Brownbarrueco

Barruecopardo is a Spanish municipality and town in the province of Salamanca, in the autonomous community of Castilla y León. It is integrated within the Vitigudino region, in the ecoregion of Las Arribes and the sub-region of La Ramajería. It belongs to the judicial district of Vitigudino. Due to its location at a crossroads, it is an important entry point to the Arribes del Duero Natural Park.

Its municipal area is made up of the town of Barruecopardo and the unpopulated area of Santa Ana, it occupies a total area of 36.71 km² and according to the demographic data collected in the municipal register prepared by the INE in 2017, it has 461 inhabitants.

Etymology

Its current name comes from the Leonese word "berruecu", a term that refers to a "loose or isolated rock", such as those found in such abundance along the area, and its brown color.

Symbols

Shield

The heraldic shield that represents the municipality was approved on March 17, 1999 with the following coat of arms:

«Match shield. First of all, with a griffin of gold; cut, skeleton of eight golden points and eight gules. Second, of silver with a cross-sword of Santiago surmounted from two venerations, in strip, also of Gules. Stretched and fallen, azur with a golden castle cleared of gules. Stunning of the Spanish Royal Crown»

Official Gazette of Castile and Leon No. 173 of 7 September 1999

Flag

The city council has not yet adopted a flag for the municipality.

Geography

Barruecopardo is located at 730 m s. no. m., in the ecoregion of the arrivals of the Duero and Huebra rivers. The latter runs through the south of the municipal area. Its course separates the terms of Barruecopardo and Bermellar, and in turn, the regions of El Abadengo and La Ramajería.

It has an area of about 37.4 square km. The terrain is relatively flat in almost the entire term. Its landscape is typical of the region of La Ramajería except to the south because in the vicinity of the Huebra river, about three km from the urban area, there are large rocky granite cuts that descend sharply to around 300 m s. no. m.. They are the so-called Arribes del Huebra.

Situation

Saldeana is located in the northwest of Salamanca and is 94 km from the capital Salamanca. It is integrated within the ecoregion of Las Arribes, in La Ramajería, Vitigudino region. It belongs to the Centro Duero Commonwealth and to the Vitigudino judicial district. Its municipal area is located within the Arribes del Duero Natural Park, a protected natural area of great tourist attraction.

Northwest: Vilvestre	North: Cerezal de Peñahorcada	Northeast: El Milano
West: Saucelle		This: Villasbuenas
Southwest: Saucelle	South: Bermellar	Sureste: Saldeana

Communications

There are two bus lines, one of them operated by the company Arribes Bus S.L. and another by the company Eloy Robledo S.L. that unite it with the provincial capital.

Climate

The climate of Barruecopardo is temperate although during the winter frosts are frequent; irregular springs, cold at first and mild the rest; short, hot and dry summers, reaching temperatures close to 40 °C during the day; the long, temperate and unpleasant autumns. Pluviometrically it can be considered humid although the rains are usually more intense from the end of autumn to mid-spring.

Barruecopardo has a Mediterranean climate Csb (temperate with dry and temperate summer) bordering on a climate Csa (temperate with dry and hot summer) according to the classification Köppen climate.

Average weather parameters of Barruecopardo in the period 1961-1979
Month	Ene.	Feb.	Mar.	Open up.	May.	Jun.	Jul.	Ago.	Sep.	Oct.	Nov.	Dec.	Annual
Average temperature (°C)	3.6	4.9	6.6	9.5	12.9	17.9	21.7	21.2	18.3	12.9	7.1	3.3	11.7
Total precipitation (mm)	153.5	152.8	92.3	67.0	85.2	63.5	22.7	11.6	52.4	101.2	130.4	106.2	1038.6
Source: Ministry of Agriculture, Food and the Environment. Precipitation data for the period 1961-1979 and temperature for the period 1967-1979 in Barruecopardo October 11, 2012

Demographics

Graphic of demographic evolution of Barruecopardo between 1900 and 2022

Source: Spanish National Statistical Institute - Graphical development by Wikipedia.

