Sepulveda
Sepúlveda is a Spanish municipality and town in the province of Segovia, in the autonomous community of Castilla y León. The town has been declared a historical-artistic complex since 1951 and is part of the association The most beautiful villages in Spain. The population of the municipal term amounts to 1001 inhabitants (INE 2022). Located in the surroundings of the Hoces del Río Duratón natural park, the park's interpretation center is located in the town.
Toponymy
The origin of this place name is not known for sure, but it seems to be pre-Roman. There are theories that derive it from the name of the Celtiberian castro Seppobrica. Others that it comes from the term sep(d)urbeda, composed of sepp-/sep-/seppo- 'to flow ', dur-/tur- 'stream of water' and bhedho 'moat, canal' or beda 'mountain', with the final meaning from "río del foso" or "río de la sierra".
Subsequently, medieval scribes, who tended to adapt place names to a recognizable Latin word —giving rise to impossible Latinisms— distorted it and from the 19th century X the form Septempublica and its derivative Sepulvega are documented. In the second half of the XV century, the Latin derivatives of Septem Publica gradually disappeared, being replaced by their Spanish-language evolutions, which gave rise to last place to the name Sepúlveda.
Geography
The municipality includes the following population centers:
- Sepulveda bone (independent ammunition up to 1857)
- Castrillo de Sepúlveda (independent municipality up to 10/03/1970)
- Consuegra de Murera (independent municipality until 1857, and belonging to the municipality of Aldealcorvo from then until 1973)
- Duration (independent ammunition up to 26/05/1970)
- Hinojosas del Cerro (independent municipality up to 10/03/1970)
- Perorrubio (independent ammunition up to 10/03/1970)
- Sepúlveda, capital of the municipality
- Tanarro
- Vellosillo (independent municipality until 1857, in which he joined the former municipality of Perorrubio)
- Villar de Sobrepeña (detached station until 16/07/1973)
- Villaseca (independent municipality up to 10/03/1970)
Sepúlveda belongs to the region of Villa y Tierra de Sepúlveda, of which it is the head town and to the judicial district of the same name of which it is the head, located in the northeast of the province of Segovia. It is 55 km from Segovia capital, 137 km from Burgos, 119 km from Madrid (via the A-1) and 115 km from Valladolid.
| Northwest: Carrascal del Río | North: Valle de Tabladillo, Urueñas, enclave of El Olmillo (Aldeonte) | Northeast: Barbolla |
| West: Sebulcor |  | This: Sotillo |
| Southwest: Cantalejo | South: San Pedro de Gaíllos, Aldealcorvo, County of Castilnovo | Sureste: Duruelo, Santa Marta del Cerro |
History
Prehistory and Antiquity
The first data on the occupation of Sepúlveda refer to the II Iron Age, between the V and II a. C., when the existence of an Arevaco (Celtiberian tribe) urban enclave (oppidum) was documented on the Somosierra hill, to the west of the town. The La Picota cremation necropolis belonged to this small town.
At the beginning of the century I a. C., between 98 and 93 a. C., the upper valley of Duratón was conquered by the Roman consul Tito Didio, who had to evict the indigenous nucleus of Sepúlveda and found a new city in the neighboring place of Los Mercados, next to Duratón (added town or neighborhood of Sepúlveda), seven kilometers away, where the Confluenta of Ptolemy (2.6.55) is possibly located. This new urban nucleus administered and managed the territory of the upper Duratón valley until the V century AD. C. From the I century a. C. in Sepúlveda, possibly only a small village would develop, attached to the Confluent territory, although several rural Roman sanctuaries were located in its vicinity, that of Bonus Eventus in Puente Talcano, that of Diana in Cueva Labrada and, perhaps, that of Eburianus in Giriego Bridge.
Middle Ages
With the Visigothic occupation, the city of Confluenta (Duratón) was transformed into just a village, between the centuries V and VII d. C., to be vacated in the VIII century d. C. The remains of the Duratón necropolis document this stage. It is unknown if a first Visigothic population was already established in Sepúlveda, from which the medieval nucleus would develop.
