Villasarracino

Villasarracino is a Spanish municipality and town in the province of Palencia, in the autonomous community of Castilla y León.

It is one of the towns on the Camino de Santiago del Norte: Ruta del Besaya.

Toponymy

The toponymic origin of Villasarracino is attributed to a more or less obscure memory of the Saracens, who hypothetically settled in these lands. This theory lacks firm foundations since:

• The initial Muslim invasion, after the battle of Guadalete in 711, was very reduced in terms of the number of invaders and a purely military sign.
• The privileged situation of Muslims, victors, allowed them to be placed in the most favoured agricultural and commercial areas. Villasarracino does not meet optimal conditions. Even in the military and defensive aspect, there are reasons for a settlement of Arab origin.
• The basin of the Duero, to which Villasarracino belongs, was barely populated by Muslims and these quickly were forced to emigrate to less inhospitable places, due to severe droughts and hungers, accompanied by the frequent attack of Christian expeditions from Asturias. In this way between the Duero and the first foothills of the Cantabrian mountains, a natural border with no organized population or crops was drawn. A settlement could hardly be maintained under such conditions.

The place name

The place name Villasarracino may come, like so many other towns (Villanuño, Villasur, Villafruela, Melgar de Fernamental...) from the name of its main settler. After a chaotic situation in the Duero Valley, in the second half of the VII century the uninhabited and desert area breaks up. Alfonso III in the years 878 to 880, taking advantage of a consolidated favorable situation and encouraged a strong repopulation movement north of the Duero. At a hectic pace, the inhabitants of the mountains descend to the plain in search of farmland. This repopulating activity is done hastily. The “pressuras” are made by the ancient settlers or by Cantabrians, Asturians or Basques. They brought with them all the necessary material to create a new settlement, raise old churches from their ashes, build new homes and till the fields.

The new towns thus created are difficult to maintain: economic and military insecurity is constant. They are exposed to attack by Muslim raids. To counteract this situation, facilities are given to the new settlers: they are invited to repopulate, granting them good privileges, favorable laws and wide liberties so that they do not abandon the new lands. Their mission is vital and risky: Create a shock outpost against Muslim attacks.

But repopulation is no easy task. You need an organizer with enough men. In this situation there were only three estates: The king, who organizes new repopulations; the Church, opening new monasteries; and the nobles, who thus expand their influence with the possession of new lands. This last type of repopulation is what I attribute to Villasarracino. Villasarracino derives its current name from the founder of the town, perhaps settled on the ruins of a previous population. Villasarracino would be the town of Sarracinus, Sarracini, Sarraceni, Sarraceniz..., names that appear in the numerous written documents from the 9th and 10th centuries. The proper name of Sarracino recalls a stately foundation.

The character

The Latin name of Sarracinus comes from the area of Álava, where in the year 873 there was already such a name as that of “senior Sarracini Munnioz”. Although already before, in 844 we have written news of the firm, clearly Basque of Zorraquinus or Zorraquin. Sarracinus' name, Zorraquin, means in Basque: white (zuri), and the ending ako gives it a hint of belonging. Thus, Sarracino could be interpreted as: the white, of the white. This Basque surname of Zorraquino, which still survives today with some small variants, was quickly Latinized into Sarracinus or Sarracini, the name of one of the main Alava families.

Geography

House consistorial

It is located 58 km north of the provincial capital Palencia, between the municipalities of Osorno la Mayor and Carrión de los Condes. Its economy is based mainly on agriculture (cereals) and livestock.

History

Church of Na Lady of the Assumption

The existence of Villasarracino is something purely hypothetical in these times, although the existence of a sarcophagus extracted from the walls of the abandoned cemetery of San Román, now placed in the patio of the Museum of Fray Félix Cuadrado, can go back to dates prior to the settlement of the population in Villasarracino.

