Belalcázar (Cordoba)
| Belalcázar municipality | |||
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| coat of arms | Map of Spain | ||
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| Basic data | |||
| Autonomous Community : | Andalusia | ||
| Province : | Cordoba | ||
| Comarca : | Los Pedroches | ||
| Coordinates | 38 ° 35 ′ N , 5 ° 10 ′ W | ||
| Height : | 488 msnm | ||
| Area : | 355.99 km² | ||
| Residents : | 3,255 (Jan 1, 2019) | ||
| Population density : | 9.14 inhabitants / km² | ||
| Postal code : | 14280 | ||
| Municipality number ( INE ): | 14008 | ||
Belalcázar is a Spanish municipality in the province of Cordoba in Andalusia . It belongs to the Comarca Los Pedroches and is 488 m above sea level , 104 km from the provincial capital of Cordoba. In 2019 the community had 3255 inhabitants. The Moorish name was Gahet .
geography
location
The municipality covers 356 km², so Belalcazar has a population density of 9.1 E / km². Belalcázar is one of the northernmost communities in Andalusia. It is located on the A-422, which after about 14 km reaches the border to Extremadura , the next town is Cabeza del Buey . Also in the west you come to the neighboring province after about 20 km on the road to Monterrubio de la Serena (A 3280). In Andalusia, the closest municipalities to the south are Hinojosa del Duque and El Viso to the east. The provincial roads CO-9401 and CO-9401 are the other lifelines of the place. Until 1833 Belalcázar still belonged to Extremadura.
| Northwest: Monterrubio de la Serena & Cabeza del Buey | North: El Viso | Northeast: El Viso |
| West: Monterrubio de la Serena |
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East: El Viso |
| Southwest: Hinojosa del Duque | South: Hinojosa del Duque | Southeast: El Viso , Villaralto & Hinojosa del Duque |
Districts
Several small villages and places to live belong to the main town:
- Cachiporro
- Chaparral
- Dehesa de las Alcantarillas
- Madroñiz
- Santa Clara
Hydrology
Many streams in the area belong to the catchment area of the Rio Guadamatilla . Some of them are: Rio Zújar , Arroyo de La Jarilla , Arroyo de las Caganchas , Arroyo de la Dehesa , Arroyo de Malagón .
Attractions
Belalcázar is one of the monumental villages of the Sierra de Córdoba , it has buildings of great importance in terms of age and architectural aspects. Many of them are part of the Spanish cultural heritage:
Patrimonio Histórico Andaluz
- Castillo de los Sotomayor Zúñiga y Madroñiz
The dominant civil building is the Castillo de Belalcázar , which was built on a characteristic elevated point in the north of the settlement. It is one of the most important castles in the province of Cordoba. It used to belong to the counts (condes) of Belalcázar, who had their residence there. Together with the local Franciscan monastery , they were among the great supporters of late Gothic art.
- El Castillo de Madroñiz
The Castillo de Madroñíz rises above a hill on the course of the Río Zújar between El Viso and Belalcázar.
- Convento de Santa Clara de la Columna (Monastery of Santa Clara of the Pillar)
The monastery was founded in 1476 by Doña Elvira de Zúñiga as a male monastery, but after her death in 1483 it was converted into a nunnery.
The Convent is one of the most important monastery buildings in the province of Cordoba. Fortunately, it has stood the test of time without major changes. The Gothic buildings from the time of the Reyes Católicos give a good picture of the organizational structure of that time with their complex arrangement and a large number of courtyards and extensions. The single-nave church with a cross-arched vault and a star above the presbytery is attached to the building complex. It houses, albeit mutilated, stone statues of Christ, Magdalena and Saint Clara, three important works of the Cultura hispano flamenca in Cordoba. The cloister with its two open galleries is just as important in terms of art history . The first gallery is covered with elliptical arches (arcos carpaneles) and the second is made of beautiful brickwork. These galleries are also clad with paneling and have preserved paintwork. The refectory and stairwell are also worth seeing.
- Ermita de la Virgen de Consolación (Convent of Our Virgin of Consolation)
The hermitage dates from the early days of the Reconquista. Gahet , as Belalcázar was called at that time, was conquered by the troops of Fernando III on September 9, 1236 and only repopulated in the last third of the 13th century. Nothing is known about the builders of the hermitage.
- Iglesia Parroquial Santiago el Mayor (Parish Church of St. James the Elder )
The parish church was founded in 1272. It seems that it was completely remodeled in the 16th century. Part of the work is attributed to Hernán Ruiz II .
- Convento de San Francisco de los Mártires (Convent of St. Francis of the Martyrs)
The monastery was founded in 1486 by a bull from Pope Innocent VIII by the monks who had to move out of Santa Clara . Only the church has been preserved from the monastery. It is also no longer used today. It consists of a single nave with four large arches (arcos apuntados). It is said that these arches were extracted directly from the ground on site. They are made of granite. The vault is a barrel vault (Bóveda de cañón), the small tower dome is rectangular. Two portals adorn the front of the church. The lower one is supported by columns, while the upper one is supported by pilasters. The architectural decoration is completed by a coat of arms with the combined coat of arms of the Sotomayor and Enríquez. Inside the church there is a richly decorated chapel from the 16th century. Despite being destroyed in various ways, it is relatively well preserved. The plateresque portal and the relatively low dome with circular ornaments are attributed to Hernán Ruiz el Viejo . The church itself dates from the 15th century and its simplicity clearly shows the use for which it was built, even if some Gothic elements suggest a greater age.
