Old Town of Pontevedra
Pontevedra historic centre
Centro histórico de Pontevedra | |
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Neighbourhood of Pontevedra | |
![]() Pontevedra Museum in the old town | |
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Coordinates: 42°25′59.5″N 8°38′42.5″W / 42.433194°N 8.645139°W | |
Country | Spain |
City | Pontevedra |
Population | |
• Total | 2,100[1] |
Postal code | 36002 |
The historic centre of Pontevedra (Spain) is the oldest part of the city. It is the second most important old town in Galicia after Santiago de Compostela,[2][3] and was declared a historic-artistic complex on 23 February 1951.[4]
The historic centre has a wealth of architecture and preserves many remains from the medieval, modern and contemporary periods.
Location
The historic centre of Pontevedra is bounded mainly by the streets that coincide with the line of the old city wall, its northern part being located on the left bank of the river Lérez that crosses the city.[5] The old town is bounded by Sierra Street to the north, Arzobispo Malvar Street to the east, Michelena Street to the south and Cobián Roffignac and Padre Amoedo streets to the east. The Alameda and the Gran Vía de Montero Ríos with the Ruins of the San Domingo Convent and the official institutional buildings from the end of the 19th century can be considered as an extension of the historic centre to the west.
History
It was probably in the 9th century that the population of Pontevedra began to gather around the old Roman bridge and enclave. In 1169, King Ferdinand II of León granted it the status of a town.[6] The construction of the new medieval bridge (today the Burgo Bridge) began and the population gradually settled in what is now the historic centre.[7]
Pontevedra was equipped with a fortified wall that developed in three successive stages from the original core located in the vicinity of the Basilica of Saint Mary Major, the highest and most easily defended area. The plan of the first wall is that of a pre-planned settlement, organised into three parallel streets (Platería Vella, Amargura-San Martiño and Alta-Sor Lucía streets) and a central transverse street corresponding to the upper part of Isabel II Street.[8]
In the 13th century, the walled enclosure was enlarged due to the progressive economic and demographic development generated by the royal privileges granted to the city (in 1229, Alfonso IX granted it an exclusive privilege for the processing and distribution of fish throughout the kingdom, and in 1238, Ferdinand III granted it the manufacture of sardine fat).[9] In the last years of the 13th century, the mendicant orders of the Dominicans, Poor Clares[10] and Franciscans arrived, the latter building their convent on the other high point of the old town, to the east.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/82/Debuxo_de_Pontevedra_por_Pier_Maria_Baldi_%281669%29.jpg/330px-Debuxo_de_Pontevedra_por_Pier_Maria_Baldi_%281669%29.jpg)
In the 14th century, a second phase of expansion of the wall took place, running along Pasantería Street and the
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/af/Pontevedra_capital_-_Plano_de_1856.png/260px-Pontevedra_capital_-_Plano_de_1856.png)
In the 16th century, the economic power of the Seamen's Guild led to the construction of the
In the 19th century, the medieval wall was demolished, beginning in 1852 with the Trabancas gate and ending with the section of Rouco Street and Cobián Roffignac Street in 1875.[15] The archiepiscopal towers and the fortress of the Churruchaos were also demolished and the Mendoza mansion was built.[16]
The new Town Hall was built in 1880, the Plaza de España was urbanised and the Alameda (the old Dominican orchard) was enlarged, in front of which were built the administrative buildings, seat of the institutions of the provincial capital, granted in 1833. In 1951, the historic centre of Pontevedra was declared a historic-artistic complex.[17] In 1999, the historic centre became pedestrianised and a thorough urban renewal was carried out.[18][19]
Urban planning
The
The main green area in the historic centre is the Casto Sampedro gardens annexed to the church and former convent of Saint Francis, in the center of which is the
Landmarks
Squares of medieval origin
The medieval squares of the old town of Pontevedra stand out as small halls of regular and geometric proportions.
Religious buildings
The most representative religious buildings in the old town were built by
Civil buildings
Pontevedra was a privileged place of residence for the nobility and powerful Galician families.[24] No other Galician city has such a wealth of coats of arms on the facades of many noble houses and pazos. In the historic centre there are more than 200 coats of arms carved in stone.[25]
Important civil buildings are: the House of the Bells, the Vaamonde House, the Old Mail House, the Palace of the Counts of Maceda, the Pazo of Gago and Montenegro, the Palace of Mugartegui, the Pazo García Flórez, the Pazo Castro Monteagudo, the House of Heads, the Main Theatre of Pontevedra and the Liceo Casino, the Pazo of the Marquis de Aranda, the Town Hall of Pontevedra, the Mendoza Mansion, the Palace of the Deputation of Pontevedra, the Valle-Inclán High School, the Building of the Official Association of Building Engineers and Technical Architects of Pontevedra, the Central Market of Pontevedra and the Castelao Building.
Statues
The statues in the historic centre pay tribute to important figures in the city's history: The Fiel Contraste, the Monument to the Heroes of Puente Sampayo or the statue of Valle-Inclán, as well as to popular figures such as the Ravachol parrot or the Galician women (Woman with chickens).
