City Detail

Pamplona (Spanish: [pamˈplona]; Basque: Iruña [iɾuɲa] or Iruñea [iɾuɲe.a]), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. It is also the third-largest city in the greater Basque cultural region. Lying at near 450 m (1,480 ft) above sea level, the city (and the wider Cuenca de Pamplona) is located on the flood plain of the Arga river, a second-order tributary of the Ebro. Precipitation-wise, it is located in a transitional location between the rainy Atlantic northern façade of the Iberian Peninsula and its drier inland. Early population in the settlement traces back to the late Bronze to early Iron Age, even if the traditional inception date refers to the foundation of Pompaelo by Pompey during the Sertorian Wars circa 75 BCE. During Visigothic rule Pamplona became an episcopal see, serving as a staging ground for the Christianization of the area.