Complutense University of Madrid
Spain · Europe
About
The Complutense University of Madrid (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. 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. The Complutense is one of the most historically relevant universities in Spain and in the world, and arguably the most intimately entwined with the development of the Spanish state. Both the Palace of Moncloa (the prime minister's official residence) and the Spanish Constitutional Court are located directly on the university's campus grounds. The university has trained numerous Spanish prime ministers, EU commissioners, and NATO secretaries-general, as well as members of the Spanish Royal House over the centuries. 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, which established it as the "Docta" (the Learned), making it the ultimate intel
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