La Rioja is a single-province autonomous community in northern Spain. It limits with the provinces of Álava, Navarra, Burgos and Soria. Communications both with these provinces and with the rest are very good.
1 Logroño
2 Briones
3 Enciso
4 Ezcaray
5 Haro
6 San
Millán de la Cogolla
Briones
Casalarreina
Pradejon
San Millan de la Cogolla
An airport just 14 km from Logroño, a railway network that accompanies the flow of the Ebro river throughout La Rioja and connects by means of an Altaria with Madrid, the A-68 motorway that quickly connects this region with other Communities and an extensive network of highways that facilitate the connection both with the towns of the interior and with the bordering provinces.
reserve of cultures. All the towns throughout history have been
leaving their traces in La Rioja. From the Celtiberian settlements of
Contrebia Leukade, through the Romans, the great heritage of medieval
times with its monasteries and castles, to the most modern times of the
19th century and its centuries-old wineries, to reach the present with
Avant-garde Museums such as the Würth Museum of Contemporary Art,
recently opened. Even the dinosaurs left their footprints in the many
sites that can be visited in Enciso and other nearby towns.
Monasteries of La Piedad (Casalarreina). Monastery from the beginning of
the 16th century, humanist renaissance, inaugurated by Adriano VI.
Yuso and Suso Monasteries. Located in San Millán de la Cogolla. In them
appeared the Glossas Emilianenses, the first written samples of Spanish.
Vivianco Museum. Located in Briones, it is an interesting museum about
the culture of wine.
Nature. La Rioja hides, especially in its
southern part, an unknown and wonderful high mountain nature, from the
Sierra Cebollera Natural Park to the Sierra de la Demanda with its ski
resort in Valdezcaray. Another unique place for lovers of wonderful
landscapes is the Cañón del Leza that runs through the Camero Viejo. The
northern area of La Rioja is dominated by the Ebro, vineyards,
orchards and the largest colony of White Stork on a building in the city
of Alfaro.
Wine tourism - Tourism around wine is the main attraction of La Rioja. In this small community you can visit the wineries, take tasting courses, spa treatments with grape and wine extracts, sports among vineyards, accommodation in wineries, paired meals, etc.
La Rioja is a good place to learn Spanish. This region, which is considered the Cradle of Spanish , since the first words written in this language were found here (Monasterio de Yuso de San Millán de la Cogolla), offers Spanish students an ideal place to broaden their knowledge and get to know the culture . Spanish.
In La Rioja the gastronomic offer is wide and delicious. Closely
linked with the products of the land and with a traditional cuisine that
has its influence even in the most select kitchens of the new Rioja
cuisine.
The most traditional dishes of La Rioja have to do with
vegetables from their garden, sausages from Cameros, lambs from the
mountains or the influence of the Arabs in the desserts, taking
advantage of oil and almonds.
La Rioja potatoes, with chorizo.
Roasted vine chops - They are the branches of dry vines.
Rioja-style
cod , with tomato and red peppers.
Fardelejos - typical dessert.
Mazapanes de Soto - typical dessert.
In Logroño, a visit to the
famous Calle Laurel is a tradition, where tourists and locals come
together to taste a miniature gastronomy along with good Rioja wine.
There is a bar at each door and each bar has a specialty. The most
typical, grilled mushrooms, patatas bravas... although you can find some
with curious names: marriages, slippers, cojonudos, valentinos,
calzoncillos... The ingredients are varied but all delicious.
In
Briones, several inns in the urban area of the town. good price And to
highlight the restaurant of the Dinastia Vivanco Wine Museum, with a
great viewpoint over the property's vineyards. Very spacious. Brief menu
and tasting menu of traditional Rioja food. The wines of course are all
from the winery. The best coffee on its outdoor terrace.
In
Badaran, on the way to San Millan, at a privileged crossroads is the
Conde de Badarán Hotel-Restaurant, where you can taste typical Rioja
cuisine, without leaving signature cuisine aside. Special GROUPS,
Tasting menus and menus at Sarmiento washed down with wine from this
town. The town's motto is: badaran "Wine, chorizo and quality bread"
The star product of La Rioja, for which this small region is known
throughout the world, is wine. Rioja wines are among the best in the
world and no traveler can resist the call of wine culture. In La Rioja
wine is learned. A short tasting course is the best way to delve into
the world of wine. It will help you distinguish between a young wine, a
crianza and a reserve. You want to know the new signature or paid wines.
You will be able to learn the secrets of the elaboration: the harvest,
the fermentation, the malolactic, the rest in the barrel, the bottling,
the rest in the bottle... Visit some wineries or try different wines in
bars and restaurants. In La Rioja wine is known and they will recommend
unique wines.
To enjoy the Fiesta in La Rioja, nothing better
than having a few drinks in the Najera area.
The offer of accommodation in La Rioja is varied. The traveler can choose between pensions, hostels, campsites, rural houses, hotels, lodges, even hotels in wineries.
