Huelva’s location, as a peninsula at the mouth of the Tinto and Odiel rivers, made it a strategic site for a number of civilizations. However, it was not until the last quarter of the 19th century, when intensive mining began in the north of the province as a result of foreign investment (mainly British), that the city’s population grew exponentially. This was thanks to workers arriving from nearby towns, and also from all over Andalusia, Extremadura, Galicia, Asturias, and even Portugal.