Carrión de los Condes .

CARRIÓN DE LOS CONDES

It is well known the historical significance of Carrion de los Condes: politically, religious, cultural and socio-economic meeting of medieval Spain and also forced stage of the Camino de Santiago.

With title of city, its old populates high medieval, back in the eleventh century, was called Santa Maria, and has been identified with the old Lacóbriga, old touted city in Roman and involved itineraries in the praetorian wars of the first century BC They were found several traces of that era and Roman villas and mansions under-imperial (Centuries III-IV).

Near the town depopulated several places as San Martin del Rio, Villaomet and the monastery of Santa Maria de Benevívere, founded in the mid-twelfth century, now only a pitiful ruins, which after being sold off are; its stones were used in the nineteenth century buildings.

Carrion was repopulated in the tenth century, and for several centuries the leonine kingdom itself, hence the “City of Counts” not the reproach of Corpes of the Cid’s daughters, told by the legendary poem of the Cid.

It belonged Carrion, like Saldana, the saga of the Beni Gómez, including García Gómez who opposed Almanzor. Gomez Diaz and his wife Teresa made in the eleventh century several works, including those of the magnificent monastery of San Zoilo, of the Order of Cluny, forward in time be a great influential throughout the Tierra de Campos is realized, conserving its power until the fifteenth century and reach the exclaustración in the nineteenth.

Worthy is to admire its Renaissance cloister, made between 1537 and 1604 under the direction of Juan de Badajoz, highlighting decorators Miguel de Espinosa, Antonio Morante, etc., adorning themselves with multitude of statues representing prophets and patriarchs of the Old Testament and the ships Eastern and Southern genealogy of Christ.

The church of Santiago, artistic historical monument since 1931, was rebuilt in 1849, after several disasters such as a fire, saving the west facade and frieze with wonderful Apostolate, Pantocrator and Tetramorph. It is a set dated in the last third of the twelfth century and capital of Romanesque art work.

The church of Santa Maria, also artistic historical monument since 1991, construction began at the beginning of the twelfth century, but his header was reformed in 1685 by Felipe Berrojo. He had three ships but is only the side of the Epistle. The cover is under a portico, semicircular arch and four archivolts, the first with 37 statuettes representing trades. Stands inside a magnificent Crucifix of the fifteenth century, the rococo altarpiece of the Gospel nave, a picture of the Virgin of vallisoletano painter Valentin Diaz, a Virgin and Child delsiglo XIII and a painting of the miracle of Carrion with the bulls that escaped Moorish maidens.

Excels in the town of Carrion tower of the church of San Andrés, the work of the sixteenth century, which highlights the altarpiece of the Adoration of the Magi. In the district of Castillería the Church of Our Lady of Bethlehem rises occupying the site of the old castle, controlling the jaunty Mayor Bridge over the river Carrión, keeping church Gothic sculpture of the patron saint and XVI century altarpiece.

Carrion also highlight the church of San Julian, the monastery of Santa Clara with good Altarpiece, the tomb of Candela Castaneda (XVI century), a crucified Christ and a Pieta, attributed both to Gregorio Fernández. In addition: the shrine of the Virgin of Mercy, de la Cruz and San Juan de Baskets.

Carrion ordered the most important Jewish quarter of Palencia (mosque) in which excelled in the fourteenth century the famous rabbi Don Sem Tob, author of “Moral Proverbs”.

Among other prominent historical figures have been Carrión: the Marquis de Santillana; the Viceroy of New Spain, Luis de Velasco; the mystic nun Frances Xavier del Valle, the great historian Ramon Carande, economist Enrique Fuentes Quintana and many others.