Within the city people dreamed and fought without fear, they looked for and they discovered, they defended the weak, they wrote, they conspired..... they lived.

Friar Luis de León, Lázaro de Tormes, Francisco de Vitoria, María la Brava , Melibea, Unamuno and Fonseca. Raimundo de Borgoña, Alfonso VI, Torrent Ballester, Kings and Queens , merchants, professors, students, conquerors and anonymous people. All those who lived in it and never left.....

For this reason it is welcoming and open. For this reason it is present and past, a city of world heritage.

1. - From the origins until the beginning of the Middle Ages

Before the Romans controlled it, the basin of the Duero was occupied by the "vacceos". They built two strongholds to defend the western side of their domains, one in Zamora , called Ocello Durii, and the other one in Salamanca , called Salmantica. The town that arose around this second stronghold ended up becoming rather significant, according to various historians.

With the victory of the Romans against the Carthaginians, the Roman occupation was consolidated and the development of the city continued. Its importance as a center of exchange of products and its location next to a natural ford on the Tormes helped make it one of the most important Roman roadways in Hispania, the Vía de la Plata . It was designed in the 1 st century to connect the south of the Peninsula with the north, uniting August Emérita ( Merida ) with August Cesar ( Zaragoza ). An important bridge was built over the river Tormes for this road, probably in the time of emperor Trajan. It was made of 27 half point arches. Of the original arches, only the fifteen arches closest to the city have been conserved.

After the Muslim invasion, the incursions of the Asturian kings in the area didn't seek the establishment of Christian settlements, but rather the transfer of the population to the north of the country. Alfonso I of León reconquered the city destroying its fortresses and leaving it abandoned.

Ordoño I reconquered it from the new Saracen occupation in the year 863. King Alfonso III conquered the city again, but had to abandon it under pressure from the troops of Cordova. Ramiro II was the first king of the Reconquest that planned a repopulation in the basin of the Tormes. Soon after his victory against Abderraman III Simancas (939), he caused people originally from Leon to move to several places along the Tormes, among them Salamanca . This repopulation was ephemeral since Almanzor devastated the city again in the year 986 during his campaign against Zamora .


2. - The repopulation of the city in the Lower Middle Ages

With the conquest of Toledo by Alfonso VI in May of 1085, other nearby cities passed to Christian hands. This lowered the tension in the area of the Tormes by moving the border toward the south. This facilitated a more effective repopulation of the area between the Duero and the Central Mountain range.

3. – 14 th and 15 th Centuries

By the middle of the 14 th century a civil war broke out among those in favor of King Pedro I of Castile and those in favor of his brother Enrique de Trastamara. In the 15 th century fights took place among D. Álvaro de Luna and the princes of Aragon . Salamanca wasn't able to keep out of these events.

At the beginning of the second half of the 15 th century rebellions took place against Enrique IV. The relationships between the king and the city were good, since on August 27, 1467 the king sent a letter to Medina granting permission for the celebration of fairs in Salamanca : "For the many and good and loyal and important services that you have done for me and continue to do every day... ".

In 1475 King Fernand the Catholic visited Salamanca with the purpose of getting the support of the city in Isabel's cause in the case of the Beltraneja. The cavalry of Salamanca participated actively in the Battle of Bull, in which the might of Catholic Kings was consolidated.

The Catholic Kings visited the city of Salamanca several times, influencing decisively in the growth and prestige of the University. Prince Don Juan, son of the Catholic Kings, was the lord and governor of Salamanca , the city where he died in 1497.

4. – 16 th to the 18 th Centuries

Important facts of this period to highlight are:

In 1520 the rebellion of the Communities of Castile took place. The Comuneros of Salamanca were led by D. Pedro Maldonado Pimentel, a knight of Babilafuente, and D. Francisco Maldonado Pimentel, Mister of the village of the Maderal.

In 1610 Margarita of Austria and King Felipe III visited the city. These monarchs were the promoters of the construction of the Clergy building ( La Clerecía ).

