Palencia

Palencia () is a city of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the province of Palencia. As of 2024, it has a population of 76,578.

History

thumb|Silver bracelet found in Palencia in 1956 in the school of the Filipenses composed of silver and gold jewelry, torques, necklaces, bracelets, earrings, fibulas and a large amount of silver dinars.

thumb|Mosaic with Medusa, found at numbers 4 and 5 of Ramírez Street in 1869 and currently preserved in the MAN.

Ancient era

The fortified Celtiberian settlement is mentioned as Pallantia () by Strabo and Ptolemy, a possible derivation of an Indo-European root pala ("plain"). It was the chief town of the Vaccaei, although Strabo wrongly assigns it to the Arevaci. The city was starved into submission by the Romans in the 2nd century BC and incorporated into the province of Hispania Tarraconensis, in the jurisdiction of Colonia Clunia Sulpicia (modern Clunia). Though the little Roman garrison city was an active mint, it was insignificant compared to the Roman villas of Late Antiquity in the surrounding territory. Archeologists have uncovered the remains of Roman villas at La Olmeda and at the "Quintanilla de la Cueza", where the fragments of mosaic floors are spectacularly refined. According to the 5th-century Galician chronicler Idatius, the city of Palencia was all but destroyed (457) in the Visigothic wars against the Suevi: the date falls in the reign of Theodoric II, whose power centre still lay far to the east, in Aquitania. When the Visigoths conquered the territory, however, they retained the Roman rural villa system in establishing the Campos Góticos ("Gothic Fields").

Bishopric

The Catholic bishopric of Palencia was founded in the 3rd century or earlier, assuming that its bishop was among those assembled in the 3rd century to depose Basilides, bishop of Astorga. Priscillianism, which originated in Roman Egypt but flourished in Iberia was declared a heresy by the emperor Gratian. Prisciallinists held orthodox Catholic beliefs with Gnostic/Montanist influences. Priscillian was ordained priest and then consecrated bishop of Ávila. The 'heresy' was strongest in northwestern Spain. The declaration of heresy was a political move by the Catholic usurper emperor Maximus (383-388) to curry favor with the Catholic emperors Valentinian II and Theodosius I (a Spaniard). After the establishment of effective Visigothic power Catholics disputed the bishopric of Palencia with the Arian Visigoths. Maurila, an Arian bishop established in Palencia by Leovigild, followed King Reccared's conversion to Catholicism (587), and in 589 he assisted at the Third Council of Toledo.

Bishop Conantius, the biographer of Saint Ildephonsus, assisted at synods and councils in Toledo and composed music and a book of prayers from the Psalms; he ruled the see for more than thirty years, and had for his pupil Fructuosus of Braga. On the eve of the expulsion, the Jews protested to the Crown that local leaders blocked the sale of their communal property, permitted under the edict. The synagogue was eventually granted to the municipality, which planned to found a hospital, though by 1495 the building was being used as a municipal abattoir.

Iñigo López de Mendoza (1472–actually)
Fray Alonso de Burgos (1485–1499)
Bishop Fonseca (1505–1514)
La Gasca (1550–1561)
Zapata (1569–1577)
Alvaro de Mendoza

Geography

thumb|left|View of the [[Cristo del Otero hill. The colossal statue of Jesus is reportedly the fourth-largest in the world.]]

Palencia lies in the north of the central Spanish plateau, the Meseta Central, in the middle of the Carrión river valley, near the river's confluence with the Pisuerga, which flows through the town creating four islets, Dos Aguas and Sotillo being the largest. Palencia is located approximately 190 km north of Madrid, and some 40 km north of Valladolid, capital of Castile and León.

Two hills surround the city in its north-east area. On the closest stands the 30-metre high statue of Christ known as the Cristo del Otero, the fourth-tallest statue of Christ in the world.

Palencia has a substantial forest of 6 km away on a plateau above the city, known locally as the "Monte el Viejo" ("Old Mount"). This park is a popular amusement area for the locals.

The Canal de Castilla runs close to the city.

Palencia's municipality includes the village of Paredes de Monte, 14 km away.

Climate

thumb|left|The San Juanillo neighborhood after a snowfall

The region of Palencia has a Continental Mediterranean climate with cool winters, due to altitude (749 m) and isolation from maritime influences, chilly winds, including some days of snow in the winter and minimum temperatures usually below 0 °C (32 °F). Fog is frequent because of the Carrion river. Summers are hot with temperatures that consistently surpass 30 °C (86 °F) in July and that can rarely reach 38 °C (99 °F). Due to Palencia's altitude, nightly temperatures tend to be cooler, leading to a lower average in the summer months. Precipitation levels are moderated, but precipitation can be observed throughout the year (except July and August). Summer and winter are the driest seasons, with most rainfall occurring in the autumn and spring.

