 Capital of Spain: Madrid  Population: 46.7 million  Languages: Spanish (official), Basque, Catalan, Galician  Religion: Roman Catholic  Government: parliamentary monarchy  Currency: euro

 King of Spain: Felipe VI  Reign: June 19, 2014 – present  Wife: Queen Letizia  Heir Apparent: Leonor, Princess of Asturias  Age: 46  wiki/Felipe_VI wiki/Felipe_VI

 Juan Carlos I of Spain is the former king who abdicated the throne on June 19, 2014  His son, Felipe, became king upon his abdication  He ruled Spain from 1975 – 2014  Wife is Queen Sophia of Greece and Denmark

 Prime Minister of Spain: Mariano Rajoy  In office: 2011-present  Political Views: bull- fighting supporter

 Spain, located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula which it shares with Portugal  surrounded on three sides by the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean  on the fourth side, it borders France; the Pyrenees Mountains separate the two countries

 Spain is separated by Africa on its southern side by only 8 miles at the Strait of Gibraltar  on the southern coast, people enjoy a subtropical climate; the coldest temperature is about 57 degrees  does not rain often in all of Spain, except in the northern mountains

 1469—the marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella unites the kingdoms of Aragon and Castille  1492—Spain is created after Grenada (a city in southern Spain which was ruled by Arabic people) falls to Ferdinand and Isabella  1492—Queen Isabella finances Christopher Columbus’s first voyage to the Americas  —Spain explores and colonizes throughout the Americas

 Spain ruled the majority of the world after colonizing most of the Americas  1588—the British defeat the Spanish Armada, beginning the decline of Spain’s hold on large parts of the world  1826—by 1826, all of the Spanish colonies in the Americas have won their independence from Spain

 1898—the Spanish-American War marks the end of the Spanish Empire; the United States wins Puerto Rico from Spain during this war  —civil war breaks out in Spain; Francisco Franco becomes dictator of Spain; no king  1947—Franco declares Spain a monarchy (which means there is a king or queen), but he continues to rule as dictator

 1955—the United Nations admits Spain as a member  1975—Franco dies; Juan Carlos I de Borbón becomes king  1978—a constitution is drafted  2004—José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero becomes Prime Minister; Madrid suffers a terrorist attack on March 11…  2011—Mariano Rajoy becomes Prime Minister  2014—Juan Carlos I abdicates the throne, and his son, Felipe, becomes Felipe VI of Spain

 coordinated bombings on commuter trains in Madrid  191 dead  2,050 injured  a Moroccan national carried out the attacks; Jamal Zougam

 Antonio Banderas  the voice of Puss-in- Boots from the Shrek movies  Zorro in The Mask of Zorro  the dad from Spy Kids

 Penelope Cruz  actress in movies such as Sahara, All the Pretty Horses, Gothika, etc.  dated Tom Cruise for a while

 Pablo Picasso  painter and sculptor who created the art genre cubism

 Rafael Nadal  tennis player who is currently ranked number 2 in the world  won gold medal in the 2008 Summer Olympics