Guadalupe
Located in the natural parkland of Villuercas, surrounded by the Sierras de Guadalupe and Altimira, Guadalupe is a small village with a big significance.
For it’s here that one fine day at the end of the 13th century, a shepherd, one Gil Cordero, had a visitation from the Virgin Mary that led him to discover a small wooden image hidden on the banks of the river Guadalupejo.
The image had a black face and was holding a baby and was said to be the image of the Virgin holding the baby Jesus.
The image is now housed in an appropriately sumptuous altarpiece within one of the most magnificent monasteries in Europe and has been recognised as the Patron Saint of Extremadura and, in 1928, was ordained Queen of the Spanish speaking world by the Pope’s special representative and by the king, Alfonso XIII.
The town of Guadalupe grew around the humble beginnings of a hermitage that had been built by the shepherd who discovered the Virgin.
However, the town remained small in a worldly sense until it received Royal patronage. Around 1330, Alfonso XI, King of Castilla and León visited the chapel of the Virgin of Guadalupe.
He ordered it to be extended and reinforced as befitting such an important symbol of Christianity. In 1340, after the Battle of Salado in which Alfonso XI defeated a significant Arab army, he returned to Guadalupe and ordered that the religious community should be expanded by extension of the temple and the construction of several other buildings.
Guadalupe is subjectively separated into two parts; the high part (Barrio Alto) and the low part (Barrio de Abajo). The low part is also where the ancient Jewish quarter of the city was located and is today a beautifully preserved collection of clean narrow streets bordered by bright displays of potted greenery, lovingly tended by the neighbours.
Although the monastery of Guadalupe is the main attraction, the town itself offers the visitor many possibilities. The town authorities have provided a very helpful tourist information service where maps and suggestions can be obtained. These include information on what is around the town. Walking in the hills that surround the town is not too difficult although you have to be careful when you go and take lots of water.
One of the walks is called the Route of the Hermitages.
It is a circular walk of around 10 kilometres that takes in two small hermitages that date from the 15th and 16th centuries. It begins by following a disused railway line part of which included an elegant viaduct that soars over the river Guadalupejo below. Another one, a small hermitage called Humilladero was constructed around four kilometres to the north of the town. Again, it is included in a (longer) walk but can be easily reached by car along the EX118 towards Navalmoral de la Mata.
The Humilladero was constructed in the 16th century and marks the spot where pilgrims first catch sight of the monastery of Guadalupe where the image of the Virgin Mary is housed.
The principal town square is located outside the monastery and there are several street cafes from which you can sit with a cool beer and enjoy the view of the ornate facade of the monastery. Hanging houses supported by granite pillars add to the sensation of being transported back in time to the middle ages.
Nowadays, Guadalupe is a mature town with excellent communications that make it easy to get to from Madrid or from the south of Spain. Its location in Cáceres puts it within reach of other must-see destinations such as Mérida, Trujillo and Badajoz while its favoured position close the Sierra de Altamira gives the visitor the unique opportunity to discover some of the most picturesque and vivid scenery in Spain.
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