FAMOUS BUILDINGS IN LEÓN (I) "LEÓN CATHEDRAL"

León Cathedral

Santa Maria de León cathedral, also called the house of the light or the Pulchra Leonina is a gothic cathedral. It is the most famous monument of León and it is the pride of León.

León Cathedral at night


The current cathedral began to build in the year 1205 and it was finished in 1301. There is a legend about the construction of the cathedral which speaks about a mole that knocked down at night all the foundations which had been built during daylight. For that reason, the legend says that the builders had to raise the foundations several times until the mole was discovered.

The cathedral is famous for his stained glass windows in which different passages of the holy bible are represented. Those stained glass windows take up 1800 square meters on the walls. That joined to that the two towers are separated from the entrance portico (it is the only gothic cathedral which the entrance portico and the two towers are separated) does that inside the cathedral there is a major luminosity that in other Gothic cathedral.

Some stained glass windows of León Cathedral

Leon's History

Pre-romans.
In what today is León's province lived native people of Asturias and Cantabria. They were organized in tribes and they lived in settlements called "castros", which name survive in many populations like Castrocontrigo, Puente Castro or Castrillo.

The Romans.
The Roman conquest lasted about 200 year. In the year 79 the Legion VIIth Gémina Pía Félix returned to Spain, who would give origin to León's city. In the year 68 BC they founded a rectangular strengthened camp called Legio, which ten centuries later turned into the capital of a kingdom. They chose a strategic emplacement, completely favorably for the development of a city, in the crossroads of several Roman routes. Legio was built in the confluence of two rivers, the Torío and the Bernesga. There exist many fingerprints of the Roman domination: remains of the wall, of which only the square tower of the Ponces remains, close to the door of the Castle.

The Visigoth.
The Roman emperor Honorio sent to Roman Spain the Visigoth to submit the different invading villages. Most of the Visigoth penetrated in Roman Spain after his expulsion of the Gaul. Their monarchy was elective, which was causing frequent civil wars. In the year 585 the Visigoth (Leovigildo) conquered León's city.

The Muslims.
In the year 711 the Arabic invasion took place. The rapid occupation, work of Muza and Tarik, finished in 714, after the conquest of Toledo,.capital of the Visigoth.
León was conquered by the Arabs in 717 and reconquered by Alfonso Catholic in 742.

León's Kingdom.
León's Kingdom was founded at the beginning of the 10th century. His creator was Alfonso III the Great.The son of Alfonso III the Great, García I, is the first king of León.
During the reign of Ordoño II León was the most important city of the Christian Spain.
León is an enclave in which the Barbarian invasions and Muslim happened and in which there arose the monarchy and the nobility clans of Spain from the 10th century.


Walking along León's city is to re-live his history. The vestiges are numerous, especially, of the ancient León there remains medieval aspect surrounded with some walls to which they date back to the Roman epoch, a Romanesque basilica and an extraordinary Gothic Cathedral of beginning of the 13th century.

PARTIES IN LEÓN (I) "LAS ESPICHAS"

One of the typical university parties are "las espichas", they are organized every year by every faculty, with the aim of their patronal parties, in them there are some fun games, soda drinks, food, beer... in order to collect money for the students and so they can go away at the end of the year.





This video is an example of one of the typical scenes of "espichas" where the people laugh, amuse themself, get drunk, dance in order to spend the most enterteining evening.

Besides the "espichas", the faculties realize many and varied games during the year. In the following photos we show some examples and some videos.

ROUTES AND VILLAGES (I) "Cares route"

The Route of the Cares or divine throat, as well as he is known, it is the consequence of theCares river´s bed , determined to cross the mountains along the centuries.

It is a route of 12 km. to make on foot, among Cain (León) and Poncebos (Asturias) relaxing with the views of the landscapes. It is not necessary to be an experienced mountaineer to carry out it. It is only necessary to walk and to take an abundant photographic memory so that they believe us when we return... ...INCREDIBLE.

The problem to make this route is the return, that we have to walk in contrary sense the 12 kilometers again or to have a car that waits for us to carry out the long itinerary on road.

It is an extraordinary landscape where one can enjoy the nature and we think that it deserves to be seen.

http://www.larutadelcares.com/

ANTHEM FOR LEÓN

The "Himno a León" was composed by the musician Odón Alonso director of the Orfeón Leonés in 1934. The lyrics was written by J.Pinto Maestro. It was composed in order to conmemorate the V Centenary of the epic of El Paso Honroso
Since 1978 is the official anthem of the city of León, Spain , and it's oftenly used as the anthem of the province of León, Spain.

Sin León no hubiera España,
que antes que Castilla leyes,
concilios, fueros y reyes,
dieron prestigio a León.
La fama cantó su hazaña
con clarines de victoria:
¡León escribió la historia
de Covadonga a Colón!
Con su sangre a torrentes vertida
dio a la Patria preciado blasón
y en sus labios cobró vida
el hermoso lenguaje español.
¡Viva León!
Tierra hidalga, tierra mía:
estrofas del romancero,
desde Guzmán a don Suero,
van tremolando el honor.
¡Es León!
Con su sangre a torrentes vertida
dio a la Patria preciado blasón
y en sus labios cobró vida
el hermoso lenguaje español.
¡Viva León!
De piedra una plegaria
la catedral semeja,
sobria y gentil refleja
el alma de León.
De historia milenaria,
de santidad osario,
del arte relicario
y de la fe expresión.
Tierra hidalga, tierra mía:
estrofas del romancero,
desde Guzmán a don Suero,
va tremolando el honor.
¡Es León!
Con su sangre a torrentes vertida
dio a la Patria preciado blasón
y en sus labios cobró vida
el hermoso lenguaje español.
¡Viva León!
Gloria a ti, pueblo sin par;
a mi labio el corazón
se asoma para gritar:
¡Viva León! ¡Viva León!