South western Palencia is known as the Valleys of Cerrato. Towns such
as Villamuriel de Cerrato, close to the Palencian capital were, in
medieval times, home to the bishops of Palencia.
The stronghold was
destroyed in 1520 during one of the frequent internecine wars of the
time. The town presided today by the church of Santa Maria la Mayor,
thought to have been founded by the Order of the Knights Templar.
To
the south of the province the wide open Spanish meseta, rich in
extensive fields of cereal crops is also famed for its cattle and
sheep, the lambs of which form part of the staple Castillian
gastronomy.
Close to the town of Venta de Baños is the small populous of Baños de
Cerrato, famed for its small Visigoth church of San Juan de Baños.
Interior inscriptions point to its construction in 661 A.D. by the
Visigoth King Recesvinto.
Other well preserved medieval towns include Dueñas, Baltanás
and Valdecañas. Of the ancient walls of Dueñas few are preserved. The
typically narrow streets house several palaces, amongst them one known
as ‘the house of the Catholic Kings’ where Fernando of Aragón is said
to have resided temporarily.
Baltanás is the principal town of the
region and has a rich historical heritage. Originally belonging to
Knights of the Order of Santiago, it was later the seat of Pedro de
Zúñiga and his descendants. Richly decorated houses with elaborate
family crests attest to its noble roots.
The wide open Castillian plains, which extend from Palencia,
through Valladolid, Zamora and León, are known as ‘the Tierra de
Campos’. Of particular interest here is the town of Ampudia.
Medieval
houses jostle in the narrow streets and the gothic castle, once the
palacial home of the bishop of Palencia, Don Sancho de Rojas, is a well
preserved 15th century construction.
Other towns worth visiting for
their Gothic or Romanic religious buildings include Meneses de Campos,
Villarramiel, and Autillo de Campos, this latter the place where
Fernando III, known as ‘The Santo’ (the Saint), was crowned king thus
uniting León to Castilla and marking the beginning of one of the most
extensive phases of southern expansion and conquest of Moorish Iberia.
 Like a ribbon around a girl’s waits, the Road to Santiago
crosses the Palencian plains and takes in such Romanic treasures as
Fromista and CArrión de los Condes.
In Fromist, the church of San
Martín, dating from the 11th century is perhaps one of the earliest and
best preserved examples of Romanic architecture of the province. This
small town also boasts two other magnificent temples; the late gothic
churches of San Pedro and Santa María.
Carrión de los Condes is a small town located on the route to Santiago
that contains several palatial reminders of an aristocratic past. These
palaces housed landed aristocracy whose patronage resulted in the
magnificent temples of San Julian, San Andrés and Santa María as well
as the beautiful hermitages of la Piedad and Belén.
The extensive
monastery of San Zoilo, dating from the 10th century with later 15th
century additions, is now a comfortable three star hotel in which
guests can relax surrounded by reminders of less complicated times.
The north of Palencia is extraordinarily rich in natural
beauty. To the north the Cantabrian Mountains form a brooding halo over
the pristine villages and towns within whose boundaries an equally rich
heritage and wealth of architectural beauty can be appreciated.
Towns
of royal lineage such as Aguilar de Campos with its ruined castle at
whose feet is found the hermitage of Santa Cecilia and the monastery of
Santa María are well worth a visit.
The mark of Palencia and of Castilla y León in general is
stamped on the post-conquest history of Spain. It is from these
northern lands that new populations were introduced to the rest of the
Peninsula thus forming the basis of the modern-day Spanish character.
More information
http://www.turwl.com
http://www.dip-palencia.es/
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