Macotera

Macotera is a Spanish municipality and town in the province of Salamanca, in the autonomous community of Castilla y León. It is located northeast of the province of Charra and has been part of the judicial district and region of Peñaranda de Bracamonte since 1833. It is the capital of the Mancomunidad Margañán made up of the towns of Santiago de la Puebla, Alaraz, Salmoral, Tordillos, La Nava de Sotrobal and Macotera itself. It belongs to Campo Charro for its history, customs, economy, clothing and geography.

Its municipal area is made up of a single population center, it occupies a total area of 32.93 km² and, according to the demographic data collected in the municipal register prepared by the INE in 2017, it has a population of 1,114 population.

Its origin is not known with certainty as its history remains silent until the 13th century. Macotera was linked for centuries to the domain of Alba de Tormes, being one of its main towns. It has held the title of Villa since 1861, granted by Queen Elizabeth II.

Places of interest include the parish church of Nuestra Señora del Castillo, its two hermitages, the Museum of the plains and countryside of Salamanca, the 'Las Cárcavas' recreation park and the Cerro monument (from where you have a panoramic view of the village). It is interesting to visit it during the San Roque festivities, when a great variety of traditions take place that make its idiosyncrasy known.

Symbols

Shield

The heraldic shield that represents the municipality was approved on August 8, 1962 with the following coat of arms:

« Match shield: first, silver, oak ripped from siple, loaded her cup with the image of Our Lady of the Encina de oro. Second, butterfly, a silver star. To the bell, Royal Crown»

Official State Gazette No. 215 of 7 September 1962

Flag

The municipal flag was approved on July 4, 1997 with the following textual description:

« Square flag, 1:1 ratio, white, red and white bar, and loaded in the center of the municipal shield in its colors, tipped from the Spanish Royal Crown:»

Official State Gazette No. 181 of 30 July 1997

Toponymy

As there is no certain data on the origin of the town, historians focus on the meaning of the name of Macotera. The following versions stand out:

• Macorum: veto clan of the province that by an increase of population or by any other cause could dwell in this land.
• Ma-cotte: Celtic word meaning cabin or flock. This could have evolved to give the word Macotera.
• Cotabriega: veto population that archaeologists place the west of Salamanca. If it could be placed between Ávila and Salamanca, it could be Macotera.
• The inhabitants of Alfonso III or Fernando I times, seeing a very rough but not rocky landscape that falls on a river (they are fast slopes, slopes, which receive the name of coteras), would call the Macotera place, which would mean a place of coteras.
• There is a surname Cotea which is originally from Cantabria. It may have been that the repopulations of this place will carry this surname but there is no evidence of its existence in Macotera. There is also a municipality called ‘La Cotera’ in Cantabria.
• Coteros: vassals that quoted to obtain the bond of some lord.
• There could be residents of the Tera de los Amacos /2005 Amacos del Tera  Macotera.
• The leaf of the Macolla, near to the population could be the origin of the word Macotera: Macolla  Macollera  Macotera.
• Starting from the root Mak (large), the toponym could have formed by the composition with tera (high).
• According to one last interpretation (which part of the previous one), Macotera would be a pre-Roman of indo-European origin formed by Maccus (man of large jaws) and Altaria (otero or cerro) what would be an otero of maccus, that is, otero or man's lock of large jaws.

History

Archaeological remains

If the history of Macotera is characterized by something, it is by remaining silent until the XIII century, there being no data on its origin. Point out only some deposits found in your municipal area that do not provide much information:

• Tejars (lithic industry in quartzite and quartz of the lower Paleolithic).
• Macotera reservoir (the quartzite beds of the lower Paleolithic).
• La Serna (bifaces and lacquers of the lower Paleolithic).

Typical bisnera (Calle of Christ).

• Fresnillo site (ceramic of the Iron Age and the Tardorromane era).
• San Miguel tree site in Fresnillo (ceramic, ash stains and human bones of the Altomedieval eras, Christian and Modern Bajomedieval).

Origin

The strangest thing about Macotera's situation is that it is not next to a river, next to some important road (because the ones that pass through here are secondary) or in a high place that would facilitate defense. In view of this, it is believed that Macotera would be a refuge. It would be a network of towns: Tordillos, Fresnillo, Puente de Angorrilla, Macotera, Cañás, Santiago de la Puebla, San Blas, Malpartida, all of them on the banks of the Margañán river, which would facilitate a possible escape to the mountains or even, if escape were impossible, there would always be hiding in the carcavones that abound in these lands.

Tower of the church.

