Alicante

Seaport and administrative capital of Alicante province, southeast Spain, situated on the Mediterranean coast, 123 km/77 mi south of Valencia; population (2001) 284,600. It exports wine, olive oil, and fruit, and has ferry services to the Balearic Islands. There is food-processing and other light industry; products include leather, textiles, and pottery. Almond paste sweetmeats (turrones) are a local speciality.

Believed to occupy the site of the ancient Roman city of Lucentum, Alicante was captured by the Moors in 713, retaken by James I of Aragon in 1265, and besieged by the French in 1709 and 1812.

Alicante

Province of southeast Spain in the southern Valencian Community; area 5,864 sq km/2,264 sq mi; population (1991 est) 1,273,600. Its western coastline is on the Mediterranean Sea. Products include cereals, olives, fruit, and vines, and silkworms are also reared here. The capital is Alicante.