The town of Sepúlveda is mentioned for the first time in the Chronicle of Alfonso III. In these chronicles reference is made to the depopulation of the same consequence of the raids of Alfonso I. In the year 940 Fernán González, Count of Castilla, is entrusted with its repopulation that stabilizes a Christian area beyond the Duero river. There is a legend in which the fight between Fernán González and the Muslim mayor Abubad is told. This legend, transmitted by the abbot of Arlanza, Fray Gonzalo de Arredondo, is reflected on the façade of the so-called "Casa del Moro". Fernán González gave jurisdiction to Sepúlveda in its repopulation.
In the year 979 Almanzor tried to recover the town without success but years later, in 984, he would recover it, but the Castilians would lose it again in the years 984 and 986. In 1010 the town passed definitively into Christian hands when it was taken by Sancho García, grandson of Fernán González.
Sepúlveda's jurisdiction was confirmed on several occasions. The oldest documentary testimony is the Latin one of Alfonso VI from 1076. This jurisdiction embodied the Law in the Castilian Extremadura. Later expanded and codified in 1300, it was granted to other populations such as Zaragoza and Teruel and, from Uclés, to many populations of the Order of Santiago. The territory in which the jurisdiction was in force was not only the town of Sepúlveda, but also extended into what was defined as the Community of Villa and Tierra de Sepúlveda, which still exists. This community encompasses 37 municipalities.
In 1111, in the lands of Sepúlveda, the battle of Candespina (now Fresno de Cantespino) took place, in which Alfonso I of Aragon and Count Enrique of Portugal faced and defeated Queen Urraca, wife of Alfonso I of Aragon. This victory resulted in the independence of Portugal and the incorporation of Sepúlveda into the Aragonese crown.
The Jews were expelled in 1468 and soon after the sovereignty of the future Catholic Monarchs was recognized, against Enrique IV of Castile.
Modern Age
During the War of the Communities of Castile, when Rodrigo Ronquillo besieged Segovia in June 1520, this city asked him on the 22nd of that month to define his position on the situation. The answer, apparently, was ambiguous or simply negative, so a month later he insisted again that she help her and swear brotherhood with the community members. On this occasion, Sepúlveda openly refused. He, too, did not show much enthusiasm to be on the king's side; His stance was rather one of neutrality.Thus, when the royal secretary Lope Hurtado de Mendoza passed through the town to recruit the old guards of the kingdom destined to go to Navarre and to convince her to decisively join the royalist cause, got dissuasive answers. On October 11, the community captain Pedro Girón also appeared in Sepúlveda to pick up the veteran troops of the Djerba expedition. The council again expressed its indifference towards the conflict. Segovia insisted on October 15, sending Gabriel de Villareal as an emissary, months later the royalist captain, the Count of Haro, asked the council for resources, and in March the community Holy Board requested their support. But in vain, Sepúlveda decided to ignore the civil war.
King Carlos III visits the town in the XVIII century, giving his town hall a painting of his son Carlos IV to the age of seventeen. This painting is exposed in the plenary hall of the town hall of the Villa.
Contemporary Age
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During the War of Independence, the Sepúlveda Action took place, the only combat in which Napoleon's Imperial Guard took part in the entire war. This action ended with a failure for the French weapons, which failed to destroy the Spanish forces, which first withdrew towards Sepúlveda and then, without being disturbed, towards Segovia. Sepúlveda's action meant a delay in Napoleon's advance towards Madrid prior to the battle of Somosierra. Sepúlveda was besieged by French troops and the Empecinado acted in its territory, which had its base in the caves of the Duratón River Canyon.
During the Carlist wars it was taken in 1838 by General Gómez. In the Spanish civil war of 1936, Sepúlveda stood by the army raised against the republic. It was the command post for the troops that controlled the passage through the port of Somosierra. In 1951, Sepúlveda was declared a Historic-Artistic Site. In January 2016 it became part of the association The most beautiful villages in Spain.