The zenith of Salamanca corresponds to the 14 th century. The demographic levels reached heights that wouldn't be equaled until the end of the 18 th century. In 1517 the population was approximately 20,000 residents. The prestige of the University reached its highest level. It is necessary to highlight the building impulse of the Catholic Kings and Cardinal Cisneros who built numerous schools and seminaries.

There are other factors that influenced the extraodinary growth of Salamanca in the 16 th century, which became the quintessential Renaissance Spanish city, for example, the university atmosphere was favorable to the communication of humanist ideas, wealth was generated by the trade of wool, and the nobility was strong.

In the 16 th century, construction on the University and Lower Schools finished and the work on the New Cathedral began (1512). It is also necessary to highlight the building of the Convents of the Dueñas and Santo Domingo , the Palace of Garcigrande , the House of the Dead and the Palace of Monterrey .

The impact of these monumental buildings on the city's layout was significant. In medieval city planning each building belonged to a group of buildings, and all of their elements constituted a single visual unit. In the Renaissane a new concept of architectural space appeared. This led to the development in the city of numerous buildings, each one of them with its own intrinsic value, endowed with great, monumental facades, and with a great number of works of art on the inside. These buildings stand completely independent of their environment. A clear contradiction appeared between the city streets, formed by narrow, broken roads, and the monumental greatness of the squares, convents, schools and palaces.

At the beginning of the 18th century the Plaza Mayor was begun. This Baroque square was constucted partly on the lot occupied by the old square of San Martin . The decision to build it was made in 1710. The twelve houses of the eastern side, known as the Royal Real Pavilion, were finished in 1733. On the north side the Town Hall was built between 1728 and 1755. From then on, the Plaza Mayor has been the unquestionable center of the life of the city. Few places in the city are as lively as this square.

5. – 19 th Century

During the first half of the XIX century the population decreased. According to the first official census of 1852, there were 15,213 residents. This descent can be attributed to the effects of the Spanish war for independence as well as to the crisis in the church and the University.

During the war for indepence more than the third part of the artistic treasures of Salamanca were destroyed. In October of 1807 Napoleon's army entered Spain ; in November of that year an army of 20,000 men arrived in Salamanca . In July of 1812 an important battle took place near Salamanca , in Arapiles, in which the French were defeated by British and Spanish troops under the command of General Wellington. The French army destroyed the whole Southwest area of the city in order to build fortifications. Entire streets of the neighborhood of the Miracles, and of the hillside of San Vicente were destroyed, as well as almost all of the schools, churches and mansions located around the university.

6. – 20 th Century

Up to 1936 the growth of the city went toward the north, northeast and east. In the north the growth continued along the Plaza Mayor – Puerta de Zamora axis, along the present day Paseo de Torres Villarroel up to the round-about. In the northeast construction occurred along the present day Federico de Anaya Avenue . To the west, construction didn't surpass the limits of the present day Ronda. Along the right riverbank of the Tormes the extension of new construction followed the path of the previous century, which was limited to the tanneries of the leather factories and the neighborhood of Santiago . On the left riverbank there was only a small neighborhood in front of the Roman Bridge , at the intersection of the highways to Madrid and Cáceres.

At the beginning of the 60's the tendency was growth in the shape of an oil stain. To the north Federico Anaya Avenue continued to expand; to the northwest the neighborhoods of Vidal, Oeste, San Bernardo and Pizarrales arose around the Avenue of Villamayor.

At the end of the 60's and the beginning of the 70's the bridge of Salas Bajas was built, which notably improved communication between the city and the left riverbank of the Tormes.

The Gran Vía by the middle of the 70's already reached Santo Domingo square, and connected with the Paseo del Rector Esperabé . By the middle of the seventies a series of intersections and enlargements of highways on the left riverbank of the Tormes were built, which doubled the sidewalk space along the section between the Roman Bridge and that of Salas Bajas.

Starting from the 60's the movement of the population out of the Old Neighborhood intensified. Those with higher income levels continued to live preferably in the area between the Plaza Mayor and the Avenida de Mirat, while the middle and lower classes moved to outlying areas.

