images of the city of sl-salamanca

Visit and get to know Salamanca with an OFFICIAL TOURIST GUIDE. Its famous University, the Plaza Mayor, the house of the Dead, the Clergy, the House of Shells, the Patio Chico, the cathedrals and so many other unforgettable places.

Here are some options to get to know Salamanca:

The region was inhabited 2300 years ago by the Celtiberian tribes of the vacceos, to the north, and the vetones, to the south.

Aníbal Barca sited and took over the city in 220 BC, when the city was called Helmántica, a name that would later evolve to the present. Its privileged situation, next to a river, the Tormes, was perhaps the cause of this quickly populated area. The old stone bridge was built with the Romans, to allow the Via de la Plata from Astorga to Mérida. In Visigothic times, the episcopal see had to be instituted, since the Bishop of Salamanca was among those attending the III Toledo Council.

Four churches of Romanesque architecture are still partially preserved, such as San Martín, San Cristóbal, San Juan de Bárbalos and San Marcos. Muslim domination was short, because in the middle of the eighth century, Alfonso I took the city, passing from one hand to another until the definitive conquest by Alfonso VI.

Conquered Toledo, King Alfonso VI ordered the repopulation of the city by Count Raimundo of Burgundy. In this way, the Serrano and Francos settled in the center of this locality, while Castilian, Portuguese and Mozarabic people occupied the periphery. The charter of Salamanca was born with the reigns of Alfonso VIII and Alfonso IX. In the first years of the 13th century the University of Salamanca was founded, one of the first in Europe. The city was an important textile center of the route of the Mesta.

At the beginning of the 16th century, Salamanca acquired a special relevance from the demographic and university point of view. However, since the middle of the century it has not escaped the economic decline suffered by Castile and will not recover until the eighteenth century.
During the 19th century it was named provincial capital and is communicated by rail with Portugal, which contributes to a discreet economic boom.

In 1989, UNESCO declared it a World Heritage city and recently became a European City of Culture. Come and visit her.