There is also no information about the passage of the Romans through these lands, following the refuge hypothesis, it is believed that the inhabitants of this place would make an agreement with them and continue to live independently. Of the Visigoths, Macotera inherited its own word, "bisnera", which comes from "bisna" (Germanic word meaning window). It is used to name the hole that, opened in the exterior wall of the house, serves as a vent for the cellar and also to put the grapes into the press, where they are trodden and pressed by the beam. With the Muslim conquest (following the refuge hypothesis) it is believed that Macotera increased in population, since it was a safe and hidden enclave that the refugees surely used.

The repopulation of this area had to be royal-council, and during it Alfonso VII divided the kingdoms of León and Castilla to distribute them among his sons, leaving Macotera on the border of both kingdoms, within León. The war that unleashed this distribution made a dent in Macotera because there were battles in its vicinity (example: Battle of Solobral). The tower of the parish church (c. 1200) dates from this period, and is believed to be for this reason.

From this time comes the veneration of the Virgen de la Encina, patron saint of the town. The legend of her says that the Virgin was going to fight against the Moors until one day they seized her and cut off her hands and head. Her servants brought her remains to this place where she appeared to them in the oak. This has to do with the fact that the image that currently exists is only made up of a framework, a head and hands.

Plano del Quarto del Río Almar (1783), to which Macotera belonged.

The first historical mention of Macotera is in 1220 when Alfonso IX, King of León, included this population in the Alfoz of Alba de Tormes. In 1224 the king confirmed the settlers of the place together with those of Sothlobar (Sotrobal, which they called a Moorish village), La Nava (Nava de Sotrobal), Ventosa (Ventosa del Río Almar), Tordielos (Tordillos) and Fresnuelo (Fresnillo). He literally says so:

Midnight Iouga; iurati: Moro Garcia, Sancho, Pero Gonzalvo, Peidro Serrano, Iohanes Diago; Peidro Serrano XV deeds; filios de Domingo Gordo Ia Iuga and XII deeds; dona Sancha II deeds et media; Michael media iuga; mulier de Iohan Fagu

Modern Age

Because the term of Macotera is relatively small, the Macoteranos leased land from neighboring towns. This situation gave rise to lawsuits with Santiago de la Puebla (the first preserved document that deals with this town is a lawsuit from 1483 kept in the Chancery of Valladolid) that were ruled in favor of Macotera.

Around 1475 construction began on the parish church, which was sponsored by the second Duke of Alba and lord of this land, Fadrique Álvarez de Toledo. The cause that motivated the patronage is not known with certainty. One of the theories being considered says that Macotera had soldiers for having been a border town and that they could have helped in the reconquest, erecting this church as a reward. In 1508 its construction had already been completed, resulting in one more temple larger than the previous one, which was Romanesque. For its inauguration the bishop came with a lot of accompaniment, there were sung masses, preaching, parties and bullfights.

Tip of the main cover of the church, where the shields of its benefactors camp.

On November 8, 1556, Emperor Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire passed through the Calzada Vieja (the Strike Road) with his entourage towards Alaraz (where he spent the night), on his way to the Monastery of Yuste.

The patronal festival of San Roque dates from this period: first it was a secondary festival (1500) and not very solemn. Later, as the years went by, it was when it spread to become the most important festival in the town. This was contributed, above all, by the constant epidemics suffered by the population.

In the year 1752 the Cadastre of the Marqués de la Ensenada was carried out, which makes a fairly exact copy of the belongings that the inhabitants of Macotera had (the documents corresponding to Macotera are the books from 1349 to 1356, the latter belongs to the unpopulated area of Fresnillo, which, although it was the municipality of Tordillos, was leased by Macoteranos).

Also in the XVIII century, the procession of the disciplines that took place since 1574 on "Zena Thursday" (Holy Thursday) in which the members of the brotherhood of Santa Veracruz went barefoot, wore a white tunic open at the back and with a hood that covered their faces and they were beating their backs with straps, knotted cords and cilicia. During the procession they could not carry "any known sign nor speak a word in the procession wherever it is known" under penalty of a fine. Those who could not discipline themselves or carry a cross, had to carry a crucifix, a skull or a bone in their left hand and a candle in their right. There was also a group in the procession that danced the 'Dance of Death' masked as skeletons and scythes.

Contemporary Age

Between the years 1809 and 1812 Macotera was occupied by a squadron of French dragoons who settled in the church by opening a door in the sacristy and digging a moat around it (which endangered the tower, which had to be reinforced after the withdrawal of the squadron). They also posted watchmen at the gate and on the battlements of the tower. When they withdrew they took wheat and wine and burned the bread bins of the Church.

Queen Isabel II granted the title of Villa to the population in 1861.

