Skip to main content

The Hospital de Orbigo Joust


On the outskirts of Hospital de Orbigo is the bridge from the 13th century which has 204 arches and at 204 meters it is the longest bridge on the Camino.




This bridge comes with its own Camino story: in 1433 Don Suero, a Knight from Leon, loved a Lady who did not return his affection – to free himself from this love he, and nine other Knights (Don Sancho Rabanal, Don Diego de Bazán, Don Suero Gómez, Don Suero de Quiñones, Don Pedro de los Ríos, Don Lope de Estúñiga, Don Pedro de Nava, Don Gómez de Villacorta, Don Diego de Benavides, Don Lope de Aller) embarked on a joust to break 300 lances on the bridge over the rio Orbigo.



Knights from all over Europe came and the tournament lasted a month (from 10th July) during which 200 lances were broken and 68 men defeated (with only one being killed). Having decided that he was now free of his love Don Suero and his friends went to Santiago to give thanks to Saint James.

       
Other versions of the story say that he had to fast every Thursday during this time and that he wore a heavy iron ring around his neck and the Judges removed this ring as a sign that he was now free of his love.
        
There is a plaque on the bridge to commemorate this event which states:


 Por rescate de la prisión en que su señora le tenía
Y con codicia de fama durable
Concertó con nueve caballeros más
Defender el Paso Honroso junto a este puente
Rompiendo lanzas contra más de setenta caballeros
Que al camino de romería del Apóstol Santiago
Llegaron de Castilla, de Aragón, de Cataluña
De Valencia, de Portugal, de Bretaña
De Italia y de Alemania

Translated this says:

To be rescued from the prison in which his lady held him
And desiring long lasting fame
He set out with 9 other knights
To defend the honourable pass close to this bridge
Breaking lances with more than 70 knights
That to the pilgrim road of the Apostle St James
They came from Castilla, Aragon and Cataluña
From Valencia, Portugal and Britain
From Italy and Germany


This joust has been commemorated each year since 1997 with a Mediaeval festival (the Fiesta de las Justas del Paso Honoroso) in the first weekend of June where the whole town (of about 1200 people) plus a lot of visitors will dress up in mediaeval attire (something that research suggests would cost you 30-50 Euros to do) and there are re-enactments, a mediaeval market, archery, a painting contest, mediaeval dinners, parade, dances and, of course, the joust its self (which is part of a larger competition of the knights – spear throwing, sword skills and other lance skills such as picking up hoops from the floor as they ride past).






(Sorry but these pictures aren't from the joust at Hospital but rather from the English Heritage's 'History Live!')

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Camino Primitivo

The Camino Primitivo (or the Original Way) is reportedly the very first Camino Way to Santiago in the 9 th century when most of Spain was under the control of the Moors and it runs from near the city of Ovideo in Asturias as it starts in Villavicosa (which also lies on the Camino Norte so many people follow this Way from   Basque city of San Sebastian (Donosti in Basque) or in from the French border at Irun ( this route then hugs the Bay of Biscay passing through Guernica, Bilbao, Santander, Llanes before going under the Picos de Europa and then heads along the coast to Ovideo) before branching off onto the Primitivo which goes across the mountains and through the city of Lugo before joining the Frances at Melide. The route is 320km long. Image taken from https://viaalpina2013.wordpress.com/2013/04/14/camino-del-norte-camino-primitivo/
1 comment
Read more

Symbols of the three main Christian Pilgrimages

The symbol of the Pilgrim to Santiago is the Scallop shell  of which many can be found on the coast of Galicia and it is actually a symbol of the Pilgrimage (and has become a symbol of other Christian Pilgrimages too) partly because you could find the shell easily there and so could go back home and show it off as proof that you had done the Pilgrimage. It has also been included in carvings in some Churches.
1 comment
Read more

Pilgrims' Trail to Saint Michels Mont, France

I have only walked two of the Camino routes (the Frances and Portuguese) and still want to try many of the others and yet I am also finding other Pilgrimage routes that I want to walk - I did the Pilgrims' Way in the summer which starts from Winchester which is also the starting point for the Pilgrims' Trail a 155 mile route that finishes at Mont St Michel in Normandy, France. The cult of saint Michel was popular in Britain from the 9th century and the Pilgrims walking this way were called Miquelots and many Pilgrims on their way to Santiago. The route is marked by green way markers in Hampshire taking walkers from Winchester to Bishop's Waltham to Southwick and then to Portsmouth where ferries are caught to France and Way markers become blue. Tradition says that, in 709 Saint Michael the Archangel appeared to the bishop of Avranches, Saint Aubert, and told him to build a chapel in his honour on the island. The bishop obeyed and soon sent a group of monks over...
Post a Comment
Read more