Community hub
Recent from talks
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Complutense University of Madrid
The Complutense University of Madrid (Spanish: Universidad Complutense de Madrid, UCM; Latin: Universitas Complutensis Matritensis) is a public research university located in Madrid. Founded in Alcalá in 1293 (before relocating to Madrid in 1836), it is one of the oldest operating universities in the world, and one of Spain's most prestigious institutions of higher learning. It is located on a sprawling campus that occupies the entirety of the Ciudad Universitaria district of Madrid, with annexes in the district of Somosaguas in the neighboring city of Pozuelo de Alarcón. It is named after the ancient Roman settlement of Complutum, now an archeological site in Alcalá de Henares, just east of Madrid.
It enrolls over 86,000 students, making it the eighth largest non-distance European university by enrollment. By Royal Decree of 1857, the Central University was the first and only institution in Spain authorized to grant doctorate degrees throughout the Spanish Empire. In 1909, the Central University became one of the first universities in the world to grant a doctorate degree to a woman. It was renamed as Universidad de Madrid ('University of Madrid') in 1943.
On 20 May 1293, King Sancho IV of Castile granted the Archbishop of Toledo, Gonzalo Pérez Gudiel, a royal charter to found a studium generale (as universities were known at that time), named El Estudio de Escuelas Generales in Alcalá de Henares. One of its alumni, Cardinal Cisneros, made extensive purchases of land and ordered the construction of many buildings, in what became the first university campus ex-novo in history: The Civitas Dei, or city of God, named after the work of Augustine of Hippo. On 13 April 1499, Cardinal Cisneros secured from Pope Alexander VI a papal bull to expand Complutense into a full university. This papal bull conferred official recognition throughout Christendom to all degrees granted by the university. It also renamed the institution Universitas Complutensis, after Complutum, which was the Latin name of Alcalá de Henares, where the university was originally located.
In the 1509–1510 school year, the Complutense University already operated with five major schools: Arts and Philosophy, Theology, Canon Law, Philology and Medicine. During the 16th and 17th centuries, Complutense University became one of the greatest centers of academic excellence in the world. Many of the leading figures in science, arts and politics of that age studied or taught in Complutense's classrooms. Special colleges were created for students of foreign origin, such as Flemish or Irish (at the Irish College of San Jorge at Alcalá de Henares).
In 1785, Complutense became one of the first universities in the world to grant a doctorate to a female student, María Isidra de Guzmán y de la Cerda. In comparison, University of Oxford did not accept female scholars until 1920, and the University of Cambridge did not grant a PhD to a female student until 1926.
In 1824, Francisco Tadeo Calomarde further expanded Complutense by merging it with the University of Sigüenza. By a royal order of 29 October 1836, Queen Regent Maria Christina suppressed the university in Alcalá and ordered its move to Madrid, where it took the name of Literary University and, in 1851, of Central University (Universidad Central).
The Central University awarded Albert Einstein a Doctor of Science degree Honoris Causa on 28 February 1923; this was the first Doctor of Science degree Honoris Causa that Albert Einstein accepted from a European university. In April 1933, Minister for Education and the Arts Fernando de los Ríos, announced that Einstein had agreed to take charge of a professorship in a research institute, which would bear the name Instituto Albert Einstein, under the university's School of Science. However, as the political situation began to deteriorate throughout Europe, Einstein ended up accepting a similar position at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey.
The university greatly expanded during the 19th century, and its accommodations in central Madrid proved to be increasingly inadequate. Besides the greater number of students, after its move from Alcalá the university had been based in a number of preexisting, government-acquired properties – mainly aristocratic mansions and royal châteaux from centuries past, abandoned by their owners for more contemporary lodgings. Though they were not without their charm, the ancient buildings were not ideal as educational settings, and the early 20th century witnessed the students of the Central University attending philosophy lectures and anatomy lessons in elaborate spaces that had served as ballrooms and salons only a few decades prior.
