RGÓMANIZ Soul..." and Its Parador Aranzadi

Vitoria, University of Past and Future "As far as we, the Basques, are concerned, it is true that we were not the people chosen by Jehovah, by nature the chosen people, but nevertheless we do have five fingers on each hand, and a heart and ARGÓMANIZ soul..." And Its Parador Aranzadi. The Problem with Basque Ethnography T he origins of Álava are uncertain, although definitely very remote. As in the case of the rest of the Basque provinces, it seems highly likely that these could date back to over two thousand years before Christ, when Noah's legendary grandson, Tubal, reached this area. According to ancient records –records which have been questioned, but never discarded, by historians– the so-called Tubals crossed the Pyrenees and came down onto the plains to settle in Navarre and Vasconia. "This would have been the origin of Euskera as the peninsula's first language," claim some experts, who are not even exclusively Basque. What we can be sure of is that in Paleolithic times hunters and perhaps even farmers already inhabited these lands. This can be seen in the numerous remains scattered throughout the province, many of which are now on display in the Archaeological Museum of Álava (pottery, weapons, and cave paintings, among other artifacts). The civilizing power of the Roman conquest reached the area early, at the start of the Christian era. We know that the Roman presence and influence were widespread, more so in Álava than in the northern territories, probably because the land was more hospitable and easier to travel through. Evidence of the Roman presence on the Álava "plain" is abundant: tombstones; thermal baths such as those in Arcaya; the Trespuentes bridge over the Zadorra River; and the Roman road, or oppidum, at Iruña, just 11 kilometers from Vitoria. After centuries of Romanization and Christianity, the much feared but also beneficial Muslim invasion also reached this area. At that time, Álava occupied a frontier position, with all the advantages and disadvantages this entails. It lay between two very different cultures: the Christian population to the north engaged in the Reconquest, and the peoples of the south who had become Arabized, but who were perhaps attracted by the habits and customs of a more refined culture, by commercial development and new technological advances. From that time on, the history of the lands of Álava merges with and becomes part of the passage of History itself. We are now in the Middle Ages, post-Conquest and Reconquest. We are traveling the Pilgrimage Route of St. James. These are confusing times –never quite as dark as is commonly believed– decades filled with conflict, and always uncertain. These are times of war, of Christian against Christian, of a continuous struggle between the monarchies of Navarre and those of Castile. These were the times of what has sometimes been called Gothic Vitoria, when the Navarrese king known as Sancho the Wise founded the town of ARGÓMANIZ AND ITS PARADOR 1 Vitoria to strengthen his position in the Gasteiz area, an through here. According to tradition, hospitals, important center of strategic importance on the Álava post-houses, inns, shops and convents were built by plain. Saint Domingo de Guzmán and Saint Francis Assisi themselves. There was also a prosperous Jewish However, it almost immediately became part of quarter. the Kingdom of Castile in the early 13th century, when King Alfonso VIII confirmed Álava's fueros, From the 16th to 18th centuries, the town or medieval charters, and even increased its experienced great economic prosperity, although it already considerable privileges. was also to experience the disasters of war. Napoleonic troops besieged and conquered Álava, The "Wise" King, Alfonso X, considerably occupying it until 1813, at which time they were expanded the town by building "the streets and expelled with the help of Wellington's armies. It houses needed by the priests and craftsmen." But it would also be subject to a siege by the Carlists. The would be another king, Juan II, who would grant Vitoria of today is a combination of elements from its Vitoria the status of city in 1430 varied past: art, religion, tradition and nobility. It is a city of education and cathedrals. And today it is These were times of great activity. The city was the center of the Basque Autonomous Community's an important market and stopping point for government. merchants and pilgrims. It was not by chance that the wool routes and pilgrims on the Way of St. James passed This "medieval Nuremberg", as Victor Hugo dubbed it, is all of the above, and much more. Parador of Saints, Pilgrims and Other Demons the blind who were not so blind, or beggars