Light rains are very frequent in winter, with infrequent rain and heavy thunderstorms in the summer. Snow is an infrequent occurrence, with only a few days of snowfall each year in December, January, and February, however, snowfall can also occur in November or March.

Demographics

Palencia's population has decreased since 2011, from 81,089 inhabitants in 2011 to 76,578 in 2024. The town has historically been a centre for immigration from other parts of Spain, particularly between 1950 and 1970 receiving rural immigrants helping industrial development. Nevertheless, today, it has a population with more retirees than the average, due to youth emigration to larger urban centres such as Valladolid, Madrid or Barcelona.

Main sights

thumb|right|[[Cathedral of Palencia's apse]]

thumb|Puentecillas, a [[Roman bridge.]]

The Roman bridge across the Carrión river was replaced by the medieval one of three arches: the old section of the city is on the left bank, the modern suburban development is on the right bank: it seems likely that the first inhabitants settled on the right bank, and later moved to the left bank—set on higher ground—due to frequent flooding.

thumb|Crypt of Saint Antoninus, Cathedral of Palencia

La Olmeda Roman Villa (Villa Romana de La Olmeda) is a well-preserved 4th century AD house.

With 27 rooms and 3,000 square metres of space, it is best known for its mosaics, the most important of which depict great mythological scenes and can be found in its main hall. Several of the rooms in the villa also contain the remains of the Roman hypocausts. In addition to the main building, the villa site is surrounded by other Roman ruins such as numerous burial sites and a set of thermal baths.

The old city walls were more than 10 meters high and can still be traced; the alamedas or promenades along them were laid out in 1778.

Parks in Palencia

thumb|right|Paseo de los Canónigos

According to the Municipality of the capital, Palencia is the city with more green areas per inhabitant of Spain and occupies one of the first places in the European Union. This, coupled with the low density of traffic causes that the city air is fairly clean. The main parks in the city are:

Biggest parks in the city:

Salón de Isabel II (called usually "El Salón")
Huerta de Guadián
Jardinillos de la Estación (known simply as "Jardinillos")
Parque-Isla Dos Aguas
Sotillo de los Canónigos
Huertas del Obispo
Carcavilla
Parque Ribera Sur

Education

thumb|right|Library in La Yutera Campus

The first university in Spain, the studium generale of Palencia was founded by Alfonso VIII in 1208; however, the school did not long survive him. The 13th-century poet Gonzalo de Berceo and Saint Dominic, Founder of the Dominican Catholic Order, studied at the University during its brief existence. The teachers from Palencia were drawn to the thriving University of Salamanca and the University of Valladolid, but the very important religious orders remained in Palencia, under the Bishop of Palencia.

The University of Valladolid (UVA) has a campus in Palencia (), inaugurated in 2002.

Transport

Roads

Palencia is well-linked to other town and cities of Spain by roads and highways:

Highways

A - 62 Valladolid / Madrid

A - 65 Benavente/ León / Asturias / Galicia

A - 67 Santander

CL - 610 => A -62 Burgos / Bilbao / Zaragoza / Barcelona

Autonomic Roads

C - 613 Sahagún

C - 615 Guardo / Riaño

C - 619 Aranda de Duero / Soria

In addition, Palencia has a bus station located next to the train station. ALSA and other bus companies link Palencia to many Spanish cities and towns and it is especially useful for travelling to places not linked by train, such as the south-west of Spain.

Railways

thumb|right|Platform of the Palencia railway station

The city also has a busy railway station, given its strategic location as a hub for north and north-west railway connections in Spain. There are several services from Palencia railway station to Valladolid-Campo Grande, Madrid (Chamartín and Príncipe Pío), León, Burgos, Vitoria-Gasteiz and Santander, 3 daily trains to Barcelona Sants, Bilbao-Abando, A Coruña, Santiago, Oviedo and Zaragoza-Delicias, 1 daily train to Albacete-Los Llanos and Alicante.

Air transport

Valladolid Airport is the closest airport to the city at 45 kilometres.

Public transport

thumb|A bus line 2

Palencia has a bus service formed by 6 daily lines, named with numbers, managed by Palbus. The fleet is 18 buses. It has one of the lowest fares of Spain (€0.65). There are 26 stops with electronic panels with the arriving of the next buses. The number of users per day in 2012 was 8,195, which is 2,900,000 per year. There is also a night bus, an electric bus, free Wi-Fi in all buses and intelligent systems with voice at the buses announcing the stops.