With the creation of the provinces in 1833, Macotera was included in the province of Salamanca, within the Region of León, forming part of the judicial district of Peñaranda de Bracamonte.

On August 10, 1861, Queen Elizabeth II granted the title of town to the site of Macotera due to the boom it had acquired, especially due to the wool trade. In the Ethnographic Museum there is still a diploma that gives us an account of this appointment and that was a gift from Francisco Millán y Caro (to whom the City Council will dedicate one of the most central streets of the town), then representative in the Cortes for the Penaranda party.

Ministry of the Interior: Recognizing the importance of this people of Macotera for the remarkable development of their population and wealth and for the elements of prosperity that it encloses, I have come to decree at the request of their Town Hall, interpreter of the noble aspirations of their neighbors and dwellers, and in accordance with the statements of the provincial authorities and corporations: Unique Article. The village of Macotera in the province of Salamanca, will henceforth take the title of Villa of its own name. Given in Santander to August ten, eight hundred sixty-one. It's made of the Royal Hand. The Minister of the Interior. José de Posada Herrera.

From the XIX century, it is necessary to highlight the acquisition of land by this neighborhood:

• In 1815, and as a result of the serious effects of the War of Independence in the town of Alba de Tormes, the Jerónimos alienated all the goods they had in this term, among which there are numerous outcrops of land of labor and vineyards, as well as the house of Honda Street, where was the Chapel of the Salutation.
• In 1821 Macotera bought the depopulation of Fresnillo to Tordillos cost 436 450 reais.
• In 1872 several individuals bought the Duke of Alba the round coto of Sotrobal.
• On October 1, 1883, Mateo Gómez Nieto, representing his entire family, bought five sixths of Mount Tordillos. From this date, this mountain is called the Gomez.
• To this end, in this century, the decays of the goods of the Church and the City Council were given.

These purchases made Macotera a town of small farm owners who did not depend on any lord.

The bishop of Salamanca visiting the population during the cholera epidemic (September 1885).

leftIn 1885 cholera devastated the population. Father Cámara (who was Bishop of Salamanca at the time) paid a visit to the town to see first-hand the hardships that the Macoterans were experiencing. Because of this, he promoted the construction of a hospital in honor of Miguel García Cuesta that today can be seen in the Santa Ana neighborhood. Despite everything, San Roque was considered the best doctor in this epidemic.

At the beginning of the XX century, great advances such as electricity or the first mailbox arrived in Macotera. In 1908, an Agrarian Catholic Union was created that led to the current San Isidro de Macotera Cooperative. In 1915 the Peñaranda de Bracamonte road was built and in 1923 the Guijuelo road.

During the Primo de Rivera dictatorship, given the difficult economic situation, the mayor decided to suppress the bullfights at the festivities and the young men attacked his house and he had to escape in his underpants. This gives us an account of the importance that the role of steers had and continues to have in Macotera.

On April 14, 1931, the Second Republic was proclaimed, during which rumors spread about the scope of the Agrarian Reform. The 1932 strike was intensely experienced in this town, the incidents that occurred during it being noteworthy, resulting in one death and three injuries.

During the war, from the first moment Macotera was located in the territory controlled by the rebel side, far from the front. Thus, the effects of the War were less cruel than in other parts of Spain. Despite this, it should be noted (in addition to those subjected to reprisals) the execution of two residents of Pedrosillo de Alba (Diego Madrid Blázquez and Joaquín Chamorro de la Iglesia) in the area of Blasco Martín (on the Guijuelo road) on the day August 14, 1936. During this period, the Hospital de Santa Ana served as a rear hospital.

Monument of the Cerro, images of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary.

The decades after the war were famine. Thus, in 1946, to alleviate hunger, the mayor created family gardens for poor families. Some land belonged to the municipality and others were ceded by some farmers.

In 1949 Clemente Sánchez Sánchez, a Macoteran priest, proposed to build the statues of the Heart of Jesus and Mary that can be seen today on the hill. The work was financed with donations from macoteranos.

At the end of the 1960s, not without effort, land concentration was carried out which, although seen from today's perspective might seem insufficient for the profitability of farms, was a great step in the modernization of agriculture, since that the average surface of the plots went from 0.39 Ha. to 2.70 Ha.

After the approval of the Constitution of 1978, with the development of subsequent autonomous processes, Macotera, as an integral part of the province of Salamanca, was integrated in 1983 in the Autonomous Community of Castilla y León.