Until the arrival of the Romans in the 2nd century BC. C. was
occupied by three tribes: the berones, who were in the Ebro valley, the
pelendones in the mountainous areas and the vascones in some areas of
the Rioja Baja. The region was invaded by Muslims at the beginning of
the 8th century. After its reconquest, at the beginning of the 10th
century, the region became part of the Kingdom of Navarre.
La
Rioja Alta and Media were reconquered in 923 by King Sancho Garcés I of
the Kingdom of Pamplona with the collaboration of the Kingdom of León ;
to the east of the river Leza, the region of La Rioja Baja, would also
be reconquered by this king but would again pass into Muslim hands,
being recovered again and now definitely by the king of Nájera-Pamplona
García Sánchez III, "the one of Najera" (1035-1054). All these
reconquered territories became part of the Kingdom of Pamplona. King
Sancho Garcés I of Pamplona(also called Sancho Garcés I of Navarra in
some sources), after having made the aforementioned conquests, he gave
these new annexed lands to his son García Sánchez I (918-970) so that he
could relieve him of government tasks and prepare to be a good king. He
places his house and court in Nájera (La Rioja) and receives the title
of "king of Nájera". In this way the Kingdom of Nájera would be born .
Later, with the death of Sancho Garcés I, his son García Sánchez I,
who already reigned in Nájera, also inherited the territories of
Pamplona. He kept the seat of the court in the town of Najera, thus
creating the so-called kingdom of Nájera-Pamplona . Whose first
historical stage would end a long time later, with the assassination of
the Najerino king Sancho Garcés IV , "the Noble" (1054-1076).
The
oldest documents found in which written mentions of La Rioja appear are
from this century, the XI. One of them is the Cartulario Gallicano de
San Millán de la Cogolla, which dates from the year 1082, in which the
place name Rioja appears transcribed as rivo de ogga and another in the
jurisdiction of Miranda de Ebro from the year 1099, in which it appears
as Rioga , pronounced as Rioja. The oldest found in which the Riojan
adjective appears dates from the beginning of the 13th century . This is
how an archpriest of the diocese of Calahorra named Martino Pascasii
calls himself. He appears written as archpriestibero riogeñ , an
abbreviation that we must complete by readingriogensi , that is,
"Riojano". La Rioja has been mentioned many times in ancient
documentation since the 11th century and has been reflected in
cartography since the 12th century , with the first single map of the
region dating from the 18th century. This was drawn up in 1769 by the
cartographer Tomás López de Vargas and titled map of La Rioja divided
into high and low . It would be criticized in 1805, for containing the
error of leaving some parts of the La Rioja territory outside of it.
The foundations of the great monasteries of La Rioja also date from
this century, which were carried out by the Kings of Navarre. In 1052,
the Navarrese king García Sánchez III of the kingdom of Nájera-Pamplona
founded the monastery of Santa María la Real de Nájera , which would be
the pantheon of Navarre kings, infants and nobles as well as in the year
1053 he founded the monastery of San Millán de Yuso .
Following
the death of Sancho Garcés IV of Navarra (also called Sancho Garcés IV
of Pamplona ) in 1076 , Alfonso VI of León conquest of the La Rioja
region took place, beginning a military dispute that will last more than
a century. In favor of Alfonso VI some nobles played that called him to
take possession of La Rioja and be recognized as monarch of the Kingdom
of Nájera. This territorial acquisition will last a short time, since
after the death of Alfonso VI the region will return to the domain of
the Kingdom of Navarre. In 1134 Alfonso VII the emperor conquered Nájera
and all of La Rioja. In 1163, taking advantage of Alfonso VIII of
Castile's minority , the Navarrese Sancho VI el Sabio occupies a part of
La Rioja territory in an attempt to recover the old possessions of the
kingdom, taking Logroño and other cities, although not Nájera or
Calahorra. These territorial acquisitions began to be reversed around
1173.
In order to settle their disputes, Kings Sancho VI the Wise
and Alfonso VIII agreed in 1176 to submit their differences to
arbitration by Henry II of England in an interview held between Nájera
and Logroño. The ruling of the English king ruled that the borders
return to the situation prior to 1163, thus ending the disputes over La
Rioja, the Navarrese monarchy finally losing sovereignty over the region
and consolidating from 1179 the territory of La Rioja as the border land
of the kingdom from Castile. The passage of La Rioja from the Navarrese
to the Castilian kingdom by conquest meant that the region ceased to be
an important part of the first kingdom, where the kings and their court
resided, to be a peripheral territory that would become important at
certain times.
After this moment, the title of King of Nájera
would be preserved as part of the Castilian royal title; in addition to
the fact that the kingdom would continue to exist, for several more
centuries, as a differentiated state in the group of those governed by
the Castilian monarchs, as it happened with other territories such as
the kingdom of Galicia. There is also a distancing of the monarchy of
said kingdom from La Riojan interests, which favors the protagonism of
the lords and peasants, there is a growing manorialization, which
produces structural changes in society. Thus, the region would then pass
into the power of the López de Haro , lords of Vizcaya.
