Azul, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina

🇦🇷 Azul is the head city of the Azul Partido, located at the centre of the Buenos Aires Province in Argentina, 300 km south of Buenos Aires.

Its principal, goods-producing economic activities are agriculture and the raising of cattle for meat and leather exports. Home to a dynamic services sector, over 2,000 commercial businesses are registered in the city.

The town was founded on December 16, 1832, following Governor Juan Manuel de Rosas' orders for the construction of a fort, San Serapio Mártir del Arroyo Azul, to guard against indigenous raids. Subsequent land grants led to the development of a stable community, and in 1895, Azul was formally declared a town by provincial authorities. The local cathedral, Nuestra Señora del Rosario, was consecrated in 1906.

The town's cemetery portal and main slaughterhouse were both designed by architect Francisco Salamone, and contain elements of Art Deco style. Built in the late 1930s, these buildings were some of the first examples of modern architecture in rural Argentina. The town was the scene of an attack on outlying Army barracks by far-left ERP militants on January 19, 1974, the most violent assault of its kind in the country up to that point.

Azul is home to the schools of Agronomy and Law of the National University of Central Buenos Aires. The Teatro Español, founded in the city in 1897, is among the most important of the central pampas area, and in 1992, hosted the Bolshoi Ballet.

The Miguel de Cervantes Festival is held there every spring since 2007, and Casa Ronco, an antiquarian library and museum, maintains the country's best collections relating to the noted Spanish writer. Casa Ronco is named after the collector Bartolomé Ronco. Azul was declared Argentina's "City of Cervantes" by UNESCO in 2007.

Economy Azul has three quarters of its land used for animal husbandry and the other remaining quarter (the southern area) is especially agricultural. In the period between 1997 and 2002, the area dedicated to the cultivation of grain, especially soybeans and wheat. The cultivated area was increased in the first instance by 14% distributed by 25% for cereals, 47% for oilseeds and -5% for other crops such as fodder according to intercensal data. Cereals and oilseeds are grown, taking advantage of the soil conducive to it. 49% of producers are capitalized non-family, 13% are capitalized family. The first strip of producers is located in the best fields and they are the ones that move agriculture in the area. In addition, cattle are raised, wool, milk and honey are produced.

There are more than 2,000 businesses registered, the manufacturing industry is in development, it has agricultural, metalworking, food, chemical and construction industries.