who shared out the T his magnificent Renaissance palace, now a Parador, is pilgrims' alms amongst themselves." located in Argómaniz, near Vitoria, a crossroads of cultures and civilizations, of wars and splendors, whose past has been crucial the Here the soil has always been generous and fertile for the shaping of the present. cultivation of many myths and legends, such as the legend of San Martinico: The visitor to Argómaniz should not expect to find great treasures or wonders of a brilliant past, which it never knew. Its streets bring to "In Ataún, they say that the Baxajaun (a type of devil or spirit, mind those of a nearly uninhabited village. Built as an estate for the lords of the forest) guarded the mysterious secrets of wheat cultivation. Iruraiz brotherhood, part of the Salvatierra group, it has been One day, a brave man, who would later become San Martinico, risked abandoned on many occasions since the time of Alfonso XI. visiting them in the cave where they lived. Fighting with the spirits and devils (no one really knows what they were) he deliberately fell into a Nonetheless, Argómaniz as a Parador offers its guests an pile of wheat to fill his shoes with the seeds (...) In this way, he was exceptional setting in which to recall, encounter, and better able to carry some of the precious grain back to the village. So, in understand a past which is still present. spite of all their efforts, the Baxajaun could no longer prevent the cultivation of wheat from spreading throughout the world..." Through these lands have passed Romans, Moors, Christians and Jews. This has been the scene of wars and a crossroads for caravans But the exploits of Saint Martinico did not end here. He also traveling to and fro between Flanders managed to snatch from the same and France and the ports of the spirits or devils the secrets of making Cantabrian coast. saws and welding iron, and the mysteries of mill building. For pilgrims traveling on the Way of Saint James, Vitoria was an obligatory The traveler will have as many meeting point as the roads from the opportunities as he or she may desire San Adrián tunnel and Salvatierra to enjoy the history and stories that joined, continuing on to Burgos and have been lived and relived in these Santo Domingo de la Calzada... "men parts. who make their pilgrimages to serve God and honor the saints," according That is what this Parador is like, a to King Alfonso X, the Wise. However, balcony looking out over the past, all were not saints, according to other while seeking to extend (maybe even documents which recount that these peer?) into the future. It dominates places were "schools of false cripples, the plain, as if to protect Vitoria- 2 ARGÓMANIZ AND ITS PARADOR Gasteiz, with Vitoria's hills forming a cloak around it. Some changes have been made to the interior of the Parador, although without losing sight of the original appearance. The ceiling The building has only been a Parador since 1978. This magnificent of what used to be the loft, now a large lounge and dining room, is Renaissance palace belonged to the large and influential Larrea family. particularly noteworthy. Juan de Larrea y Larrea rose to become a minister in the High Council of Castile during the time of King Felipe IV, the 17th century. Guests will immediately notice that all the beams, which are the He was also a professor at the University of Salamanca and a member only roof support, are exposed. The huge main beams rest on rows of of the Royal Treasury Council, as well as a knight of the Order of St. solid wooden pillars, each cut from a single trunk. It is also interesting James. to note that this framework is held together with wooden nails. His son, Juan de Larrea Enayo, also performed high-level functions Both in the Parador and in the nearby village of Argómaniz, the in the court of King Carlos II, was a Knight of the Order of Calatrava, locals claim that when a loft, the area was originally used as a and also a member of the Council of the Indies. granary, and was the place where corn was stored and threshed, keeping it out of the wet weather that is frequent in the region. A This noble building also appears to have been a convent and shelter miniature thresher hangs on the wall as if to prove that such work was for the Discalced Carmelites at the instigation of one of the bishops done here in the past. born into this illustrious family. However, the Parador was already a palace as early as 1712. The numerous and illustrious visitors who frequent and have The building is relatively rectangular and is covered by an Arab-tile frequented the Parador include Ardanza, Pujol, Urralburu and Borrel, hip roof.

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