Estella or Lizarra (Basque

Basque language

Basque is the ancestral language of the Basque people, who inhabit the Basque Country, a region spanning an area in northeastern Spain and southwestern France. It is spoken by 25.7% of Basques in all territories...

) is a town located in the autonomous community of Navarre

Navarre

Navarre , officially the Chartered Community of Navarre is an autonomous community in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Country, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and Aquitaine in France...

, in northern Spain

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...

. It lies south west of Pamplona

Pamplona

Pamplona is the historial capital city of Navarre, in Spain, and of the former kingdom of Navarre.The city is famous worldwide for the San Fermín festival, from July 6 to 14, in which the running of the bulls is one of the main attractions...

, close to the border with La Rioja and Álava

Álava

Álava is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country, heir of the ancient Lord of Álava. Its capital city is Vitoria-Gasteiz which is also the capital of the autonomous community...

.

The town was founded in 1090 when the place, lying by the fortified settlement of Lizarra, was granted a charter by the Pamplonese king Sancho Ramirez. The town became a landmark in the Way of St. James

Way of St. James

The Way of St. James or St. James' Way is the pilgrimage route to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain, where tradition has it that the remains of the apostle Saint James are buried....

 pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela

Santiago de Compostela

Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, Spain.The city's Cathedral is the destination today, as it has been throughout history, of the important 9th century medieval pilgrimage route, the Way of St. James...

, thriving on the privileged location and the melting pot of Francos called in by Navarrese kings (mainly Occitans from Auvergne and Limousin), Jews and the original Navarrese

Basque people

The Basques as an ethnic group, primarily inhabit an area traditionally known as the Basque Country , a region that is located around the western end of the Pyrenees on the coast of the Bay of Biscay and straddles parts of north-central Spain and south-western France.The Basques are known in the...

 inhabitants. The wealth resulted in a development of Romanesque architecture

Romanesque architecture

Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...

, well represented in the town: Church of San Pedro de la Rúa, Palacio de los Reyes de Navarra

Palacio de los Reyes de Navarra (Estella)

The Palacio de los Reyes de Navarra , also called the Palacio de los Duques de Granada de Ega, is a historical building in Estella, Spain; it is the Romanesque former royal palace of the Kings and Queens of Navarre from the late twelfth century to the mid-fifteenth...

, Church of San Miguel, among others.

The town was a major headquarters of the Carlist party in the Carlist Wars of the mid 19th century, with Tomas Zumalakarregi being appointed Commander in Chief in this Estella-Lizarra.

Between 1927 and 1967, the town held the terminus of the iconic Ferrocarril Vasco-Navarro railway extending up to Bergara

Bergara

Bergara is a town located in the province of Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous community of Basque Country, in the north of Spain.An Enlightened center of education operated by the Real Sociedad Bascongada de Amigos del País , it was the place where Faustino Elhuyar discovered wolfram.During the Carlist...

. The line was fitted with electrified power supply as of 1938, a provision considered a feat at the time.

The town regularly hosts the GP Miguel Indurain

GP Miguel Indurain

The Grand Prix Miguel Indurain is a Spanish one-day road bicycle race. The race was inaugurated in 1951, but was limited to local competition. It was rebranded after the Spanish cyclist in 1998. In 2005, the race was upgraded to a 1.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour. For 2007 and 2008 the race was...

.

External links

• Ayuntamiento de Estella - Lizarra
• Estella.- Medieval History of Navarre
• Estella - Lizarra in the Bernardo Estornés Lasa - Auñamendi Encyclopedia (Euskomedia Fundazioa)
• Estella-Lizarra Info. Official Website of Tourism in Spain

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