| Salamanca History History of Salamanca, Castile-Leon, Spain, Europe | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Salamanca History Although pre-historical remains have been found in the Salamanca area, the settlement itself did not appear until the Greeks arrived and set up a small town there. The name Salamanca is said to have originated from a Greek historian called Salamantica, who resided in the town. Under Roman rule Salamanca belonged to the province of Lusitania, which was transformed into an agricultural area. Salamanca grew in size partly from the increased commerce and partly because it was an important stop on the silver route that ran past it. In the 5th century AD the Roman empire withdrew from much of Spain and the Visigoths gradually took over. However this was not the case with Salamanca, where native Iberian clans took hold, and for this portion of time it's history differs from much of the peninsular. The arrival of the Moors brought Salamanca's surrender in 711AD, though it's location near the remaining Spanish kingdoms to the north made it a place of regular conflict. For many years there was a tug of war which saw the city repeatedly fall to one side, and then the other. The Christians eventually prevailed under King Alfonso VI, who definitively re-conquered the city in the 12th century. The next major happening for Salamanca was in 1218, when king Alfonso IX declared it a university town (the oldest in Spain and one of the oldest in Europe). Perhaps bizarrely this singular event has shaped Salamanca's fortunes more than any other. Then consisting of four academies and thirty smaller colleges the university quickly won international acclaim. It also attracted papal attention, and construction began on the main university building in the 13th century by direct order of Pope Benedict the 13th. In the years that followed the university rose to greater heights, competing directly with the universities of Paris and Bologna. The later Pope Alexander IV described it as one of the four torches of the world. The centuries that followed were relatively peaceful and saw growth and prosperity. This was especially the case during the 16th century as Spain entered it's golden age; flooded by gold and riches from the new world. Many grand buildings and municipal structures were constructed, some of which are still in use today. Again the city's fortunes were very much tied to the university and stayed that way until modern times. One event that did leave Salamanca partially devastated happened during the Peninsula war (1808-1811). Napoleon captured and held the city for four years for the French, before being driven back by an English force led by Wellington. During this time much of the city's cultural heritage was destroyed and it's western quarter badly damaged. Salamanca Tourist Office TEL +34 923 268571 FAX +34 923 262492
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