History of Calatayud

This post is part of the main post on Calatayud, but I separated the history part, just for people that want to understand the origin and progression of the city to understand it a bit better. If you want to go to the main post, follow the link below:

→ What to do in Calatayud: the forgotten half-blood city of Spain

Origins and Roman Empire

Calatayud was originally a Celt-Iberian settlement, that after the Roman conquest became Augusta Bilbilis around the 2nd century BCE. This Roman city located close to Caesaraugusta (actual Zaragoza, capital of the region) soon began to thrive under the Roman law including the monumentalization of civic and urban spaces, including the sulphurous springs of Aquae Bilbilitanorum. Its location on the road to Caesaraugusta as a commercial stopover and its famed metalwork made it a prosperous city.

Arabian age

A very important part in the history of Calatayud and the establishment of its current identity is the Arabian invasion. During the fall of the Roman Empire, the Visigoths conquered these lands and under their ruling, Augusta Bilbilis suffered a strong decadence. With the arrival of the Moors to the Iberian Peninsula, an emir of al-Andalus established a fortified city or citadel in the hills of the actual town, naming it Qal’at-Ayyub, meaning citadel of Ayyub (which is the origin of the actual name Calatayud). The city then moved to the new site under the citadel.

During the taifa realm period (the small realms that formed in Al-Andalus after the collapse of the caliphate of Cordoba), Calatayud came back to cultural splendor, being one of the principal cities in the taifa of Zaragoza under the rule of the Tujibids and the Hudids, natives from Yemen.

Reconquest

In 1120, Qal’at-Ayyub was conquered by the King of Aragon Alfonso the Battler, who gave the city and surrounding villages rights that made Calatayud the most important city in the realm after the capital Zaragoza.

16th to 19th centuries

During this period a cultural resurgence came to the city by the hands of the jesuits, wanting to give the city’s education university level. During the Independence Wars in the 19th century, the city was sieged and conquered by the French to be later retaken by the Spanish.

It is in this period when the legend of La Dolores arose, which makes Calatayud famous around Spain. This is prove of how a gossip can extend to national magnitudes without the subject being any famous to start with. Dolores was a girl from a rich family in Calatayud that, after her mother died, she had to fight for her inheritance with her father and, probably as a means to survive, she married a military man. Unsurprisingly, the loveless marriage coupled with the constant expense of the legal fight for her inheritance ended in the couple distancing, eventually with her husband leaving. This is when the gossips start, first with her infidelity, later suggestions of her being a prostitute. The gossip became a “copla” (a Spanish musical poem), then a theatre play, a series of novels, an opera and several movies.

Closing statement

This post is part of a larger post about the city and region of Calatayud. Make sure you have a look to the full post here:

→ What to do in Calatayud: the forgotten half-blood city of Spain

If you’re interested in visiting Calatayud, make sure you have a look at this post:

→ What and where to eat in Calatayud, Spain