- Ermita de Ntra Sra de Gracia de Alcantarilla (Hermitage of Our Women of Gracia de Alcantarilla (Canal))
The Hermitage de Nuestra Señora de Gracia de Alcantarilla (Eng. Hermitage of Our Lady of Gracia of Alcantarilla) in Belalcázar follows the typological style of the rural highland hermitages that are common in the area and have similarities with those in Extremadura and Castile . It is of interest because it houses the local patroness and is therefore the destination of a pilgrimage every year in the last week of April. It was built on a Romanesque and possibly older Iberian castro . It probably got its name from a nearby bridge. It is located on a hill on the Río Zújar on the CO-450 road from Belalcázar to Monterrubio de la Serena, 20 km from Belalcázar. The construction dates from the 15th / 16th centuries. Century, an apse was added later.
- Hospital de San Antonio de Padua (Hospital of St. Anthony of Padua )
The hospital is located in the Plaza de la Constitución and currently serves as the "House of Culture" (Casa de la Cultura). The hospital was founded on the initiative of some neighborhoods in the 15th century. The "Escuela de Cristo" school was located in it. From 1676 it served as a hospice and at the end of the civil war it was used again as a school.
Local administration (Ayuntamiento)
The town hall is also located in the Plaza de la Constitución . It dates from the 19th century and was possibly designed by the architect Rafael Luque y Lubián from Córdoba.
More Attractions
There are no large private buildings in the village. However, coats of arms can be found on some houses. Only the Casa Grande deserves special mention , the house in which the writer Andrés García de la Barga y Gómez de la Serna ( Corpus Barga ) lived, a typical building of the 18th century, which, although in ruins, still has two huge pilasters equipped with a balcony. There is also the Casa de la Administración de los Osuna , with a granite facade and shields that come from Castillo. Inside it has valuable ornate ceilings, as can also be found in the Convento de Santa Clara .
- Puente Romano
One bridge is known to the local population as the Puente Romano de San Pedro . It is on the way to Mesta. Apparently, today's bridge is a building from the Renaissance period. However, it is located on an old Roman road that connected the place with the Roman bath in Santa María de la Selva .
- Ermita de San Sebastián (Hermitage of St. Sebastian )
The hermitage is known under the name "El Santo". It was built on an Iberian castro in the 13th century . It is probably the oldest chapel of the "Christian era". Here also was Sebastian de Belalcazar baptized.
Festivals
The first festival of the year is the pilgrimage to San Antón , which is held on the last Sunday in January. Tradition demands that you make three circuits around the hermitage. It is supposed to prevent stomach pain. It is also part of the tradition to eat "migas" (crumbs).
The festival "Las Luminarias" follows on February 1st. To do this, each district puts up a large lamp in its streets and the neighbors are invited to eat. This is followed by the Carneval, which ends with the "burial of the sardine" (el entierro de la sardina) on Ash Wednesday (miércoles de ceniza). The neighbors mournfully accompany the coffin.
On the last weekend in April the pilgrimage to Nuestra Señora de Gracia de la Alcantarilla takes place. This is the most important pilgrimage in the Valle de Los Pedroches and one of the most important in Spain. It looks back on over 800 years of tradition. It begins at the hermitage where the statue of the saint, the "Chiquinina", spent the winter. The saint is greeted with dances and flowers and solemnly transferred to Belalcazar. Important stops are the Rio Zújar, the "Las Lastras" chapel, before the procession reaches the city. All of the town's guilds and associations receive the saint. The procession leads through the colorfully decorated city to the church.
In May, the statue is carried through the streets every Sunday. On August 15th there is a horse procession in honor of Our Lady and on August 16th there is a procession in honor of San Roque , the city's patron.
The statue leaves the city again on September 8th and stays in its hermitage for the winter.
Diccionario Belalcazareño - vocabulary of the municipality
As in many other places in Spain, there is a whole series of words that are used autochthonously and exclusively in this place. Some of them are listed here:
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Personalities
- Sebastián de Belalcázar († 1551), conquistador
Town twinning
- Belalcázar , Colombia .
- Puebla de Alcocer , Spain (2015)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Cifras oficiales de población resultantes de la revisión del Padrón municipal a 1 de enero . Population statistics from the Instituto Nacional de Estadística (population update).
- ^ [1] Instituto Nacional de Estadística.
- ↑ Juan Andrés Molinero Merchán: El convento de Santa Clara de la Columna de Belalcázar, Córdoba, 2007.
- ↑ Ciudades españolas hermanadas con otras de Latinoamérica ( Memento of the original dated February 3, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Federación Española de Municipios y Provincias.
literature
- Mancomunidad de Los Pedroches: Los Pedroches. Mancomunidad de Municipios, Cordoba. Guia Turistica 1998. CO-1,388-1998.
- Alberto León Muñoz: Las fortalezas de Belalcázar, Córdoba: análisis arqueológico de su arquitectura, siglos IX – XIX ; VI Premio de Investigación Palacio de la Merced, 2001. Córdoba: Diputación, 2003. ISBN 84-8154-016-1
- Juan Andrés Molinero Merchán: Palacio renacentista del Castillo de Belalcázar: humanismo del tercer Duque de Béjar. Córdoba: Universidad de Córdoba, 2011. ISBN 978-84-9927-068-5
Web links
- Belalcázar , Sistema de Información Multiterritorial de Andalucía.
- Homepage of the place
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