Demographics
- Population developments
| Figure of demographic evolution of Sepúlveda between 1828 and 2022 |
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Population according to Geographical-Statistic Dictionary of Spain and Portugal Sebastian Miñano.Rule population (1842-1991, except 1857 and 1860 which is a de facto population) or resident population (2001-2011) according to the Population Censuses since 1842. |
Administration and politics
- List of mayors
| Period | Name | Party |
|---|---|---|
| 1979-1983 | José María Sacristán Lozoya |  UCD
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| 1983-1987 | José María Sacristán Lozoya |  COP
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| 1987-1991 | Ismael Ortiz López |  PSOE
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| 1991-1995 | Ismael Ortiz López | PSOE
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| 1995-1999 | Ismael Ortiz López |  P
|
| 1999-2003 | Ismael Ortiz López | P
|
| 2003-2007 | Ismael Ortiz López | P
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| 2007-2011 | Concepción Monte de la Cruz | P
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| 2011-2015 | Francisco Notario Martín | P
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| 2015-2019 | Ramón López Blázquez | PSOE
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| 2019- | Ramón López Blázquez | PSOE
|
Culture
Heritage
Sepúlveda has a large number of monuments, many of them declared Assets of Cultural Interest. Its rich heritage, both civil and religious, led to its declaration as a Historic-Artistic Site in 1951.
Prehistoric art
- Rupestre Art: Duraton (B.I.C.) in Castrillo de Sepúlveda, Sepúlveda and Villaseca
- Archaeological Zone: Visigothic Necropolis and Los Mercados (B.I.C.) sites in Duraton
- Archaeological zone: Cave of the Seven Altars (B.I.C.) in Villaseca
Civil architecture
Its most important civil monuments are:
- Castillo de Fernán González (B.I.C.). The castle of Sepúlveda was a Roman fortress, an Arab alcazaba, and rebuilt in the time of Count Fernán González. Side to the bottom of its towers a century buildingXVIII, with balcony cumshot, supports the clock of the square. It is included in the Red List of Endangered Heritage of the Association for the Defense of Hispania Nostra Heritage.
- Old prison in Sepúlveda. Of its three floors, the lower and higher were always intended for use as a prison, while the intermediate is the one that most modifications and utilities have experienced. It was Casa del Concejo until a new town hall was built on the other side of the square in 1870, and then became the home of the head of the prison. In 2014 it was conditioned to host a museum of a didactic and informative nature that shows the use and forms of life in these prisons. It is the local Tourist Office.
- House of Count of Sepúlveda. It is one of the many houses-palacio of the villa. It has a heraldic balcony-retablo maintained by caricatids, and contains various architectural and decorative elements. The county of Sepúlveda was a title created by Queen Elizabeth II.
- Home of the Years. Popularly known as House of the MoroIt's a chat house. It stands out the silver facade whose fronton is presided over by the head of a Moor over an alfanje, an element that alludes to the legendary take of Sepúlveda by Count Fernán González. On the sides of the main balcony are the shields of arms of the family, where the motif of the head of the Moor is repeated again.
Religious architecture
From Sepúlveda's splendid medieval past, many Romanesque temples have survived. Some of them are:
- Church of Saint Peter (B.I.C.), in Perorrubio.