Villasarracino exists as such a population, at least since the time of repopulation of the Duero basin, at the end of the IX. We already know its settler, from whom the town takes its name. With him he brought people devoted to him. Later, new settlers joined. But the first document that brings us closer to the historical Villasarracino dates from the year 932. A document belonging to the Lebanza archive, which grants numerous possessions to the existing Abbey there, mentions Villasarracino for the first time. It reads as follows: «...et concedimus vobis in villa sarracena una serna de carrera a carrera usque ad carraera tabessanam...» (And we grant you in Villasarracino a serna (farmland) on the way to road to the tabessanam road.In 1142 Villasarracino was cited again when the lands belonging to the Lebanza abbey were granted immunity.

Other topographical terms take us back in history. Such is that of S. Pedro, Carresanpedro, etc. Dated in 1152, in documents belonging to the archive of Santa María de Retuerta (province of Valladolid) we can read the concession to the monastery of S. Pelayo de Valdavia (Arenillas), dependent on that of Retuerta, of the «monasterium Sancti Petri del Campo, cum his resounding term that is inter Villa Sarracino et Villa Ferreros, et San Mames, et Villa Sabariego» (Monastery of S. Pedro with the lands that surround it between the villas of...).

In this way we can build, piece by piece, the history of Villasarracino. Finally, let us recall documents from 1345 that describe the ecclesiastical situation of the town, with its two churches of Sanct Roman and Santo uenia (Eugenia), with sixteen clergymen at its side. service. Data from 1352 taken from the book Becerro de las Behetrías de Castilla, where we read the names of the natural lords of the town, the rights of the king and the lords and the taxes that its inhabitants had to pay...

In the parish archives it can be read, in the first book of Baptisms of the Church of San Román: «These are those who have been baptized in the town of Villa Serrazino in the month of March of the year 1574 years henceforth in which said month and year both the parishes of S. Román and S. Eugenia, of the said town come together». The archive books provide us with exact knowledge of the demographic movement (Baptism books, marriages, deceased); of economic development (from the books of Tithes and Tazmías), studying the diverse local production of cereals, flax, wine, etc. which was given to the Church.

Church Accounts books are also an invaluable aid. From 1644 we can go studying step by step the expenses, acquisitions and changes made in the factory of the church. The registration books provide us with the detailed population of Villasarracino, which in 1877 reached the figure of 1,103; in 1653 of 103 residents and in 1591, of 180 residents, to give some examples. Thus Villasarracino was one of the ten towns with the most inhabitants in the province of Palencia.

19th century

This is how Villasarracino is described on page 286 of volume XVI of the Geographical-statistical-historical dictionary of Spain and its overseas possessions, a work promoted by Pascual Madoz in the middle of the century XIX:

VILLASARRACINO

Villa with town hall in the province and diocese of Palencia (8 leagues), judicial party of Saldaña (4), territorial audience and general captainship of Valladolid (16).

Located in the O of the province, with cold weather, well ventilated and healthy.

It consists of 280 houses of few comforts; town hall and school of first letters with 2,200 real and attended by 120 young men of both sexes; parish church (Our Lady of the Assumption) served by a priest of second ascent and 5 beneficiaries; for assortment of the neighbors there are good waters in the term, which confines by N with Castrillo de Villavega; E Fuente Andrino; S Villaerreros, and Oña.

Its medium-quality terrain. The roads are local, and in regular state the one that leads to Castrillo; the remaining evil ones. The mail is received from Carrión de los Condes.

Productions: wheat, barley, rye, poor quality wine and some legumes; breeding some lanar cattle; hunting of hares, perdices and other birds. Industry: agricultural. Trade: the sale of the leftover of your products.

Population: according to official data 211 neighbors, 1,098 souls.

Productive capital: 687.193 real. Impossible: 41,847. The municipal budget amounts to 3,000 reais, and it is covered by the product of its own and neighborhood distribution.

Demographics

Graphic of demographic evolution of Villasarracino between 1842 and 2021

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.Population according to the municipal register of 2021 of the INE.

Culture

Festivity

• Virgin of Piedad 8, 9 and 10 September.