Baltanás is a municipality located in the

province of Palencia Palencia is a Provinces of Spain, province of northern Spain, in the northern part of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile-Leon, Castile and León in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. It is bordered by the provi ...

, Castile and León, Spain. According to the 2021

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

(

INE INE, Ine or ine may refer to: Institutions * Institut für Nukleare Entsorgung, a German nuclear research center * Instituto Nacional de Estadística (disambiguation) * Instituto Nacional de Estatística (disambiguation) * Instituto Nacional Elec ...

), the municipality had a population of 1,219 inhabitants.

Etymology

The name Baltanás is derived from the evolution of Valle de Atanasio (Atanasio Valley). During the reign of

Alfonso VII Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic kingdom in the Iberian peninsula. ...

, in the year

1135 Year 1135 ( MCXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Levant * Spring – Shams al-Mulk Isma'il, Seljuk ruler of Damascuoks, sends envoys to Imad a ...

, it was commonly named "Valle de Valtanás". In the year

1145 Year 1145 ( MCXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Levant * Spring – Seljuk forces led by Imad al-Din Zengi capture Saruj, the second great Cru ...

the word "valley" disappeared. Later, over time, the initial "V" was replaced by a "B", becoming the current toponym, "Baltanás".

History

The population was of approximately 3000 inhabitants before the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, link ...

, and was reduced considerably during that period. Unemployment and lack of food made numbers dwindle even further during the 1950s. In 2005, bodies from fallen Civil War soldiers were recovered in the area known as "El Portillo". It still serves as a centre of activity for the El Cerrato Shire's service sector, in the Aranda de Duero-Palencia highway. The Catholic monarchs named it head of the Cerrato

Merindad ''Merindad'' () is a Mediaeval Spanish administrative term for a country subdivision smaller than a province but larger than a municipality. The officer in charge of a merindad was called a merino, roughly equivalent to the English ''count'' or ...

, an attribute that it maintains today. It continues to be the historic capital of the region of El Cerrato. Since 1974 the municipality includes the towns of Baltanás and Valdecañas de Cerrato, the latter hamlet built by decree dated February 21, 1974.

Description

The town occupies an area of 158.85 km². It is the historical capital of the comarca of El Cerrato, located in the southeast of the province of

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. Located in the Northwest of the Iberian Peninsula, in the northern half o ...

. Its relief is the result of the erosion of several river valleys, and it is composed of several moors. Its climate is

continental Continental may refer to: Places * Continent, the major landmasses of Earth * Continental, Arizona, a small community in Pima County, Arizona, US * Continental, Ohio, a small town in Putnam County, US Arts and entertainment * ''Continental'' ( ...

, characterized by extreme temperatures both in winter and summer. Regarding architecture, there is a predominance of single-family homes of one or two floor, with aligned façades that form blocks. There is a great number of squares, and the most important one is Plaza de España, where the town hall is located. It also has some parks, of which the largest is called La Carolina.

Cultural heritage

Among its ethnological heritage, the Baltanás wineries are noteworthy. It is a complex made up of 374 underground cellars where wine is traditionally made and stored. They are located on a hill known as Cerro del Castillo. It is said that the famous Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí visited Baltanás and was inspired by its cellars to create the chimneys of his famous house known as La Pedrera.

Gallery

File:Panoramica de Baltanas desde las Bodegas.jpg, Panoramic view of Baltanás File:Baltanás.050.JPG, Baltanás shield at the Town Hall File:Baltanas 002.JPG, Panoramic view File:Ermita baltanas.jpg, Virgin of Revilla Church File:Baltanás 007.JPG, Virgin of Revilla Church's dome File:Baltanás 019.JPG, Monument House, b. 1884 File:Baltanás 11.JPG, Traditional balcony File:Baltanás.014.JPG, Monument House File:Baltanás.012.JPG, Ceiling painting at Monument House File:Baltanás 050.JPG, Traditional House File:Baltanás 057.JPG, Monument House File:Baltanás 18.JPG, Winter at "La Carolina", Baltanás File:Baltanás 19.JPG File:Baltanás.006.JPG, San Millán Church's organ File:Baltanás.10.JPG, Holy Week celebrations

References

External links

IDECyL-Baltanás
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baltanas Municipalities in the Province of Palencia