According to the National Institute of Statistics, Barruecopardo had, as of January 1, 2021, a total population of 443 inhabitants, of whom 247 were men and 196 women. Regarding the year 2000, the census reflected 587 inhabitants, of which 295 were men and 292 women. Therefore, the loss of population in the municipality for the period 2000-2021 has been 144 inhabitants, a 25% decrease.

Prehistory

The first indications that tell us of human presence in the area are certain archaeological remains of human use such as scrapers, flakes, hand axes, arrows, adzes, mills, grinders, etc. discovered and located in the 1960s of the XX century. They were found at three different points, located at a distance of about one km from the current urban center and, according to studies carried out by knowledgeable and trained people, professors from the University of Salamanca, they could date from about 9000 years ago. They would correspond to the end of the Paleolithic, the transition to the Neolithic and the first section of the Bronze Age.

History

The origin of the town responds to a Vetón town, following the east to west course due to the lighting of the sun, at the foot of a rocky treasury to a large extent, at least today, with traces of some fortification, which constituted a castle or safe haven in cases of danger and insecurity. There they concentrated their cattle and trousseau, where they were easily defendable from the base of the aforementioned treasure.

It was also an observatory and watchtower (the entire outline would generally be) since it is in the upper part. The population was grouped by the Romans in a vicus (village) one kilometer away, towards Vilvestre on flat and fertile lands (in the current uncle Federico's vineyard), behind the Christ, taking the name of Valverde according to tradition. This Valleverde would be due to the sedimentary terraces of the nearby streams (today valleys and orchards). This is how the archaeological findings seem to show it.

Panoramic view of Barruecopardo

In the municipal area there are remains of an old Celtic fort, in a place known as La Casa del Quiquín, on the banks of the Huebra, although less important than another existing Celtic fort in the neighboring town of Saldeana. We know that in the year 1157 the lordship of Barruecopardo was created for Armengol VII. We do not know the extension of the territory assigned to this Señorío, but it could happen that it covered the places where said castro is located, being that, perhaps, the reason for assigning the castro to Barruecopardo.

The stelae or tombstones found with sun wheels of different types and with inscriptions in Latin are important, which would indicate that there were human settlements during that time.

It does not seem that the Muslims arrived notoriously, nor that the recovery by the monarchs of the Kingdom of León had major complications.

No specific information is available for the period between the presence of the Romans and the middle of the 12th century. On the contrary, there are news, facts and documents that continuously speak to us from that date. Let's see.

Fernando II de León created the Lordship of Barruecopardo in 1157

The General History of Spain says that after the conquest of Toledo by Alfonso VI in 1102, he was in charge of the organization of the kingdom and its repopulation, although his greatest promoter was Fernando II de León, son of Alfonso VII. To him, to Fernando II, must be attributed the repopulation of what is known as the Duero Desert or No Man's Land.

Fernando II de León, as part of his policy on the repopulation of the Duero desert, agreed to create the Lordship of Barruecopardo in 1157, for Armengol VII, Count of Urgell, his butler and brother-in-law of Alfonso II of Aragon. Since Armengol VII married Dulcin de fox, daughter of Roger II de Fox in 1157, it is likely that the grant of the Lordship was the king's wedding gift. Barruecopardo depended on the mayors of Ledesma.

In the year 1171, according to some authors, or 1181, according to others, it grants Barruecopardo Jurisdiction. Fuero mixture between the Fuero de Ledesma granted in 1161 and the customs of Urgelia.

There must have been differences between the mayors of Ledesminos and the Crown for this concession to Armengol, but the royal position must have prevailed, for which reason the aforementioned mayors made a graceful donation, in the name of King Fernando II of León and his son Alfonso to Armengol, Barruecopardo ceasing to belong to the Council of Ledesma.

A few years later, Armengol transferred the rights over Barruecopardo to his vassal and faithful friend Pedro Fernández de Fuencalada, first Master of the Order of Santiago. Armengol would continue to be Lord. The rights passed to the sons of Pedro Fernández, who sold them to the Order of Santiago. From April 30, 1195 Barruecopardo would belong entirely to the Order of Santiago. Since then, the history of Barruecopardo has been totally linked to the Order of Santiago.

Either Armengol himself or the Order endowed Barruecopardo with an "important castle".