Hub AI
Complutense University of Madrid AI simulator
(@Complutense University of Madrid_simulator)
Complutense University of Madrid
The Complutense University of Madrid (Spanish: Universidad Complutense de Madrid, UCM; Latin: Universitas Complutensis Matritensis) is a public research university located in Madrid. Founded in Alcalá in 1293 (before relocating to Madrid in 1836), it is one of the oldest operating universities in the world, and one of Spain's most prestigious institutions of higher learning. It is located on a sprawling campus that occupies the entirety of the Ciudad Universitaria district of Madrid, with annexes in the district of Somosaguas in the neighboring city of Pozuelo de Alarcón. It is named after the ancient Roman settlement of Complutum, now an archeological site in Alcalá de Henares, just east of Madrid.
It enrolls over 86,000 students, making it the eighth largest non-distance European university by enrollment. By Royal Decree of 1857, the Central University was the first and only institution in Spain authorized to grant doctorate degrees throughout the Spanish Empire. In 1909, the Central University became one of the first universities in the world to grant a doctorate degree to a woman. It was renamed as Universidad de Madrid ('University of Madrid') in 1943.
On 20 May 1293, King Sancho IV of Castile granted the Archbishop of Toledo, Gonzalo Pérez Gudiel, a royal charter to found a studium generale (as universities were known at that time), named El Estudio de Escuelas Generales in Alcalá de Henares. One of its alumni, Cardinal Cisneros, made extensive purchases of land and ordered the construction of many buildings, in what became the first university campus ex-novo in history: The Civitas Dei, or city of God, named after the work of Augustine of Hippo. On 13 April 1499, Cardinal Cisneros secured from Pope Alexander VI a papal bull to expand Complutense into a full university. This papal bull conferred official recognition throughout Christendom to all degrees granted by the university. It also renamed the institution Universitas Complutensis, after Complutum, which was the Latin name of Alcalá de Henares, where the university was originally located.
In the 1509–1510 school year, the Complutense University already operated with five major schools: Arts and Philosophy, Theology, Canon Law, Philology and Medicine. During the 16th and 17th centuries, Complutense University became one of the greatest centers of academic excellence in the world. Many of the leading figures in science, arts and politics of that age studied or taught in Complutense's classrooms. Special colleges were created for students of foreign origin, such as Flemish or Irish (at the Irish College of San Jorge at Alcalá de Henares).
In 1785, Complutense became one of the first universities in the world to grant a doctorate to a female student, María Isidra de Guzmán y de la Cerda. In comparison, University of Oxford did not accept female scholars until 1920, and the University of Cambridge did not grant a PhD to a female student until 1926.
In 1824, Francisco Tadeo Calomarde further expanded Complutense by merging it with the University of Sigüenza. By a royal order of 29 October 1836, Queen Regent Maria Christina suppressed the university in Alcalá and ordered its move to Madrid, where it took the name of Literary University and, in 1851, of Central University (Universidad Central).
The Central University awarded Albert Einstein a Doctor of Science degree Honoris Causa on 28 February 1923; this was the first Doctor of Science degree Honoris Causa that Albert Einstein accepted from a European university. In April 1933, Minister for Education and the Arts Fernando de los Ríos, announced that Einstein had agreed to take charge of a professorship in a research institute, which would bear the name Instituto Albert Einstein, under the university's School of Science. However, as the political situation began to deteriorate throughout Europe, Einstein ended up accepting a similar position at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey.
The university greatly expanded during the 19th century, and its accommodations in central Madrid proved to be increasingly inadequate. Besides the greater number of students, after its move from Alcalá the university had been based in a number of preexisting, government-acquired properties – mainly aristocratic mansions and royal châteaux from centuries past, abandoned by their owners for more contemporary lodgings. Though they were not without their charm, the ancient buildings were not ideal as educational settings, and the early 20th century witnessed the students of the Central University attending philosophy lectures and anatomy lessons in elaborate spaces that had served as ballrooms and salons only a few decades prior.