Already well into the XXI century, in 2007, the first multisectoral fair Villa de Macotera under the title of The colors and flavors of our land, being mayor-president of the town council of Macotera Antonio Gómez Bueno. It was attended by Alfonso Fernández Mañueco (who at that time held the position of adviser to the Presidency of the Junta de Castilla y León) and Isabel Jiménez García (then president of the Salamanca Provincial Council) as well as 6 deputies and several mayors of the region. This fair was repeated in subsequent years with superior results.

Geography

Location

Its coordinates are: latitude, 40°49′52″N and longitude, 5°17′13″W. They surround it from the north: Nava de Sotrobal, the depopulated area of Sotrobal and Peñaranda de Bracamonte; to the east: Vault of the Almar River, Mancera de Abajo and Salmoral; to the south: Santiago de la Puebla, the uninhabited area of Santa Cruz and Gajates and to the west: the uninhabited area of Valeros, Tordillos and Coca de Alba.

Northwest: Tordillos	North: Nava de Sotrobal	Northeast: Almar River vault
West: Gajates		This: Lower Mancera
Southwest: Gajates	South: Santiago de la Puebla	Sureste: Salmoral

Rio Margañán.

Located at a crossroads, we distinguish the following:

• The road that connects Mancera de Abajo and Tordillos (DSA-140) crosses the town from east to west.
• The road that leads from Peñaranda de Bracamonte to Santiago de la Puebla crosses from north to south.
• Another existing path is that which leads us to Salmoral, which departed from the hermitage of the Virgin of the Encina (DSA-155).
• On the other hand, in the municipality of Macotera there are two secondary livestock routes: the cord of Alba de Tormes, of a width of 20,89 meters and the tail of Valdelamora, of a width of 15 meters.
• In addition to these old roads there are two modern roads: the one that goes from Valladolid to Piedrahita (SA-105) and the one that leads from Macotera to Anaya de Alba (SA-113).

Altitude

Macotera is located at a mean altitude of 891 m s. no. m.. On the hill where the image of the Heart of Jesus is placed, it exceeds 900 meters above sea level. Its maximum altitude is 928 meters above sea level in La Serna and the minimum is 860 meters above sea level in the Margañán river basin that crosses the town and was formerly called Misgañín.

Climate

Its climate is characterized by being rigorous, with low temperatures in winter and warm in summer, scarce rainfall (close to 380 mm). That is why we say that it is a continental climate. The prevailing wind directions are: northwest, southwest, and west. Those coming from the southwest and west are temperate, of Atlantic origin and those from the southwest usually bring rain. Those of the northwest are, however, cold and dry.

View of Macotera from the Cerro.

Flora and fauna

In the municipality of Macotera there are two types of vegetation: the one derived from cultivation and the spontaneous one.

• As for the first, it is composed mainly of crops of dried cereals such as barley, wheat or rye and some industrial crops such as sunflower. There is already a shortage of vineyards, formerly predominant in some places. In addition, the orchards in the riverbed.
• As for the second, it is confined only to the banks of the river Margañán and to the two communal meadows: the Cárcavas and the Melgarejo. We can not forget, moreover, the Monte de Fresnillo, west of the population, which occupies about 50 hectares and is the only mountain of oaks existing in the municipality.

Regarding the fauna, say that part of the municipality of Macotera is included within the ZEPA of 'Campos de Alba'. Specifically, this figure protects the area between the Tordillos path and the Mancera path (about 1,600 ha). Particularly noteworthy are the populations of Montagu's Harrier, Sandgrouse, Sandgrouse and Great Bustard. There are also plenty of specimens of partridges, rabbits, hares, doves... there are also griffon vultures, golden eagles, owls...

Demographics

The first graph shows the approximate evolution of the population of Macotera in the last five centuries. Thus, to point out that until almost the XVIII century the population did not exceed 1500 inhabitants and that from 1890 to 1960 the population reached 3000 neighbors.

In the second graph, you can see, in a more expanded and precise way, the evolution of the population in the last century. Point out the notable decline in the population, especially during the 1960s due to emigration and subsequent stabilization.

Demographic developments in Macotera, from 1550 to 2009

Graphic of demographic evolution of Macotera between 1900 and

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

Economy

Grain silo in Macotera

The predominant economic activity in the town is rainfed agriculture. Bovine and pig farming (among others) is also important.

The activity of the construction sector is significant, mainly dedicated to the construction of second-home single-family homes.

There are still some wool laundries, although they are no longer as important as they were in the 18th and 19th centuries. The elaboration of the country boot is also famous. On the other hand, the variety of existing services denotes a great socioeconomic dynamism:

Administration and politics

Municipal elections

Mayors

The first democratically elected mayor after the approval of the Constitution was Manuel Bautista Gómez, who headed a group of voters under the acronym of Independent Candidates (CI), which integrated sensitivities from a broad political spectrum. They obtained an overwhelming majority: with a City Council of 11 councillors, they obtained 8, leaving the remaining three in the hands of UCD (2) and PSOE (1).

