Santo Domingo de la Calzada is one of the three county seats of La Rioja Alta. This town has 6200 inhabitants and gives off that aura that envelops the villages through which the Camino de Santiago, where the flow of pilgrims is constant, especially between April and October.
Saber what to see in Santo Domingo de la Calzada before your arrival will ensure that you make the most of your visit to this village in La Rioja, full of history and legends.
- 1. Santo Domingo de la Calzada a village on the Camino de Santiago
- 2. Main Streets and Squares of Santo Domingo de la Calzada
- 3. Most important monuments to see in Santo Domingo de la Calzada
- 4. Hermitages of Santo Domingo de la Calzada
- 5. Medieval Market and other festivities in Santo Domingo de la Calzada
- 6. Who was Saint Dominic de la Calzada and what miracles did he perform?
- 7. Beautiful villages near Santo Domingo de la Calzada in La Rioja
1. Santo Domingo de la Calzada a village on the Camino de Santiago
The The French Way of Saint James runs through La Rioja from Logroño to Grañón, with Santo Domingo de la Calzada being the penultimate village on the Camino in the Rioja region before setting foot on Burgos soil.
The pilgrims arrive in Santo Domingo through a industrial zone to reach the Calle 12 de Mayo and Calle Mayor.
Santo Domingo is a typical village on the Camino de Santiago which is fully serviced.
Our host in Santo Domingo is La Botanica Mix Bar the ideal place to enjoy a coffee, a glass of beer or a drink in a cosy atmosphere.
Pilgrims continue their Camino Crossing the bridge over the river Oja towards Grañón, last village in La Rioja before setting foot in the province of Burgos.
2. Main Streets and Squares of Santo Domingo de la Calzada
2.1. Plaza de España in Santo Domingo
This is the main square of the city located behind the cathedral.
The square is created with the construction of the city walls of the 14th century It was for centuries the site of the market and the bullring.
The cobblestones date from the end of the 20th century. It is home to some of the most important buildings in the municipality, such as the City Council, the building of the Corregimiento de Rioja built in 1763, the lower part of which housed the Royal Prison, and the building of the AlhóndigaThe site was formerly a place for the sale and storage of grain.
2.2. Plaza del Santo in Santo Domingo de la Calzada
It is located in front of the cathedral, in the heart of the old town and where the most important institutions were originally concentrated: the pilgrims' hospital, the cathedral and the old council quarters with its prison.
The former Pilgrims' Hospital is known to have been a raised by the hermit Dominic In the second half of the 11th century, it remained active until 1840, when it was moved to the Convent of San Francisco. From that year on it was used for various purposes until 1965, when it was refurbished as a Parador de Turismo.
2.3. Plaza de la Alameda and its arcades
This arcaded square has seen how for centuries market gardeners sold their produce taking advantage of its arcades to shelter from the inclemency of the weather. The source was ordered to be built in 1799 to supply the population.
The holm oaks that populate the square are reminiscent of the ancient forest that extended throughout the municipality.
A sickle cutting an oak tree, is one of the symbols of the city's coat of arms.
3. Most important monuments to see in Santo Domingo de la Calzada
3.1. Santo Domingo Cathedral and its Exempt Tower
According to the Anales Compostelanos, the construction of the cathedral began in the year 1158 to house the remains of Saint Dominic one of the most venerated saints of the Camino de Santiago who died in 1109.
The Cathedral Choir is a piece of plateresque style made in the 1520s.
The sepulchre of Santo Domingo de la Calzada is a work in which Romanesque, Gothic and late Gothic styles converge.
The Chicken coop, where the cockerel and the hen are sheltered, the cathedral being the only temple where animals live, referring to the most famous miracle of the Saint, it is of gothic style from the 15th century.
The Cloister is a Gothic-Mudejar work of art in which the 17th century seating of the chapter house, as well as its Mudejar alfarje ceiling. Valuable works of art such as Flemish triptychs, gold and silver work and important sculptures are exhibited here.
The Cathedral Tower is free-standing on the building and was erected between 1767 y 1769. It is a great baroque work of sixty-nine metres, being the highest tower in La Rioja visible for miles around.
