Five things in the wide open spaces

 It is another day of sweeping landscapes, much given to agriculture, a quick revisit to the canal and, well, five things about Spain.

The Spanish built two dreadnought battleships of the Espana class - being the Alfonso XIII - later the Espana - and Jaime I. The ships were 16,500 tons loaded, had 8 inch and 20 4 inch guns and a crew of 854.  The Espana was in commission from 1913 to 1937 - when it was sunk by a Fascist mine off Santander.  The Jaime I  was launched in 1914.  In June 1937 she was sunk by an accidental internal explosion, was refloated and then, on mature consideration, broken up for scrap.

Real Club Recreativo de Huelva are accounted the oldest football team in Spain. British employees of the Rio Tinto Company begun to have kick abouts and things developed into the formation of the club in December 1889.  The club have not, it is fair to say, a shooting star of the Spanish permanent. They made the Primera in 1978-9 and 2002-3. They had their best run 2006-2009, 8th being their top finish.  Currently they are in the Segunda Federacion - 2b in old money.

According to Guinness and its book of records, Sobrino de Botin is the oldest restaurant in the world, being founded in 1725. Picky people point out that an establishment known as "Pastelería de Botín" was in Madrid. Its owner,  José Puertas Sánchez, alias Botín, who died in 1847. His nephew took over the shop as a tenant, set up his own establishment and in the facade a stone claims the 1725. 

Lluís Borrassà is one Spain’s oldest named artists. Born in Girona [probably] in 1360 [also probably] He set up a workshop in Barcelona and joined the court of John I. He worked in several altarpieces and diverse other things before he died in 1426 [possibly.]

Almansa is twinned with Lymington.   Almansa is in the province of Albacete and is home to about 25,000 people. In 1707 a Battle was fought between the Philippines supporting French and Spanish commanded by the Duke of Berwick and the Portuguese, English and Dutch under the Earl of Galway.   Berwick’s boys won.

So ends another day in the heat of the south.