Once said group was dissolved, in the 1983 elections the PSOE managed to seize power from the hand of Agustín Bóveda. But he lost it in 1987, since, despite having won the elections with 5 councilors, he governed the coalition of Alianza Popular (5 councilors) and the Democratic and Social Center (1 councilor). From then until the beginning of 2017, Macotera was governed by the PP:

• During the mandates that took place between 1987 and 2007, he was mayor Antonio Gómez Bueno. From the 1991 and 2015 elections only two parties were presented: PSOE and PP. On the other hand, since the 1995 elections, councillors from 11 to 9 were reduced.
• During the period 2007-2011, he took the command staff Isabel Jiménez García, who collaborated with the president of the Provincial Council of Salamanca.
• In 2011, he was elected and appointed mayor Francisco Blázquez Sánchez. On August 19, 2013, after the end of the fiestas of San Roque, Francisco Blázquez resigned 'for personal reasons', being relieved by Jacinto García García, until then the first lieutenant of mayor of the City Council.
• In the 2015 elections, three different political parties were presented. The PP and the PSOE joined a group of voters who took the name of Neighbors by Macotera (VpM), composed of members of different political sensitivities and led by Francisco Blázquez Sánchez (who had already been mayor under the acronym of the PP). As a result of the outbreak of this group, the PP lost the absolute majority that it maintained since 1991 (although it won the elections again) and the PSOE halved its councillors. In the absence of a pact between the PSOE and the grouping of voters, he was appointed mayor again Jacinto García García, head of list of the most voted party (PP).

A change in circumstances made possible the pact between the group of voters and the Macoteran socialists, putting an end to almost 30 years of PP rule. On January 25, 2017, the plenary session was held in which the group's head of the list, Francisco Blázquez Sánchez, was elected mayor, although the agreed government was a coalition one and the PSOE held the position of first deputy mayor and other councilors.

Three parties also presented themselves in the 2019 elections: PP, PSOE and a new group of voters under the name of the Macotera Independent Coalition (CIM). The PSOE won the elections more than 30 years later, obtaining 4 councilors to the 3 of the PP and 2 of the CIM. In the absence of an alternative pact, Antonio Méndez Ayuso (PSOE) was appointed mayor for being the head of the list of the most voted party.

Evolution of outstanding debt

The concept of outstanding debt includes only debts with savings banks and banks related to financial credits, fixed-income securities and loans or credits transferred to third parties, excluding, therefore, commercial debt.

Graphic of evolution of the city council's living debt between 2012 and 2018

Living city council debt in thousands of Euros according to data from the Ministry of Finance and Ad. Public.

City Hall and Museum

Centro Cultural de Santa Ana

Colegio Miguel Delibes

Bullring (large door)

Mail and Judgement

Civil Guard Headquarters

Municipal services

Among the existing municipal services and facilities (some shared with other institutions such as the Mancomunidad Margañán) we must highlight:

Monuments and places of interest

Church of Our Lady of the Castle

Macotera has a parish church dedicated to Nuestra Señora del Castillo dating from the 15th and 16th centuries, as attested by the coats of arms that appear on the tympanum of the south door, belonging to the patrons, the II Duke of Alba and his wife.

The exterior of the church reveals its granite masonry framework, the apse abutments and two Spanish-Flemish style doorways. The tower, attached to the foot of the church, is very large and has a trapezoidal plan. This is surely older (as has been stated before) than the church and had, at the time of the reconquest and the wars between the first Christian kingdoms, a defensive function.

Inside, the church is divided into three naves, the central one being larger than the lateral ones. They are divided with two inset arches that are supported by pilasters and that make it unnecessary to use columns. It is therefore a church with a hall floor plan (hallenkirche), characterized by the existence of three naves without a transept.

Inside the church, the enormous Mudejar coffered ceiling with a pair and golden knuckle with muqarnas and six pairs of braces that forms the ceiling of the central nave and which has received the name "the sky of Macotera&# 34; and the gallery carved by Andrés López de Carmona and Sebastián García around the year 1550. On the other hand, there are five altarpieces:

• The largest altarpiece dating back to the centuryXVIII with sizes of Our Lady of the Castle, St John the Baptist, The Immaculate and St.
• On the right side nave is the altarpiece of the Rosary and the dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
• On the left side nave stands out the altarpiece of Christ and the one dedicated to Jesus Nazareth.

Hospital de Santa Ana.