In the Crónica inédita de Ávila we are told: "There were Castilians in the kingdom of Leon; Blasco Muñoz took el Carpio, and Nuño Mateos Monterreal and Pablo and Berrueco Pardo. These gentlemen from Ávila defeated the council of Salamanca. The day King Alfonso won the battle of Ubeda, Nuño Mateos with other knights of Avila defeated the council of Salamanca and Avila...". To the north of Saucelle there must have been towers, strong houses and small fortifications under tenure -many of them converted into bell towers-. There were important castles in Barruecopardo (prior to 1212), Vilvestre, Mieza, Aldeadávila, Masueco and Pereña. In the year 1296 the entire West of Salamanca was invaded by King Dionisio I of Portugal, reaching Simancas.

Hermitage of the Christ of the Mercedes

The Salmantine West on a Century MapXVIIIin which you can see Barruecopardo (written "Barueco")

The fact that Baruecopardo belonged to a Military Order that took an active part in the successive wars, and the circumstance of being close to the border with Portugal, together with the care and importance that the Order gave to the enclave, made the town was repeatedly invaded by the Portuguese. There is documented evidence: Shortly after 1212, the castle belonged to the knight of Ávila Nuño Mateos Monterreal; By the year 1240, at least the castle, belonged to the Portuguese Gómez Gil do Vinhal; in 1243 his nephew Martin Annes de Vinhal claimed it; in 1296 it was invaded by the Portuguese king Don Dinis, "the labrador king" son of Alfonso III of Portugal and his second wife Beatriz de Castilla; in 1369 it was occupied by Gómez Lorenzo de Aveal; in 1644 it was sacked by Castilian and Portuguese troops; in 1653 it was destroyed, razed and burned; in 1654 it was again burned and razed, together with its lands and the towns of Vilvestre and Saucelle, by the Portuguese troops under the command of Diego de Castro.

The importance given to Barruecopardo by the Order of Santiago is demonstrated by the fact that it was one of the 18 Vicariates of the Order, made up of the following towns: Barceo, Barceíno, Barreras, Barruecopardo, Cerezal de Peñahorcada, Milano, Peralejos de Abajo, Saldeana, Saucelle, Valderrodrigo and Villasbuenas.

The first vicar was Luis de Faes de Valdés, from Oviedo, who took possession of the new vicarage on December 31, 1635. The vicarage lasted until the dissolution of the Priory of San Marcos de León in 1873, the bishopric known as León de la Orden de Santiago for grouping together the Santiago territories of the León territory, among which were included brownbarrueco. Thus, on May 22, 1874, Barruecopardo became part of the Diocese of Ciudad Rodrigo, becoming Archpriesthood, with Francisco Morante y Román being the last vicar and first archpriest.

Wolframio mine

It is known that in 1644 it was sacked by Portuguese troops, the area lacked defenses (except for the one offered by the Duero River and further south, San Felices de los Gallegos and Ciudad Rodrigo). For this reason, it was a battlefield for the territorial ambitions of the Spanish and Portuguese.

In the 1795 edition of the Universal Geographic Dictionary, its third volume refers to Barruecopardo with:

Berrueco Pardo, Villa de España, Capitanía General de Castilla la Vieja, Provincia de Salamanca: es una de las eximidas de la Jurisdicción de Partido, y de las Ordenes militares, que corresponden a la Orden de Santiago, en la Encomienda de Peñausende.

In 1833, when the current provinces were created, Barruecopardo was included in the province of Salamanca, within the Leonese Region.

Monuments and places of interest

• The parish church of Santa Maria Magdalena.
• Hermitage of the Christ of the Mercedes.
• Castle viewer.

Economy

It has been an agricultural-livestock town until in recent times the tungsten mines were opened to the beat of the world wars (1917, 1940, which lasted until 1985...); it is believed that part of these mines were owned by the López de Lerena Epalza brothers. They supplied ore to the Santa Ana de Bolueta factory in Vizcaya. In 2020 it is proposed to reactivate the mine.

Administration and politics

Municipal elections

The mayor of Barruecopardo does not report information about his salary (2017).

Autonomous elections