Mecerreyes

Mecerreyes municipality
Mecerreyes - town view
coat of arms	Map of Spain
Basic data
Autonomous Community :	Castile and Leon
Province :	Burgos
Comarca :	Arlanza
Coordinates	42 ° 6 ′  N , 3 ° 34 ′  W Coordinates: 42 ° 6 ′  N , 3 ° 34 ′  W
Height :	1000  msnm
Area :	59.63 km²
Residents :	200 (Jan. 1, 2019)
Population density :	3.35 inhabitants / km²
Postal code :	09346
Municipality number  ( INE ):	09208
administration
Website :	Mecerreyes

Mecerreyes is a place and a municipality ( municipio ) belonging to the poorly populated Serranía Celtibérica with 200 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2019) in the Spanish province of Burgos in the autonomous region of Castile-León . The place belongs to the stations of the Camino del Cid and was on the Ruta de la Lana coming from Alicante and Valencia , a once important trade and pilgrimage route.

Location and climate

The place Mecerreyes is in the east of the Castilian plateau (meseta) about 35 km (driving distance) southeast of the city of Burgos at an altitude of a good 1000  m . The lovely town of Covarrubias is only 7 km to the south-east. Despite the altitude, the climate is temperate to warm; Rain (approx. 560 mm / year) falls over the year.

Population development

year	1857	1900	1950	2000	2019
Residents	661	884	1.003	325	200

The mechanization of agriculture , the abandonment of small farms and the resulting lower demand for labor have led to a significant decline in the number of inhabitants since the middle of the 20th century ( rural exodus ).

economy

The place was and is largely agricultural and self- sufficient, with cattle breeding and dairy farming dominating; wheat and barley are grown in some fields in the area. Day tourism has been an important source of income for the municipality since the middle of the 20th century.

history

The dolmen of Mazariegos , located approx. 5 km northeast of the village, dates from the Neolithic Age . Roman traces such as terra sigillata shards were discovered near the southern municipal boundary; the Visigothic church of Quintanilla de las Viñas is about 12 km to the northeast. During the time of the Islamic advance, the area became depopulated; two advances by Abd ar-Rahmans III. in the years 920 and 934 as well as questioned the further existence of the previously newly settled place. But the conquests of the Castilian Count Fernán González († 970) finally brought the area under Christian control. The first mention of the place name Mezerese comes from the year 978. In the 12th century Mecerreyes came under the jurisdiction of the House of Lara ; later the place sank into a documentary oblivion.

Attractions

Mecerreyes

Baptismal font from the church of Mazariegos

• The three-aisled Iglesia de San Martín was built in the late 16th century on the site of a previous building (castle or church); the closed porch on the south side is a 17th century addition. Eye-catchers inside are the baroque altarpieces (retablos) in the three apses ; a Romanesque baptismal font (pila bautismal) can also be seen.
• At the end of the 20th century, a 4.50 m high statue of El Cid was erected a little outside the town , whose actual presence in town can only be inferred.

Mazariegos

• The hamlet of Mazariegos , which was incorporated in the early 19th century, has long since been abandoned. The interior of the now largely ruinous church of Santa Eulalia contained a richly decorated Romanesque baptismal font , which is kept and shown in the Museo Arqueológico Nacional de España in Madrid .

Web links

Commons : Mecerreyes  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Mecerreyes - Photos + Quick Facts (Spanish)
• Mecerreyes - photos + short information (wikiburgos, spanish)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ 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).
2. ↑ Mecerreyes - Climate tables
3. ^ Mecerreyes - population development
4. ↑ Mecerreyes - History