- Iglesia de la Virgen de la Peña (B.I.C.), in Sepúlveda. It is a Romanesque church of the centuryXII. From a single nave, covered with three-stage cannon vault, reinforced with arches that rest in decorated capitals and columns attached to the wall. Semicircular apse, decorated with chess jaqués, which was mutilated in baroque times by the construction of the shrimp of the Virgin. The outer earrings are sculpted. Inside, at the foot of the ship, high choir; in the Baroque altarpiece, of the centuryXVIIIwith the image of the Virgin of La Peña, Romanesque, probably of the centuryXII. She's the boss of Sepúlveda. Romanesque tower attached to the north wall, with three bodies with half-point arches. Porticada gallery south in which highlights the Romanesque cover with three arquivoltas. The first, the exterior, is decorated with a band of geometric and vegetable motives, the second presents the elders of the Apocalypse and in the key appears the hand of God blessing; this arquivolta rests on historical capitals and these on cylindrical columns attached to the wall. The third arquivolta, that of the interior, shows six angels carrying filacteria. In the eardrum is represented the pantocrator registered in a rombo, instead of the usual mystical command of the Romanesque, to which the tetramorphs surround. In the lower frieze a crysmon subject by two angels occupies the central part, while on the left is reproduced a dragon riding by an armed man with a spear, and on the right the weighing of souls with the archangel Michael and the devil. In the lintel, the cells offer human heads. It's a National Monument since 1931.
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- Church of Saint Bartholomew. Romanesque, of the centuries XI-XIIIt has a single nave with two chapels that form a cruise and covered with wood. The tower, of sillery, is attached to the church.
- Church of San Salvador (B.I.C.), Sepúlveda. It is located in the highest part of the villa, its construction begun in the centuryXI (year 1093) tells us that it is the oldest in the province of Segovia and one of the largest exponents of the Romanesque Sepulvedano.
- Church of San Justo (B.I.C.), in Sepúlveda. It is currently the headquarters of the Museum of the Fueros. It is Romanesque of the centuries XII and XIII, was declared a National Monument in 1931. It is the only Romanesque church in Sepúlveda that has three naves, something that on the other hand is rare in the rural Romanesque, indicating that it was an ambitious construction.
- Church of Our Lady of Assumption in Duraton.
- Church of Santiago. Actual Casa del Parque de las Hoces del Río Duratón. From a single rectangular nave, it has a fourth apse of Mozarabic style, brick with double archery and geometric figures. It has an underground crypt with graves of the centuryX.
Parties
- Fiesta de Los Fueros. It is celebrated on the third Sunday of July. Includes cobbled streets and squares with banners, medieval market, lighting of the villa with torches, music performance and street theaters. Commemora el fuero concede a la villa por el conde Fernán González (confirmed by Alfonso VI de León in 1076).
- The devil. It is held on 23 August (San Bartolomé cruise). At 10 o'clock in the evening, the lights of the villa are turned off and down, by the beautiful staircase of the church of San Bartolomé, six mozos, by turns, disguised as Diablillos with lights on both sides of the head giving brooms to the gentius to remember that, according to tradition, it is the only night of the year when San Bartolomé lets the Diablillo run. After 20 minutes of racing and chaos, the six Diablillos go out together to perform the last race and climb, until the following year, the staircase of the church of San Bartolomé, the moment when the light is lit and the party and the jolgorium flood the streets of Sepúlveda, prelude the Fiestas de los Santos Toros.
- Bullfighting parties. The last weekend of August (from Thursday to Monday) is celebrated the Feasts of the Bulls, known among the pulveans as those of Los Santos Toros - thus said a priest of the village to recriminate his pagan character. They highlight the rocks, which have their locals in natural caves, the bulls and bulls, the children's encierros (the oldest in Spain), the charangas, bullfighting and orchestras.
- San Miguel. On September 29 (festivity of San Miguel Arcángel) the festivals are celebrated in honor of the patron saint of the Community of Villa and Tierra de Sepúlveda, the Virgin of La Peña (whose church is located above one of the most spectacular Hoces of the Duraton).
- Minerva. A tradition of great beauty and dating back to medieval times is the so-called Minerva Mass, which the Corpus Christi Brotherhood celebrates the third Sunday of each month and which consists of a mass in the Church of El Salvador, one of the first of the Segovian Romanesque, and after which a procession is celebrated by the porch of that church with the Blessed Sacrament under Palio.
Gastronomy
Sepulveda's typical gastronomy has a long tradition in roast lamb, roast suckling lamb made in a wood-fired oven, Castilian soup and cod. In confectionery, the Segovian punch or buns from the land stand out.