It is one of the cities in Spain that changed its name. Three centuries ago, its neighbor Miraflores did so, reportedly at the request of Queen Isabel de Bourbon, who considered that such a graceful municipality could not be called Purquerizas. A change in the spirit of Nobel Prize winner in Literature Vicente Alexandre, who spent long periods there and was an inspiration in his poetic works. Today’s Soto del Real did not, until a few decades ago, have a name that did justice to its magnificent natural area.Not in the opinion of her neighbors, at least. Its place name was Chozas, a name given to it by Segovian shepherds who in the Middle Ages housed their young sheep in huts or cabins. In 1956, the Chosas neighborhood itself requested a name change because it realized that its city deserved a name that was less vulgar and more in keeping with its distinct environment. Soto del Real was chosen with the support of the Archbishop of Madrid and the opposition of the Royal Academy of History, which claimed that… The name was not disappointing as it refers to the modest architecture.
With its illustrious name, located in the foothills of the mountains and in front of the Peñalara massif, Soto del Real has grown largely due to second-home development, becoming one of the most prominent summer resort municipalities in Madrid. That was until 1992 when the Ministry of Justice decided to build its best and most advanced prison centers there.. The town’s opposition was direct, and the mayor mobilized the neighborhood by promoting rallies on the property where the prison would be built. Charges were made by the Civil Guard and arrests were made, including the arrest of the mayor himself, three members of the municipal council and representatives of other neighboring towns who feared that imprisonment would take away the charm of the area and harm its tourism development. The rejection did not prevent the construction of the center, which in fact did not cause the damage that worried them so much.
The fact is that now Soto del Real It is known throughout Spain by tenants that prisons have houses.Those serving sentences are in the so-called Respect Unit, No. 13. There is a long list of figures from the political, financial and business spheres who have spent long periods in their cells. Famous prisoners such as Luis Bárcenas, Rodrigo Rato, Ignacio Gonzalez, Oriol Junqueras, Mario Conde, Gerardo Díaz Ferran, or Ángel María Villar, among others, and more recently Santos Cerdán, Koldo García, and José Luis Albalos.
Unit 13 is not a hotel as some suggest, nor is it a luxury prison, but within the deprivation of liberty it is considered the least bad of the places to serve a sentence. In exchange for accepting a strict code of conduct, adhering to timetables, following cleaning rules, and participating in group activities and in the rehabilitation process itself, prisoners receive certain benefits such as more time outside their cells, better living conditions, and access to activities necessary for their reintegration into society. In that symbolic unity, convict friends of various stripes were made. Pro-independence Junqueras gave lessons in quantum physics and Western history to Rato, who stated that in those circumstances he was able to read, watch television and listen to the radio, as well as practice yoga. Those who left there always spoke well of the treatment of their officials. Like it or not, the truth is that this unity has put Soto del Real on the map of Spanish history. The city changed its name to improve its reputation.