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The Puerto del Escudo (Pass of the Shield) is a
mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human a ...
at 1,011 meters
elevation The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § Vert ...
located in the valley of Luena, to the east of the
Sierra del Escudo Sierra (Spanish for "mountain range" and "saw", from Latin ''wikt:serra#Latin, serra'') may refer to the following: Places Mountains and mountain ranges * Sierra de Juárez, a mountain range in Baja California, Mexico * Sierra de las Nieves, a ...
mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arise ...
and on the boundary between
Cantabria Cantabria (, also , , Cantabrian: ) is an autonomous community in northern Spain with Santander as its capital city. It is called a ''comunidad histórica'', a historic community, in its current Statute of Autonomy. It is bordered on the east ...
and Castile (province of
Burgos Burgos () is a city in Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the province of Burgos. Burgos is situated in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, on the confluence of t ...
) in Spain. The source of the Magdalena or Luena River is located there. It has been one of the main access routes from the coast to the interior
plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ha ...
crossing the
Cantabrian Mountains , etymology=Named after the Cantabri , photo=Cordillera Cantábrica vista desde el Castro Valnera.jpg , photo_caption=Cantabrian Mountains parallel to the Cantabrian Sea seen from Castro Valnera in an east-west direction. In the background, th ...
. At the moment the N-623 highway runs over it and is well known for its steep inclines on its Cantabrian slope that can be up to 15%, causing a difficult transit for
heavy vehicle A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame constructio ...
s. This characteristic and its altitude result in the relatively frequent closing of the pass when there is heavy snow in the winter. Alcaldes de Burgos y Cantabria piden un túnel que atraviese el Escudo
/ref> During 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, lin ...
, the pass was the site of a decisive battle between Republican forces (trying to hold the pass) and Italian forces (trying to dislodge them), part of the
Battle of Santander The Battle of Santander was a battle fought in the War in the North campaign of the Spanish Civil War during the summer of 1937. Santander's fall on 26 August assured the Nationalist conquest of the province of Santander, now Cantabria. The bat ...
. A
pyramid A pyramid (from el, πυραμίς ') is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge to a single step at the top, making the shape roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilat ...
-shaped
tomb A tomb ( grc-gre, τύμβος ''tumbos'') is a :wikt:repository, repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be ...
for the
Italians , flag = , flag_caption = The national flag of Italy , population = , regions = Italy 55,551,000 , region1 = Brazil , pop1 = 25–33 million , ref1 = , region2 ...
killed in the battle still stands at the top of the pass, although their bodies were removed some years ago.


See also

*
List of highest paved roads in Europe This is a list of the highest paved roads in Europe. It includes roads that are over long and whose culminating point is at least above sea level. This height approximately corresponds to that of the highest settlements in Europe and to the t ...
*
List of mountain passes This is a list of mountain passes. Africa Egypt * Halfaya Pass (near Libya) Lesotho * Moteng Pass * Mahlasela pass * Sani Pass Morocco * Tizi n'Tichka South Africa * Eastern Cape Passes * Western Cape Passes * Northern Cape Passes * Kwa ...


References

{{reflist


External links


Puerto de El Escudo
Satellite view.

Escudo The escudo (Portuguese: 'shield') is a unit of currency historically used in Portugal and its colonies in South America, Asia, and Africa. It was originally worth 16 silver . The Cape Verdean escudo and the former Portuguese escudo (PTE), each ...
Mountain passes of Cantabria Landforms of Castile and León