Hermitages

Macotera preserves two of the six hermitages that existed in antiquity: that of the Cristo de las Batallas (from the 1920s), which has a carving of the same name dating from the 17th-18th centuries, and another dedicated to the Virgen de la Encina (from the 1970s) who is the patron saint of the town. There was also one dedicated to Santo Ángel (located in La Cotorrita), another to San Gregorio (located in the vicinity of the Civil Guard Barracks, he was the patron saint of the town's young men), another to Santa Ana (located on the floor of the Cultural Center of Santa Ana) and another called Salutation (located on Honda street, near the intersection with Alconada street).

Hospital

Another important building is the Hospital de Santa Ana or Hospital del Cardenal Cuesta, ordered to be built in the XIX century by Father Cámara (Bishop of Salamanca) after visiting the village where cholera had wreaked havoc. This building has had innumerable uses (school, blood hospital during the Civil War...), and is now used as a residence for the elderly. This hospital consists of a chapel that the bishop of Salamanca called the Virgen de los Dolores but which is currently dedicated to the Miraculous Virgin (due to the influence of the congregation of Daughters of Charity who occupied this building before to build the residence of the Hill that they currently run).

Christ of the Battles.

Hill

On the hill on which the town is located are the images of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, sculpted in 1949 by Damián Villar González. This monument was erected at the initiative of the Macoteran priest Clemente Sánchez and its construction was possible thanks to the collaboration of the entire town that supported the idea both financially and by contributing their own labor.

• The main figure, that of the Heart of Jesus, has a granite pedestal of about twelve meters high and the statue, which is marble, measures four meters.
• Another smaller statue, made of terracotta and dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, was also sculpted and placed towards the mediation of the Cerro.

Rejeria from a window.

Others

It is interesting to take a walk through the streets of the town where you can find lintels of old doors as well as inscriptions or reliefs made on the facades of the houses in which someone who has been mayordomo of the Blessed Sacrament lives or lived, San Roque, Virgen de la Encina, Cristo de las Batallas... It is also interesting to observe the ironwork that was used in the past to cover the windows, as well as visit the famous cellars, made under the house in the sandstone, where it was prepared. the famous Macoterano wine.

Finally, mention the Museum of the plains and countryside of Salamanca, located in the building next to the town hall in the town's Plaza Mayor and inaugurated on August 1, 2007. In it you can find all kinds of utensils Formerly used in field work, such as a beam to press the grapes in the winery, carts, yokes, garios, threshing machines, adzes... all of them donated by Macoterans. The building is divided into three different areas: services, permanent and temporary exhibitions that can be found on the four floors of the building.

Culture

Festivities

Fiestas de San Roque 2010.

In August, from the 14th to the 19th, the festivities of San Roque, patron saint of Macotera, are celebrated.

• On the day of the Vespera (the 14th) the parade of peñas occurs, then the pregon takes place and the queen, the ladies, the king and the knights of the holidays are proclaimed.
• The following day is celebrated the day of the Virgin of the Encina, the patron saint of the town, with a solemn Mass that takes place in the parish temple since 1727 and which was previously celebrated in the hermitage (the change was due to the influx of the faithful).
• The 16th is the big day: in the morning the traditional enclosure is celebrated on the streets and at noon, after the Mass and the Loa to the pattern, the traditional procession begins, which usually lasts more than 6 hours, in which it is danced to San Roque "the Charrah." This procession, which is more than a religious act, is one of the manifestations of Macoteran folklore. This is an authentic ethnographic show during which the villa remembers the favors it has granted (especially during the plague epidemics) and continues to grant the pattern. It is a joyful act in which the whole municipality does not stop dancing and vitorating patterns and Macotera. In the afternoon the first taurino show takes place.
• The 17th day is celebrated St. Roque 'the boy' with encierro and a taurino show as on the 18th.
• The year 2001 recovered the traditional horse-riding that had ceased to be held in 1951 and that attracts people from all over the region.

In addition to all this, other activities are held for people of all ages. During all the festivities, the clubs play a leading role.

On September 8, the festival of Nuestra Señora de la Encina is celebrated with a traditional mass and procession and with a release of heifers among other activities such as a paella or dance.

• 

  Virgin of the Encina in her her hermitage.

• 

  Patterns of Macotera at their departure from the parish temple.

• 

  San Roque.

• 

  Virgin of the Encina.

• 

  Procession of 8 September.

• 

  Our Lady of the Encina.

Bullfighting

Lock.

I lock on horseback.

Cattle have always been very present in Macotera, being used mainly in agricultural work. With the passage of time, and when agricultural activity began to be mechanized, animals were replaced by machines. But those roots of yesteryear still subsist and are palpable in the patron saint festivities of August and September.

