Charming old university city

Those with a lifelong interest in history like me would know about Salamanca in the northern Spanish region of León, a city I always wanted to visit.

Some years ago, on my way to the city of León by coach, I saw in the distance the towering mass of Salamanca’s unique double-cathedral rising above the surrounding plain.

Last November, while on a short visit to Madrid, I made up my mind to go to Salamanca and I travelled the 160km by train.

I had the best part of a day to wander about this city and soon the sun was shining. Not too warmly, but it provided the ideal light to appreciate the architectural beauty.

Salamanca is of very ancient origin but what put it on the map, especially the intellectual one, was the founding of the university by King Alfonso IX of León shortly before he died in 1230.

His son (St) Fernando III, king of Castile since 1217, reconfirmed its privileges and the patronage of the latter’s son Alfonso X, El Sabio (the Wise) added lustre to it. At one time this university vied with Bologna and Oxford, such was its prestige. Columbus spoke here after some of his voyages and the Copernican theory was disseminated here long before it was accepted elsewhere.

The university still attracts scholars and students from all over the world. Holding piles of books or carrying laptop computers, they are very charming and helpful if you need directions. Not that it is easy to get lost in the city where everything radiates from the big cathedral and the old core of the university.

Salamanca expanded beyond the old walls, which were replaced with avenues. Wherever you look you can see beautiful houses and palaces built of sandstone, which acquires a golden-brown patina.

There is the massive Clerecía College and La Casa de las Conchas, with large reliefs of scallop shells dotting its façade. Dating from 1514, this is a reminder that the city is on one of the pilgrim routes to Santiago de Compostela. Other notable churches are San Martín and San Esteban.

Less impressive is the 19th century San Juan Sahagun, named after a mystic and former student at the university. A marble plaque on the façade honours a list of men and one woman who fell fighting in “the national crusade of 1936-39”. This is how the Franquistas called the dreaded Civil War, a painful episode in Spanish history which still rankles with some. This is expressed in daubing inscriptions such as this one with (now) fading red paint.

The same fate befell the medallion with the relief of Franco, one of many surrounding the lovely Plaza Mayor. Built in 1732, where the baroque Ayuntamiento stands, it is one of the loveliest squares in Spain.

Those mindful of women’s rights will notice that while the rights to the crowns of Castile and Leon were vested in Isabel la Católica and later her daughter Juana, here both are depicted behind their husbands, Fernando of Aragón and Philipp von Habsburg respectively.

Amedeo of Savoy’s medallion is a bit apart, among those representing the First and Second Republics and some poets. Poor Amedeo abdicated in disgust, finding Spain impossible to govern back in 1873.

Another reminder of the Civil War is the Episcopal palace in front of the old cathedral, which was used as the rebel army’s operational HQ in 1937-38 when Salamanca was also the capital city of Franco-held territory. Part of the palace, built in austere classic style in 1889, also serves as an exhibition space.

The ‘old’ cathedral refers to the 12th century late Romanesque building, which contains museum space on every floor within its high tower. Display items include old instruments of the late-medieval and Renaissance period when the cathedral’s cappella was among the best in Europe.

The old cathedral was deemed too small for the city and a new one was built beside it. This absorbed part of the space of the older building’s left aisle. Built between 1513-60, with later additions in the 16th and 18th centuries, this is the last great Gothic building to emerge in Spain and it is a treasure trove of art.

There are some cracks high up to the left of the main entrance which are a reminder of the great shockwaves which reached Salamanca during the great earthquake in Lisbon in 1755. One can also walk the outer walls and see the unusual lantern known as Torre del Gallo.

After visiting the Anaya palace courtyard nearby, with its walls painted with names of past graduates and university symbols, I stopped for lunch

Later, I spent a few hours walking and imbibing the city’s still old-worldly atmosphere and was so absorbed that it was with alarm I realised I had to dash to catch the train back to Madrid.