3.2. Convent of San Francisco
The Archbishop of Zaragoza Friar Bernardo de FresnedaThe convent in Santo Domingo, confessor to Charles V and his son Philip II, was built in Herrerian style and cloister with a rectangular floor plan in the year 1535.
It is worth highlighting the cruise ship where the tomb of the founder, died in 1577 and where the marble figure of the bishop rests. It is a beautiful example of Romanesque sculpture. Opposite is the main altarpiece both made in the early 17th century.
At present, part of the building is used for Diocesan restoration workshop of works of art, another part to Parador Hotel and one third to Hospital and Nursing Home "Hospital del Santo.
3.3. Cistercian Abbey of Saint Dominic
The Cistercian nuns The abbey has been continuously inhabited since 1621.
It is a classicist building with a church in the shape of a Latin cross.
On a black marble pedestal rests a wide alabaster tomb with three recumbent statues: the founder and his two nephews, sculpted around 1620.
The main altarpieceIt is in the Baroque style, dating from the mid-18th century, made of polychrome and gilded wood. In the central niche is the image of Our Lady of the Annunciation.
The low choir located at the foot of the church has served as a cemetery until 1960, where more than 200 nuns are buried. Attached to the church is the 17th century cloister which stands out for its austerity.
The Abbey was on the verge of disappearance, However, thanks to the tenacity and determination of the mother abbess, in 1964 the Hostal was inaugurated and served as a sole source of income on which the congregation is sustained.
3.4. Santo Domingo de la Calzada Town Council
The town hall is built on the 14th century city wall, It closes off the square on the north side and its central axis is the only gateway to the city that has survived to the present day.
It is a building of baroque style, of rectangular ground plan with two floors located on the Plaza de España of the locality.
3.5. House of Trastámara in Santo Domingo
In this house lived and died the King Henry II of Castile the first of the Trastámara dynasty.
It constitutes the oldest civil building in the city and one of the few exponents of gothic architecture in La Rioja. It is currently the Municipal House of CultureIt houses the Library and the Information and Tourism Office.
3.6. Casa de la Cofradía del Santo (House of the Brotherhood of the Saint)
The façade bears the coats of arms of the Corregidor of the city and his wife, who had it built around 1556.
Since 1968 it has been Pilgrims' hostel and headquarters of the oldest welfare confraternity on the Pilgrims' Route to Santiago de Compostela. Founded by Santo Domingo de la Calzada in the 11th century.
It has a museum and inside white cockerels and hens are raised which are placed alive in the henhouse of the Cathedral in memory of the miracle of the hanged pilgrim.
3.7. The Wall of Santo Domingo de la Calzada
It is the largest surviving walled enclosure in La Rioja. It was ordered to be built by Pedro I of Castile during the fratricidal struggles with his half-brother Enrique II of Trastámara.
This monumental building in ashlar stone had a length of 1670 metres, with a thickness of two and a half metres, 38 turrets 12 metres high and 7 doors animated with the royal and city coat of arms.
4. Hermitages of Santo Domingo de la Calzada
4.1. Nuestra Señora de la Plaza Hermitage
It is the Patron Saint of the city, whose feast day is celebrated on 5 August, located in the Plaza del Santo.
His image together with that of the founder is carried in procession on 18 September, feast of Thanksgiving. Tradition has it that it was built on the site of the former humble oratory that St. Dominic did.
4.2. Bridge Hermitage
It is a small building through which all pass pilgrims leaving Santo Domingo before crossing the bridge. Built in ashlar and brick, it has a gabled roof and is topped with a small belfry.
This chapel was built in the year 1917 There was another hermitage nearby that was swept away by the floodwaters in 1906.
4.3. Virgen de las Abejas Chapel
Located 2 kilometres in a westerly direction. The current building was rebuilt in 1764 after suffering a fire which destroyed the roof, the images and the doors.
The Pentecost Tuesday, the Brotherhood of San Isidro and the Patronage of the "Hospital del Santo" go there for a pilgrimage. The following Sunday the Brotherhood of the Saint, accompanied by hundreds of Calceatans, participate in the "pilgrimage of San Isidro". mass and procession, and taste the typical meal of the day: lentil stew with suckling pig's ear.