Within the festivities celebrated in the town, since ancient times, the bullfights that were organized in the most important celebrations (for example, inauguration of the church) stand out.

The bulls associated with the patron saint festivities have been documented since 1563 in honor of Our Lady of the Visitation: thus, the Bishop of Salamanca orders the church door to be closed during the bullfighting celebrations on August 15 because people It protected inside her and there was danger that the bull would enter.

Traditionally, the bulls would go down the Peñaranda road at dawn accompanied by cowboys on horseback who led the bulls from the field. Once inside the Plaza Mayor, they were kept in the corral of the old hospital in the Plaza Mayor. In the afternoon, in a Plaza Mayor surrounded by carts and trails (which served as mockery), the bullfight took place.

Sculpture in the bullring.

After the years, and given the little space that was in the Plaza Mayor and the scarcity of cars, it was decided to move the festivities to the Plaza de la Leña and a portable bullring began to be used to be placed in the successive years in the Great Eras, between the school and the sports fields. The encierro a caballo por el campo (1951) is also lost, reducing itself to a tour of some streets of the town on foot (encierro urbana).

Bulls today

A few years later, on June 19, 1999, a new bullring was inaugurated on Calle de las Eras Nuevas, near the Piedrahita highway. It has a capacity for 4,000 spectators, a lift for the disabled, an operating theatre, a chapel, a skinning area...

In 2001, fifty years after its disappearance, the running of the bulls on horseback through the countryside was recovered, without renouncing the already consolidated urban running of the bulls.

Nicknames

San Isidro (2007), centenary of the Coop. Agricultural S. Isidro.

As in many towns, families and individuals are not known by their first and last names, but by a nickname. Here in Macotera this is of vital importance, every family has one, and it is passed from parents to children as if it were a physical good (such as a house or a farm), hence some of the existing nicknames are several centuries old. Scholars like Eutimio Cuesta have come to classify 580 nicknames in categories such as:

• Offices (Aceiterin, Calero, Confitero, Chapilla, Herrero, Hornero, Molinero, Panadero, Fraile...).
• Acquired by striking and reiterative act (Cajarines, Calderas, Calzaeras, Capalaperra, Chuparroscas, Comenencias, Pocarropa...).
• From patronymic origin (Adrián, Arturo, Dieguines, Dulio, Felipe, Gabrieluco, Gómez, Gumersindo, Juanancho, Madriles, Manolillo, Paquique, Pascuito...).
• Composed of name and mote, (Frailón, Missionas...).
• From the material, animal and vegetable world (Cabra, Cebollinas, Chaquetilla, Garrapín, Gavilán, Lobita, Pepino, Portalero, Quesque, Roble, Cabañas, Violeta, Gallinero...).
• From the spirit of imitation (Brisca...).
• Physical aspect (Bedija, Calores, Cantarillas, Capucho, Mocito, Porreto, Potanche...): tall and thin (Peruchina...), low and fat (Barrils...), for the color of the skin (Blowjo, Colorao, Moreno...), way to be (Bicho, Candonga, Confite, Gitano, Coñita, Esparrama, Ponchudera, Fachenda).
• Motes of which is not known its origin (Barquillos, Chachín, Habanero, Jardines, Junquera, Macuca, Maruso, Minuto, Monsas, Ñurris, Pijota, Sandín, Tobalo, Trinque, Vinato, Chiquino,...).

Nazarene.

Other cultural events

At Christmas it is interesting to attend the Midnight Mass which is played with castanets and tambourines and sung in Latin by the parish choir.

The Fiesta de los Quintos is preserved, in which 17-year-olds (who used to go to the military) celebrate the following acts: on December 24, after the Misa del Gallo, they go to the Plaza Mayor to later go to ask for the Christmas bonus at the house of the priest, the mayor and the justice of the peace accompanied by dulzainas. Later, on December 27, the day of the Fifths is celebrated, in which they go through all the streets of the town with musical accompaniment.

During Holy Week, the procession of the Holy Burial is celebrated on Good Friday in which barefoot Nazarenes carrying crosses accompany the steps of the Prayer in the Garden, Christ scourged, the Nazarene, La Piedad, the Virgin of the Holm oak dressed in mourning and the Sepulchre. Towards the middle of the route, the procession passes by the hermitage of Cristo de las Batallas where the parish choir sings the Miserere.

Two Mondays after Easter Sunday, as in many towns in Salamanca, Monday of Waters is celebrated by going to a place near the town called "Las Cárcavas".

A custom that is strange to foreigners is the ringing of the bells of the two hermitages twice a day: once in the morning and once in the evening. Formerly these bells called the prayer of a Creed to the Christ of Battles and a Hail to the Virgin of the Oak.

