Castro Urdiales
Encyclopedia
Castro Urdiales is a seaport of northern Spain
, in the autonomous community of Cantabria
, situated on the bay of Biscay
.
Castro Urdiales is a modern town, although its castle and the Gothic-style parish church of Santa María de la Asunción, date from the Middle Ages
. Its chief industries are tourism, fishing, and the preservation of fish, especially sardines and anchovies, in oil. The "Lolin" and "La Castreña" anchovy canning factories serve as a reminder of the town's closeness to this industry and its proximity to the sea.
Tourism has greatly increased in Castro Urdiales in the last thirty years; many people from Bilbao and other parts of the Basque Country and Cantabria as well as Northern Spain in general keep summer homes in the town. Although the number of people registered in the town is around 32,000, the summer population can double or even triple this figure.The town is popular because of its beaches and scenic harbor. The commercial fishing industry is declining and may soon be eradicated completely.
. In AD 74 a Roman
colony was established under the name Flaviobriga, during the reign of emperor Vespasian
. It was most likely established to mine the abundant iron in the area.
In 1163 the town of Castro Urdiales received its municipal charter. Castro Urdiales benefited much from trade with northern Europe and Castile.
It was destroyed by the French in 1813, but was speedily rebuilt and fortified. Its rapid rise in population and prosperity dates from the increased development of iron-mining and railway communication which took place after 1879.
The Church of Santa María de la Asunción is in Gothic
style. Built under the protection of King Alfonso VIII of Castile
in the 13th century (though it was finished in the 15th century), it is a basilica church with three naves. In the interior are the images of the White Virgin and the Reclining Christ, and three Gothic carvings of the Magi
. It was declared a National Monument
in 1931.
The Castle of Santa Ana is located near the port and the church of Santa María de la Asunción. In modern times it housed a lighthouse.
Other sights include:
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, in the autonomous community of Cantabria
Cantabria
Cantabria is a Spanish historical region and autonomous community with Santander as its capital city. It is bordered on the east by the Basque Autonomous Community , on the south by Castile and León , on the west by the Principality of Asturias, and on the north by the Cantabrian Sea.Cantabria...
, situated on the bay of Biscay
Bay of Biscay
The Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Brest south to the Spanish border, and the northern coast of Spain west to Cape Ortegal, and is named in English after the province of Biscay, in the Spanish...
.
Castro Urdiales is a modern town, although its castle and the Gothic-style parish church of Santa María de la Asunción, date from the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. Its chief industries are tourism, fishing, and the preservation of fish, especially sardines and anchovies, in oil. The "Lolin" and "La Castreña" anchovy canning factories serve as a reminder of the town's closeness to this industry and its proximity to the sea.
Tourism has greatly increased in Castro Urdiales in the last thirty years; many people from Bilbao and other parts of the Basque Country and Cantabria as well as Northern Spain in general keep summer homes in the town. Although the number of people registered in the town is around 32,000, the summer population can double or even triple this figure.The town is popular because of its beaches and scenic harbor. The commercial fishing industry is declining and may soon be eradicated completely.
History
Castro Urdiales was originally called Portus Amanus, and was the chief city of the AutrigonesAutrigones
Location of the tribe of the Autrigones.The Autrigones were a pre-Roman people of ancient Spain, described by the Roman historian Paulus Orosius as neighbours of the Gallaeci, and thus had their homeland in the northwest of Hispania.-Location:Their historical territory now lies split between the...
. In AD 74 a Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
colony was established under the name Flaviobriga, during the reign of emperor Vespasian
Vespasian
Vespasian , was Roman Emperor from 69 AD to 79 AD. Vespasian was the founder of the Flavian dynasty, which ruled the Empire for a quarter century. Vespasian was descended from a family of equestrians, who rose into the senatorial rank under the Emperors of the Julio-Claudian dynasty...
. It was most likely established to mine the abundant iron in the area.
In 1163 the town of Castro Urdiales received its municipal charter. Castro Urdiales benefited much from trade with northern Europe and Castile.
