighborhoods developed toward the end of the 20th century. Within this landscape, where residents work or study locally including at the main campus of the Charles III University of Madrid, commerce and daily life reflect the long-standing heritage of central Iberia.

Getafe is a municipality and city located in Spain within the Community of Madrid, sitting 13 km south of the capital's city centre. As of 2025, the population reaches 193,238 residents, making it the fifth most populated municipality in the region.

The historical trajectory of Getafe is divided into three clearly defined eras. The first period spanned from Prehistory until 1326, during which distinct smaller villages existed across the area, including Alarnes, Acedinos, La Aldehuela, Ayúden, Covanuebles, Perales del Río, and Torre de Iván Crispín, rather than a unified municipality. Human presence in the territory stretches back to the Lower Paleolithic period before 100,000 BCE, evidenced by stone tools, pots, and bracelets excavated from the banks of the Manzanares River, followed by a Roman villa at La Torrecilla during late antiquity and the 1085 conquest of the area by Alfonso VI from Muslim control. The turning point occurred in 1326 when villagers united into a single town along the royal road linking Madrid and Toledo, adopting the name Xatafi from the Arab word for something long.

The second era extended from the 14th century through the 20th century, marking the slow establishment and development of the town as a hamlet attached to Madrid's sexmo of Villaverde. By the end of the 15th century, the population grew to around one thousand, driven by trade with Madrid despite setbacks like the 1492 famine and disease that prompted the construction of the Hospitalillo de San José. Major milestones included architect Alonso de Covarrubias beginning the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de La Magdalena in 1549, the 1610 construction of a hermitage on the Cerro de los Ángeles hill—traditionally considered the geographical center of the Iberian Peninsula—and the 1851 inauguration of the train line connecting Madrid to Aranjuez.

The third era began in the 20th century, transforming Getafe from an agricultural community into a large industrial city. Electric street lights arrived in December 1897, and the permanent establishment of the Getafe Air Force Base occurred in 1911 alongside the School of Civil Aviation. Industrialisation accelerated when Construcciones Aeronáuticas S.A. built its first factory in 1924, coinciding with the first flight of Juan de la Cierva's autogyro from the base. Subsequent decades brought heavy manufacturing facilities like John Deere in 1956 and Siemens AG in 1957, triggering rapid population growth and the development of new neighborhoods such as San Isidro, El Bercial, Juan de la Cierva, Las Margaritas, and Sector III. Today, the city features an Airbus factory and houses the main campus of the Charles III University of Madrid.