4.3. Chapel of the Mesa del Santo (Chapel of the Saint's Table)
Located 1 kilometre in the direction of Haro.
Each 13 October A pilgrimage is held there, beginning with a mass and procession, followed by a meal for the entire Hermitage Board, and ending with a verbena (street party).
5. Medieval Market and other festivities in Santo Domingo de la Calzada
Santo Domingo is a town with several important dates in the calendar throughout the year, however there are 3 of them that have special popularity and tradition.
5.1. Festivities of the Saint in May
From the 25 April when "The bagpipes and drums come out" and passing through the 1 May when the Saint's turns take place are the prelude to what is to come, the May festivities which The festival begins on the 10th and lasts until the 15th, the day of San Isidro.
The 10 May the proclamation is read and the most appreciated festivities by the people of Calceta begin. on the 11th when the procession known as the procession of the maidens takes place.
The events continue until on the 15th where the procession of San Isidro Labrador takes place.
5.2. Fiestas of Gracias and San Jerónimo Hermosilla in September
Around 18 September, these festivities are celebrated with processions, tastings and a festive atmosphere.
5.3. Feria de la Concepcion: Medieval Times and the Camino Market
During the long weekend in December, the Medieval Fair is held in Santo Domingo de la Calzada.
With Camino market where food products related to the Camino de Santiago are sold. Y Medieval market The town is transported back to the Middle Ages with colourful banners and ribbons, period decorations, minstrels' songs and the sound of dulzainas. Merchants and craftsmen come from far and wide to celebrate the market.
These days we also find the organic products fair, as well as gastronomic days, exhibitions and conferences.
6. Who was Saint Dominic de la Calzada and what miracles did he perform?
His first name is Domingo Garcia y was born in 1019 in the town of Viloria de Rioja. near Santo Domingo de la Calzada where died in 1109.
After being rejected at the Monasteries of Valvanera and San Millán retired as a hermit to the forests of Ayuela where he led a contemplative life until 1039.
From that year onwards the Bishop of Ostia, Gregory, ordained him as a priest and built a wooden bridge to help pilgrims cross the river Oja on their way to Compostela.
After Gregorio died, he returned to the Ayuela area. He cut down forests and construction of a stone roadway began which was a deviation from the traditional route along the Roman road between Logroño and Burgos, but which became, from then on, the main route between Nájera and Redecilla del Camino. For this work he is known as Domingo de la calzada.
He replaced the wooden bridge he had built with Gregorio with a stone one, and built a complex consisting of a hospital, a well and a church, to attend to the needs of pilgrims, where at present there is the Casa del Santoused as a pilgrims' hostel. See one of the greatest promoters of the Camino de Santiago.
The Miracle of the Rooster and the Hen
In the 14th century they made the pilgrimage to Compostela a young 18-year-old German man named Hugonel with his parents. A young girl works at the inn where they are staying and falls in love with him, but is rejected by the young German. The girl, scornful, keeps a silver cup in the young man's bag and accuses him of theft.
Young Hugonell and his parents are about to set off on their pilgrimage, when the justice system arrives and verifies the accusation by searching the boy's bag. It is condemned to hang.
The parents can do nothing for him but pray to Santiago. As they approach the hanged body of their son to say goodbye, they hear how this one speaks to you from the gallows and tells them that he is alive by the grace of Santo Domingo de la Calzada.
Full of joy they are going to communicate the news to the corregidor who was sitting at the table at that very moment. The corregidor naturally scoffs at what he hears and utters the familiar phrase: "Your son is as alive as this rooster and hen that I was about to eat before you bothered me".. And at that moment, the birds jump out of the dish and start singing and clucking happily.
7. Beautiful villages near Santo Domingo de la Calzada in La Rioja
Santo Domingo is surrounded by charming villages among which the following stand out Ezcaray and its villages. One of the most popular villages in La Rioja and one of the first to attract tourists to the region.
Also worth a visit Staple just a few kilometres from Santo Domingo, being the next on the Pilgrim's Way to Santiago.
Other charming villages to visit are Cuzcurrita de Rio Tirón, Leiva o San Millán de la Cogolla.
You can download the Roadmap to organise your getaway to La Rioja by subscribing for free to the weekly newsletter of La Rioja Premium.