Bridges
The Burgo bridge is the arch bridge that provides access to the historic centre from the north and which gave its name to the town (Pontis Veteris).
Museums
The following museums are located in the historic centre of the city:
- Pontevedra Museum: It was inaugurated in 1929 and has 6 buildings. It is listed as one of the three best provincial museums in Spain.[26]
- Archiepiscopal Towers Interpretation Centre (CITA): It was inaugurated in 2010 and shows what was one of the most important defensive structures of the city.[27]
Cultural events and festivals
The historic centre of the city is the place in the city where the Pontevedra Feira Franca, the burial of the Ravachol Parrot, Os Maios and various events of the patron saint festivities of the Pilgrim Virgin are held.
Gallery
References
- ^ "El casco histórico recupera la cifra de vecinos de hace una década y supera los 2.100 "entremuros"". Faro (in Spanish). 28 August 2022. · "El casco histórico encadena tres años consecutivos manteniendo su número de vecinos, cerca de 2.000". Faro (in Spanish). 26 May 2019.
- ^ "Pontevedra". Xunta de Galicia. 13 September 2019.
- ^ Pombo, Antón, 2012, Un corto viaje a Galicia, Madrid, Anaya Touring, p. 61
- ^ Saavedra, Segundo, 2011, Un corto viaje a Rías Bajas, Madrid, Anaya Touring, p. 37
- ^ "La arqueología manda en las obras de rehabilitación del entorno de O Burgo". La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). 23 September 2006.
- ^ "Pontevedra celebrará los 850 años de su "fuero de ciudad"". La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). 11 April 2019.
- ^ Aganzo, Carlos, 2010, Ciudades con encanto. Pontevedra, Madrid, El País-Aguilar, p. 18
- ^ "Pontevedra redescubre su muralla". La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). 2 March 2002.
- ^ "Os foros do Portus Apostoli no medievo". La Voz de Galicia (in Galician). 23 March 2018.
- ^ "Santa Clara y Pontevedra, 750 años mirándose". La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). 5 December 2021.
- ^ "Sin impuestos en la Pontevedra bendecida por Enrique IV". El Mundo (in Spanish). 3 September 2011.
- ^ "La ciudad empieza a engalanarse para la Feira Franca". La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). 27 August 2014.
- ^ Durán Villa, Francisco, 2000, Provincia de Pontevedra, Madrid, Editorial Mediterráneo, p. 78
- ^ "La virgen de Quitapesares, el pirata Drake y la invasión de 1719". Pontevedra Viva (in Spanish). 15 April 2016.
- ^ "1852-2012: Del derribo de la muralla a su recuperación". La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). 30 December 2012.
- ^ "Las Torres Arcebispais entran en el siglo XXI". La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). 2 September 2014.
- ^ "Mismas fórmulas, pero con unos resultados dispares". La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). 31 March 2005.
- ^ "1999: Peatonalización del casco histórico". La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). 19 July 2019.
- ^ "Apenas restan diez calles por rehabilitar en el centro histórico". La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). 17 November 2019.
- ^ Saavedra, Segundo, 2011, Un corto viaje a Rías Bajas, Madrid, Anaya Touring, p. 37
- ^ Aganzo, Carlos, 2010, Ciudades con encanto. Pontevedra, Madrid, El País-Aguilar, p. 10
- ^ Pombo, Antón, 2012, Un corto viaje a Galicia, Madrid, Anaya Touring, p. 62
- ^ Riveiro Tobío, Elvira, 2008, Descubrir Pontevedra, Pontevedra, Edicións do Cumio, p. 8
- ^ Saavedra, Segundo, 2011, Un corto viaje a Rías Bajas, Madrid, Anaya Touring, p. 36 et 44
- ^ ""Todos estamos emparentados con la nobleza"". La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). 14 February 2011.
- ^ Aganzo, Carlos, 2010, Ciudades con encanto. Pontevedra, Madrid, El País-Aguilar, p. 50
- ^ "Las Torres Arzobispais abren sus entrañas a la ciudad por primera vez". La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). 13 August 2010.
Bibliography
- Aganzo, Carlos (2010). Pontevedra. Ciudades con encanto (in Spanish). Madrid: El País-Aguilar. p. 10; 18. ISBN 978-8403509344.
- Durán Villa, Francisco (2000). Provincia de Pontevedra (in Spanish). Madrid: Editorial Mediterráneo. p. 78. ISBN 8471563371.
- Pombo, Antón (2012). Un corto viaje a Galicia (in Spanish). Madrid: Anaya Touring. pp. 61–62. ISBN 978-84-9935-331-9.
- Riveiro Tobío, Elvira (2008). Descubrir Pontevedra (in Spanish). Pontevedra: Edicións do Cumio. p. 8. ISBN 9788482890852.
- Saavedra, Segundo (2011). Un corto viaje a Rías Bajas (in Spanish). Madrid: Anaya Touring. pp. 36–37, 44. ISBN 978-84-9776-890-0.
See also
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