During
later times, numerous important historical events would take place, such
as the siege of Logroño by Asparrot's troops in 1521, the publication of
the Compendium Historial de la provincia de La Rioja in 1701, the work
of Mateo Anguiano or the uprisings in Logroño and Fuenmayor against
French troops in 1808, during the Spanish war of independence . Contest
during which in La Rioja the Junta de Rioja was organized in 1809 to
fight against the invader, whose capital was located in Soto de Cameros.
There were three resistance groups commanded from it: The La Rioja
Volunteer Battalion, the Logroño Provincial Regiment and the La Rioja
Hussar Squadron. Likewise, it is also worth mentioning the foundation of
the Real Sociedad Económica de La Rioja in 1790 in Fuenmayor, which was
one of the societies of friends of the country founded in Spain during
the Enlightenment and which was so important in the subsequent political
demands for reunification in Rioja.
In the 18th century, after
the War of Succession and the arrival of the Bourbons in Spain, the
Spanish territory was divided in the French manner into 18
circumscriptions called municipalities, thus seeking to improve the
administration of the state. Until then, Spain was an atomized country,
divided by old lordships and local laws among other figures, without a
structure that would allow it to govern efficiently. La Rioja would be
assigned to the recently created municipalities of Burgos and Soria
mainly. From La Rioja, complaints began to be heard as a consequence of
the aforementioned territorial organization and voices that claimed an
administrative framework of those that had been created at the time for
the region. These demands came especially from the Royal Economic
Society of La Rioja, which was one of the associations of friends of the
country founded in the 18th century, from a group of representatives
from the Riojan municipalities called the General Board of La Rioja and
from several enlightened from La Rioja, presenting these claims with a
strong identity discourse. These organizations demanded, in their own
words, the "territorial reunification of La Rioja." Other actions such
as the 66-page letter carried out by the enlightened man from La
RiojaMartín Fernández de Navarrete and titled Letter from a Riojan to a
deputy in courts would have the same objective. In it, ethnic, economic,
historical and geographical criteria were alleged in defense of the
aforementioned purpose. In 1809, during the war of independence , the
people of Rioja organized themselves into the Junta de Rioja , which was
a practically autonomous political territory with headquarters in Soto
en Cameros from which they faced the invader, thus achieving the union
of the territory. It was dissolved in 1811 to re-divide the region. This
further increased the claims of La Rioja and in 1812 the Convention of
Santa Coloma in which representatives of the Rioja municipalities met to
submit a new Riojan provincial demand to the courts of Cádiz. The claims
would be satisfied during the Liberal Triennium in the provincial
division of Spain in 1822, by giving La Rioja its own provincial
administration, although under the name of province of Logroño, due to
the agreement by which the Most of them had to adopt the names of their
capitals, which meant the suppression of their historical name of La
Rioja -which was the traditional one for the territory- and its
substitution by that of Logroño. In relation to this, one of the
documents of the time that attests to the aforementioned event reads as
follows: "In the court session held on this day, La Rioja was declared
an independent province under the name of province of Logroño and by
capital to this city. However, the absolutist reaction of Fernando VII
in 1823 caused the elimination of the liberal provisions, including the
Spanish provincial division, for which La Rioja would once again be left
without a province. On November 30, 1833 with the division of Spain into
provinces by Javier de Burgos, based on the territorial division carried
out during the Liberal Triennium, the administrative unit is definitely
obtained. Spain would be divided into 49 provinces, once again
politically institutionalizing La Rioja as one of them, although again
under the name of Logroño province . This was due to the fact that
although in 1826 - the year in which this new project for the Spanish
administrative division began to be considered - there was already an
attempt to recover the historical name of La Rioja for the province,
together with the de Asturias, was suppressed at some point during the
processing of the same .For this reason, Asturias and La Rioja would
adopt the names of their capitals, keeping only those of the four foral
provinces, that is, the Basques and Navarre. It was Javier de Burgos
himself who apparently suppressed its traditional name of La Rioja,
replacing it with that of Logroño. In this way, a historical claim that
called for the reunification of La Rioja, which was framed in the region
of Castilla la Vieja, would conclude. 9 judicial districts were
established. In 1980 it recovered its name from La Rioja, which had been
read so many times in documentation since the Middle Ages, Although it
had never been lost, since the inhabitants of the province continued to
call themselves Riojanos and differentiate Logroño, its capital, from
Rioja, the whole of the territory. Even the media and provincial
institutions would be from La Rioja or from La Rioja and not from
Logroño.
It became a uniprovincial autonomous community during
the transition to democracy after a rejection by its inhabitants to be
integrated into another region, outside Castilla y León, the Basque
Country or in a Basque-Navarrese country, as some defended and after
multiple mobilizations that they claimed their autonomy. The Autonomy
Statute was signed on June 9, 1982, after an electoral process in which
172 of the 174 La Rioja municipalities voted in favor of the autonomist
decision. Going to celebrate from that year on that date the Day of La
Rioja .