The festivities of Santo Cristo de las Batallas were celebrated on September 14 and May 3. This last date, although it was when the celebration was more solemn, has disappeared, leaving only that of September 14, which is still celebrated in the hermitage with mass and procession.

Sports

View of the municipal pavilion.

Facilities

The existing sports facilities are:

• Municipal covered sports center with football courts, basketball, basketball, basketball, basketball, volleyball, tennis and frontenis.
• Sports courts with basketball tracks, soccer room and paddle.
• Municipal pools.
• Municipal front.
• Football field.

Macotera Athletics Club and Sanrocada

Since 2009, a popular race has been held in Macotera, annually and in the run-up to the August festivities, which, although the first year was marred by a storm that prevented the competition (despite the fact that the race was held), in the second year it was consolidated with more than 200 runners and with races adapted to the different age groups. This popular race has been gaining a place, especially at the provincial and regional level, with nearly 700 runners participating in 2013.

Linked to this race, the Macotera Athletics Club was born, which brings together several locals and foreigners and who, despite having their main event in Sanrocada, also participate in other important races at the provincial, regional or state level.

Macotera Sports Club

A futsal team that has competed in the Asafusa League of Salamanca since 2013.

Featured Characters

Miguel García Cuesta.

The following are some of the most illustrious locals from Macotera:

• Miguel García Cuesta (1803-1873): Professor of the University of Salamanca, Bishop of Jaca, Archbishop of Santiago de Compostela, Cardinal Romano, Vital senator of the Kingdom of Spain and deputy of the Constituent Courts of 1869.

• Ramón Nieto Pérez (1804-1879): colleague and colleague of Cardinal Cuesta, was a professor of literature at the University of Salamanca, Dean of the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters and vice-rector of the University.

• Manuel García Nieto (1894-1974) (Padre Nieto): Jesuit priest. He served the priestly ministry in Cantalapiedra and Santa Maria de Sando until he was assigned to the Pontifical University Comillas. He is buried in the parish church of the Miracle of Saint Joseph in Salamanca. After his death the Society of Jesus began the process for his canonization.

Father Nieto is the only religious who has a cause for his beatification open, despite the existence of multiple Macoteran religious who died in the smell of holiness, such as Mother Manuela Cuesta García, Eugenia Bautista Jiménez, Miguel Zaballos or Domingo Bueno.

• Jaime Flores Martín (1906-1974): he became a doctorate in Philosophy, Theology and Canon Law and, after working in two parishes, he entered the Brotherhood of Operational Priests. In 1960 he was appointed bishop of Barbastro and soon afterwards apostolic administrator of Huesca.

• Fermín Blázquez Nieto (1882-1946): Macoterano of birth, lived a few years in the villa. Vinculado a organizaciones como el PSOE y la UGT, vive en Madrid y Santander. Proclaimed the Second Republic, he was elected deputy to Constituent Courts by the province of Toledo and also got a seat for this province in the elections of 1933. The outbreak of the Civil War was exiled in Oran (Algeria).

• Lucas Hernández Pérez (1945-): CEO of Caja Duero since 2004 and after Caja España de Inversiones, Salamanca and Soria, Caja de Ahorros and Monte de Piedad. In 2011, in the face of the merger of this box with Unicaja, it was 'played voluntarily'.

• Juana Borrego Izquierdo (1949-): Senator for the province of Segovia during three legislatures (from 2000 to 2011), she was also a prosecutor in the Courts of Castile and Leon, a provincial deputy in Segovia (where she became vice president between 1991 and 1995). He has also held the charges of mayor and councillor of the Segoviano municipality of Hontalbilla.

• Isabel Jiménez García (1949-): Attorney at the Courts of Castilla y León (1995-2003), Territorial Delegate of the Board in Salamanca, president of the Provincial Council of Salamanca (2003-2011) and first woman mayor-president of the City of Macotera (2007-2011). In the elections of 20 November 2011 he led the Senate lists in the province of Salamanca by the Popular Party, being elected senator and being the most voted candidate in the province with more than 119 000 votes.

• Antonio Gómez Bueno (1954-): Provincial deputy in the legislatures between 1995-2003 and 2011-2015. On the other hand he was mayor of Macotera between the years 1987 and 2007 and councillor of the same council between 1983 and 1987 and since 2007.

Another character who, although he was not a native of Macotera, was closely linked to this town was Diego de Torres Villarroel. He was this famous writer, sacristan of the town church, thanks to the friendship that united him with the Duchess of Alba, Mª Teresa Álvarez de Toledo.