7. - Recovery of the Historic Center

In January of 1981 the Special Plan For The Protection And Renovation Interior of the Inner Enclosure Of The University and The Historic-Artistic Area of Salamanca was written. It was definitively passed in March of 1984.

The Special Plan arose as an inicial step in the government's plans for the Old City of Salamanca. Its first order of business was to establish a framework in accordance with the general policy of recuperating the traditional values of the city.

Out of this Special Plan an agreement was signed with different governmental organizations, as stated within the Pilot Combined Performance Operation in Salamanca .

January 14, 1984 the first of the Pilot Operations were signed in the Town Hall of Salamanca on behalf of six branches of the Ministry of Public Works and of the Ministry of Culture, the Council of Territorial Action and Urban Development of the Coucil of Castile and León, the Provincial Legislature, the Town Hall and the University of Salamanca .

Numerous interventions were carried out, among them:

- Rehabilitation of the old House of Lis
- Rehabilitation of the Archbishop's Palace
- Construction of the Convention Hall (Palacio de Congresos)
- Groundwork to allow for the construction of houses along the Riverside of the Bridge and the rest of the Old Neighborhood
- Housing in the Patio Chico, next to the New Cathedral

8. - SALAMANCA : EUROPEAN CAPITAL OF CULTURE 2002

Becoming the European Capital of Cultural transformed Salamanca . It marked a before and after. It opened the way to a new city , with a new image, renovated and with new infrastructure.

May 28, 1998, the Council of Ministers of the European Union granted the city the recognition of European Cultural Capital. From that date on the countdown began in order to ensure that it would be a success for everyone in the city.

The Central Government's contributions and those of the Council of Castile and León for the construction of the new buildings, the approval of tax exemptions and the patronage of numerous companies that collaborated in the quality program designed for all ages and preferences demonstrate what Salamanca 2002 meant.

The Salamanca 2002 Consortium was the instrument that allowed the Town Hall, Provincial Legislature, Caja Duero and University share its efforts and concerns with the Council of Castile and León and the central Government in Madrid . Salamanca conserves the weight of its history intact, but as European Cultural Capital the city was projected again to the world and it provided the city the means to be competitive. The new cultural program was accompanied by a private investment without precedent. In hardly one year the number of hotel beds in the capital almost doubled, providing space to the three million tourists that visited Salamanca during 2002.

During the whole year a nurtured representation of the arts passed through the city: Montserrat Caballé, Josep Careers, the National Ballet, Els Comediants or the Balzac of Rodin are only some of the names and shows

As Culture Capital it was also a great opportunity to endow to the city of what lacked until that moment: the cultural containers with which Salamanca could confront the challenges of an ever more selective tourist market.

The investments in buildings, on the order of some 70 million Euros, allowed for:

- The Rehabilitation and opening of Santo Domingo de la Cruz as an Exhibition Hall
- The Reconstruction of the Liceo Theater
- The Rehabilitation of the old jail as new Center of Art (Domus Artium 2002)
- The Construction of the Center For Performing Arts And Of Music (CAEM)
- The inauguration of the Museum of History of Motor Vehicles (the largest government owned museum in the whole country dedicated to the world of automobiles).
- The construction of the Multipurpose José Luis Sánchez Paradise building
- The rehabilitation of San Blas Hall.

In the study of the socioeconomic impact of 2002, coordinated by Luis Caesar Blacksmith verifies and ratifies with all type of objective measurements that Salamanca 2002 was a success and that it marked a before and an after at all the levels in the history of this city. Looking at the impact of the expenditure on culture alone of Salamanca 2002, the effect was 3.2 times greater to that of the Guggenheim Museum in the same year.

The city generated 241 million Euros, 83 more than what it invested in Salamanca 2002. Of the 158 million Euros of direct expense, 25% corresponded to cultural expense, the programming and its administration, and 75%, three times more, to paying for new buildings.

The study also tells us that the culture tourists who came to Salamanca during the year had a high level of studies and that they spent an average of 80 Euros a day.

It also reflectes how almost two million people participated in the 1,101 activities of Salamanca 2002.