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In
400 BC Salamanca was founded by Celtic tribes. The Romans then
annexed the city as part of the Province of Lusitania and gave
it the name "polis megale". Christianity arrived to
the city some time before the year 600 and then the Moors conquered
it some 120 years later. In the 12th century Salamanca was restored
to the Christian monarchs and so began the re-population of what
was to become the province of Salamanca.
At the beginning of the 13th
century the University of Salamanca was founded. It was one of
the first and most prestigious universities in Europe. Christopher
Columbus came to the city under the protection of the Dominican
Monks at the Monastery of San Esteban, in order to seek the endorsement
of Queen Isabel the Catholic for his enterprise, which would eventually
culminate in the Discovery of America. In those years towards
the end of the 15th century and the beginning of the 16th, Salamanca
became a center of Catholic theology for the Counter Reformation
as reflected in the Council of Trent.
The role that Salamanca played
during the War of Independence (Peninsular War) is particularly
interesting. Just outside Salamanca the Battle of Arapiles (otherwise
known as the Battle of Salamanca) was fought. It ended in defeat
for the French army and marked a turning point in Napoleon's occupation
of Spain.
At the end of the 19th century
and the beginning of the 20th the University experienced a period
of great decline, although one notable figure shines out in the
form of the University's most illustrious Vice-Chancellor, and
one of Spain's most influential writers, Miguel de Unamuno. The
prestige of the University recovered little by little up until
the 1960´s and has flourished since the establishment of
democracy in Spain.
With the arrival of democracy
and the restoration of the monarchy the city has been transformed
both socially and politically by becoming a modern city without
losing the spirit of history that it has inherited. Consequently
it has been named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO and has been
honored with the role of European Capital of Culture for the year
2002. |