{| class="wikitable"

|+ Lines

! colspan=2 | Line

! Path

! Hours weekdays

! Hours Saturdays

! Hours Sundays

! Frequency Monday to Saturday

! Frequency Sundays

| style="background:#ED1C24; width:5px" | || Line 1||San Antonio - Campus|| 6:40 to 22:30|| 6:40 to 22:30||8:30 to 22:30|| 20 minutes || 30 minutes

| style="background:#008F4C; width:5px" | || Line 2||Camino de la Miranda - Campus||6:30/7:00 to 22:50||6:30/7:00 to 22:50||8:15 to 22:15 ||15/20 minutes|| 30 minutes

| style="background:#0061A9; width:5px" | || Line 3||Hospital Río Carrión - San Telmo|| 7:00 to 22:30 || 7:00 to 22:30 || 7:30 to 22:30 ||30 minutes || 30 minutes

| style="background:#FFBA00; width:5px" | || Line 4||Allende el Río - Polygons| 6:30 to 22:00 || 6:30 to 22:00 || 9:00 to 22:00 ||60 minutes|| 60 minutes

| style="background:#00FF00; width:5px" | || Line 5||Cristo del Otero - Hospital Río Carrión|| 7:00 to 21:30 || 7:00 to 14:30 || No service || 60 minutes|| Sin servicio

| style="background:#A0522D; width:5px" | || Line 6||Plaza de León - Mount "el Viejo"|| 11:30 to 21:00 || 11:30 to 21:00 || 11:30 to 21:00 || 60 minutes || 60 minutes

Sustainable mobility

Palencia is making efforts in the area of sustainable mobility, such as extending a free bicycle loan system, implementing pedestrian areas in the town center and promoting environmentally sustainable public transport.

Cuisine

The main speciality of Palencia is locally produced lechazo (suckling lamb). Traditionally suckling lamb is roasted slowly in a wood oven and served with salad. "Menestra de Verduras" is a mixture of vegetables cooked with chopped pieces Spanish ham, onion, garlic and spices is another traditional dish.

thumb|right|Roasted lamb rack

Palencia also offers a great assortment of lettuces, leeks, wild mushrooms, peppers, asparagus, endives and beans. Some legumes, like white beans and lentils are particularly good and cooked in hot dishes with chorizo.

The sopa de ajo, a traditional winter garlic soup dish, made with bread mixed with paprika, water and garlic and cooked slowly. A raw egg is often whipped into the soup as it is served.

Morcilla is a form of black sausage made from pig's blood. In Castile the pig blood is often flavoured with pieces of pork fat, onions herbs and spices; the addition of rice gives a distinctive texture and flavour.

Despite being an inland province, fish is quite commonly consumed. Brought from the Cantabrian Sea, fish such as red bream and hake are a major part of Palencia's cuisine. Salted cod is another common dish.

Rivers from the Cantabric Mountains bring the famous trout, grilled with bacon. Crayfish is cooked with a thick tomato and onion sauce.

Palencia has a variety of different breads including fabiolas, roscas or panes.

The pastries and baked goods from the province of Palencia are well-known. Rice pudding and leche frita or fried milk (a mix of milk, sugar, flour and cinnamon with a delicious and jelly-like texture) are favourite desserts.

Palencia is also a producer of wines. Those that are certified as Designation of Origin Arlanza are improving with a taste similar to those of Ribera del Duero and Toro.

Notable people

Sara Bayón (born 1981), Spanish rhythmic gymnast and coach
Pablo Casado (born 1981), Spanish politician, former president of People's Party and Leader of the Opposition.
Gonzalo Diéguez y Redondo (1897-1955), diplomat
Marta Huerta de Aza (born 1990), football referee
Sofía Tartilán (1829-1888), novelist, essayist, journalist, editor

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Gallery

File:Torre de San Miguel.JPG|San Miguel Church (12th century)

Image:Church_of_San_Pablo_in_Palencia.jpg|Convento de San Pablo (14th century).

Image:Palencia - Monasterio de Santa Clara 08.JPG|Monastery of Santa Clara, in Gothic style, built between 14th and 15th centuries.

Image:Nave central Catedral de Palencia.JPG|Cathedral of Palencia, nave and vault

Image:San Lazaro.JPG|San Lázaro Church, built in 1508.

Image:Palencia - Casa de los Sres García Germán.JPG|Señores García Germán's House.

Image:Berruguete en la Plaza Mayor.JPG|Plaza Mayor of Palencia.

Image:Diputacion Palencia.jpg|Palace of the Provincial Diputación.

File:Palencia 1823 Edward Hawke Locker.jpg|A entrance of Palencia circa 1823 by Edward Hawke Locker

</gallery>

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