Geography
Valdecañas de Cerrato's geography is dotted with hills surrounded by moors and the population is settled at the foot of the Piyayo peak or the Roble peak, also called "Carrascal hill" in a valley along which the Castillo, Pozo, Valle and Pozuelo streams flow. These meet at the cemetery and supply water to the Cañocaliente, Aguanal, Matilla, Águila, Mojapán, Piedra, Burros and Carropalenzuela springs that flow into the Pisuerga river, which disappear before reaching their outlets. It lies at a distance of 14 km from the A-62, 37 km from Palencia, 53 km from Burgos and 68 km from Valladolid. To the north it is bordered by Tabanera de Cerrato,Demography
According to statistics provided by the Instituto Nacional de Estadística, the population of Valdecañas de Cerrato as at 1 January 2012 is 64 inhabitants.History
Middle ages
The town was repopulated probably around the time when theModern times
During the reign of the Catholic Monarchs Valdecañas de Cerrato still belonged to el Cerrato. In 1475 Queen Isabella issued a royal decree imposing a contribution on members of the merino. In the case of the town it was 4,329 maravedis. In 1484 Bernardino Perez de Sarmiento, first Earl of Ribadavia, and head of Galicia, owner of the town of Hornillos de Cerrato, leased the Valdecañas municipal term to Alfonso Enríquez, Admiral of Castile. In 1488 it was taxed by María de Castañeda. In the early sixteenth century the town was among the assets transferred by Teresa Sarmiento, daughter of the Count of Santa Marta, as part of the dowry for her marriage to Pedro Acuña "the Old", second Lord of Villaviudas. In 1675 it belonged to the lordship of the admiral of Castile, and had five religious buildings: the church of San Nicolás de Bari, and the hermitages of the Virgen del Campo, San Lorenzo, Santa Ana and Magdalena. It had a population of fifty inhabitants, and also had a hospital with two beds, paid for by the council. In 1702 the hermitages of Magdalena and Santa María de Cañuelas were in ruins, and the town's population had dropped to thirty-six residents. In 1752 it was called Baldecanas de Arriva and belonged to the lordship of Palenzuela in the province of Valladolid. Its population had risen to sixty-six residents, arranged in eighty-six habitable houses and three in ruins. The town comprised 2,500 obradas (about 4000m2) and annual revenue amounted to 509 reals. There was also a flour mill and 28 beehives. In 1783, due to a major epidemic caused by the stagnation of the streams after a flood, the population was decimated leaving thirty residents, of the one hundred and ten that it had previously. The Archbishop de Burgos stepped in to remedy the situation. In 1785 it was called Val de Cañas, and continued to belong to the same lordship, which is why, in the Gazetteer records it is not within the Cerrato judicial district.Contemporary era
During the Revolutionary War its landscape served as refuge to the Castilian guerrillas. The guerrilla commander, Juan Puertas, attacked the French garrisons located inEtymology
It was first named Valle Kannas, and the meaning of its name comes from the words val (valley) and caña (reed), so its name means valley of reeds. Throughout its history it was called Baldecañas de Arriva, referring to its position at the top of a hill. Its current name is due to its belonging to the region of El Cerrato, whose etymology comes from the undulating territory crowned with hills.Heritage
Iglesia de San Nicolás de Bari
Located on the highest point of the city center, the parish church is dedicated to San Nicolás de Bari, and possibly replaced a Romanesque building. It is aVirgen del Campo hermitage
Located on the outskirts of the town, at some 500 meters towards the south, it is dedicated to the Virgen del Campo. It was built in the seventeenth century, and it has a Baroque altarpiece presided over by an image of Mary in thirteenth century Gothic style. Also housed inside is a stone shield that crowns the entrance to a small chapel, belonging to the Tevar family, promoter of a pious work locally. Inside the chapel is an altarpiece dedicated to the Immaculate Conception and a recumbent Christ. Surrounding the chapel is a necropolis dating from the time of the repopulation, where tombs from the eleventh century were found.Fortified houses
At the entrance to the town there is a religious building which once served as the priest's rectory. Today it is privately owned, and has, on its façade, a shield of the Virgen del Carmen dated to 1738, accompanied by two sculptures, of San Antonio and Santa Barbara. A sundial survives in one corner. On its interior it has a seventeenth-century coffered ceiling. Another religious construction is called the Casa del Cordón'', as evidenced by the umbilical cord and San Francisco shields which are on its façade in plateresque style, reminiscent of the passing of the Franciscan order through the town. At present it still belongs to the Catholic Church and both its exterior and its interior have deteriorated with the passage of time. There is also an emblazoned civil building, now privately owned, built in ashlar masonry, with a heraldic shield on the façade and arched windows. It is believed that the construction consisted of a large utility building, possibly a hospital or care facility.Traditional architecture
The traditional architecture of the town is noted in the form of one or two storey buildings with a loft, distributed in typical Castilian style. For their facades mainly adobe and limestone in a whitish hue are used, typical of the area. Regarding the stonework, there is indication that these were influenced by the stonemasons from Merindad de Trasmiera (Cantabria). They worked on both religious rehabilitations as well as on civil constructions. Also notable among this type of construction are the cellars dug into the subsoil, denoting the wine activity in the area. They are located mainly on the Piyayo hillside, but can also be found around the churchyard and other urban areas. There are also traditional shepherd huts, which are one of the most characteristic buildings in the architecture of el Cerrato. These are circular buildings made of stone without any mortar, the door climatologically facing south, provided shelter and refuge for shepherds.El Castillo
On the outskirts of the village, about 4 km to the north, in the valley, on an isolated hill, are the remains of a fortification known as El Castillo, which is surrounded by the Ontanilla and Castillo streams. Its ruins cover an uneven surface, 90 by 27 m in length and width. It is surrounded by an unhewn stone wall with a thickness of 1.8 m and a maximum height of 1.2 m. Inside are the remains of a tower located in the broader area, of which 2.50 m in height are preserved. The amount of loose stones makes it difficult to calculate the length of the sides, which can be estimated between 7 and 9 m. Villovayo, which was abandoned in 1516, was located near to the castle as well as the Santa Ana hermitage in the area known as Roblecinto. There are also the remains of a similar fortification. The ashlar stones that were used to build these fortresses are no longer being used for the construction of other buildings and so their walls remain bare and exposed to incessant destructive action, weathering and erosion.Cañada Real Burgalesa
Notably the Burgalesa-Soriana Occidental section of the Cañada Real, 700 km long, with exit in Soriano, crossed through Valdecañas de Cerrato from Tabanera and continued south to Hornillos de Cerrato. This was a major cattle route for the transhumance of sheep making it possible to move around the entire Peninsula. Nearby are several buildings in ruins. The wilderness is called Valdecañuelas. The façade of a religious building is preserved. The most abundant sheep in this valdecañesa area were theSee also
* List of municipalities in Palencia *References
Bibliography
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