It was destroyed by the French in 1813, but was speedily rebuilt and fortified. Its rapid rise in population and prosperity dates from the increased development of iron-mining and railway communication which took place after 1879.
Main sights
The monument complex of Castro Urdiales, also known as Puebla Vieja, has medieval origins and is located near the sea. It was declared a Conjunto histórico in 1978.The Church of Santa María de la Asunción is in Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
style. Built under the protection of King Alfonso VIII of Castile
Alfonso VIII of Castile
Alfonso VIII , called the Noble or el de las Navas, was the King of Castile from 1158 to his death and King of Toledo. He is most remembered for his part in the Reconquista and the downfall of the Almohad Caliphate...
in the 13th century (though it was finished in the 15th century), it is a basilica church with three naves. In the interior are the images of the White Virgin and the Reclining Christ, and three Gothic carvings of the Magi
Biblical Magi
The Magi Greek: μάγοι, magoi), also referred to as the Wise Men, Kings, Astrologers, or Kings from the East, were a group of distinguished foreigners who were said to have visited Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh...
. It was declared a National Monument
National monument
A National monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of national importance such as a war or the country's founding. The term may also refer to a specific monument status, such as a National Heritage Site, which most national monuments are by reason of their cultural...
in 1931.
The Castle of Santa Ana is located near the port and the church of Santa María de la Asunción. In modern times it housed a lighthouse.
Other sights include:
- Palace, castle-observatory and Ocharan gardens, protected since 1985. The castle-observatory, dating back to 1914 and designed by local architect Eladio Laredo, is in neo-Gothic style. The Ocharan Palace, or Toki-Eder, was built in 1901, also by the local architect Eladio Laredo. It is an eclecticEclecticEclectic may refer to:* Eclecticism, a philosophical movement, artistic movement, etc.**Eclecticism in art**Eclecticism in music* Eclectic, Alabama, a village of about 1,000 people in central Alabama...
-style building, with a portico of columns and other elements of Greek taste, and with a multicolored tile frieze designed by Daniel Zuloaga. - Ruins of the medieval tower of the Templars, in Allendelagua, on the mountain side. It belonged to the Knights Templars and is currently in poor condition.
- Cave of El Cuco, west of the town. It houses rock carvings and paintings from the Upper PaleolithicUpper PaleolithicThe Upper Paleolithic is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age as it is understood in Europe, Africa and Asia. Very broadly it dates to between 40,000 and 10,000 years ago, roughly coinciding with the appearance of behavioral modernity and before the advent of...
period, which depict animals such as deers, goats and horses. - Cave of La Lastrilla
- Cave Grande or de los Corrales
- Cave Aurelia
- Castro of la Peña de Sámano
- Remains of Flavióbriga and the medieval village, protected since 1996. The Flavióbriga archaeological site is under the Old town, two meters deep. Remains of a Roman colony can be visited in the Regional Museum of Prehistory and Archaeology of Cantabria.
- Water driving of El Chorrillo, a work of hydraulic engineering from the Roman ageRomanization of HispaniaThe Romanization of Hispania is the process by which the Roman culture was introduced into the Iberian Peninsula during the period of Roman rule over it, or parts of it.- Introduction :...
. - Tower-House of Los Otañes, in Otañes.
- Ruins of the Hospital de la Vera Cruz, in Islares.
- City Hall (16th century)
- Tower-House of Cerdigo, built in Cerdigo between the 17th and 18th centuries.
- Archaeological site of Patera de Otañes, in the village of Otañe.
- Roman mile-stone, opposite the Church of Santa María. Dating to 61 AD, it marked the distance to PisoracaPisoracaPisoraca was a genus of moth in the family Geometridae. It is now considered a synonym of Anisodes.-References:*...
. It has an inscription that reads "Nero Claudius, son of the divine Claudius, Caesar, Augustus, Germanicus, Pontifex maximus, with the tribunician power for eighth time, the empire for ninth and the consulate for fourth. From Pisoraca one hundred and eighty miles". - Iglesia de San Pedro (11th century), in Romanesque style.