Galicia

Sources from old books

1635. Historia mundi: or Mercator's atlas. London. by Gerhard Mercator.

GALLICIA, LEON, AND ASTVRIA DE OVIEDO. (Book Galicia) GALLICIA (which is also written Galecia or Gallaecia, and taketh its name from an ancient people called Calla••i) hath on the North and West the Ocean, on the South Portugall with the River Durius flowing betweene them, and on the East Asturia. This Countrie in regard it hath many rugged mountaines,* 1.1 and wanteth water, is but thinly inhabited. It aboundeth so with Horses, that they are supposed to be begotten by the winde. Pliny noteth, that here are rich mines of Gold. Niger writeth that the rivers hereof do bring downe earth mingled with gold, silver, and tinne, and that the soyle it selfe is full of gold, brasse and lead, so that golden clods are oftentimes ploughed up. The mountaines afford great store of wood for building of ships. Gallicia doth exceedingly abound with fish:* 1.2 especially with Salmons, Congers, a kinde of fish which they call Pescades, and many other daintie fishes, which being salted are car∣ried into divers parts of Spaine. In the moneth of November and De∣cember, a great number of those fish are taken, which they commonly call Vesugos, being two or three pound weight; they are carried fresh and sweete into Castile and are sold there, for the cold doth easily pre∣serve them: they have an excellent taste, yet those are best tasted which are taken in the Ocean, and not in the Meditterranean Sea. For the coldnes of the Ocean doth fatten the fish, and therefore those which are taken most Northward are the best. The most part of the Inhabitants doe live in mountaines, on which they build convenient houses. Concerning the name and originall of the Callaicians, let the Reader have recourse to Iohannes Bishop of Gerunda, Lib. 2 Paralipomenorum Hispaniae, Roderieus To∣letanus (Lib. 10. de rebus Hispanicis cap. 4.) and others. The Metropolis of Gallicia is Compostella, where is worshipped S. Iames the Apostle, who to∣gether with the Universitie making the Citie famous giveth unto it the name of S. Iago, it was heretofore called Briantia, as Franciscus •arapha, Ambrosius Moralis,* 1.3 and Villanovanus do thinke; Orosius calleth it Brigan∣tia, who saith, that there is in it a very high watch-towre: Ptolemie calleth it Flavium Brigantum, Beuterus, C•q•us, and Iohannes Mariana do call it Betancos, Florianus and Gomectus call it Coruna, and Iohannes Bishop of Gerunda (Lib. 1.) calleth it Compostella, saying it was so called quasi Compos Stella, for so the evening starre was called which maketh these countries wholsome. There is extant at Salamantica in the Library of the Colledge of our Saviour the Historie of Compostella, the growth and increase of the Church of Compostella described in two volumes, written by the command of Didacus the first Archbishop thereof: concerning which you may also read Lucius Marineus Siculus, in his fift Booke, and in Chapter concerning religious houses in Spaine, and the wonderfull mi∣racles done therein. The Lesser Townes are Orensium, a Citie neare the River Minius, and called by Ptolemie Thermae Calidae, as Gomecius thinketh in the life of Franciscus Zimenius, where hee addeth, that the Swedish people of Germany, who heretofore did subdue these parts, in their na∣tive language did call it Warense; though Ortelius saith it should rather be written Warmsee, which signifies the Warme Lake. Also a Town cal∣led in Latine Lucus, and by the Inhabitants Lugo, Pomponius calleth it Turris Augusti, Pliny, Aresti, and Arae Sextianae, and Ptolemie Promonto∣num Arae Sestii, neare to the Cantabricke Ocean in Artabria. Also, Pons vetus, Ponte Vedra, and Ribalaeum, commonly called Ribadeo. Other towns Marinaeus Siculus mentions in the beginning of his third Booke. Gallicia got the title of a Kingdome a thousand and sixtie yeares after Christ: For that yeare Ferdinand (the sonne of Sanctius Major King of Navarre) being King of Castile, when hee had married Sanctia the daughter of Al∣phonsus the fift, and so united the Kingdome of Castile and Legio: having three sonnes, hee made by his will Sanctius King of Castile; Alphonsus King of Legion and Asturia; and Garcia King of Gallicia (which hee en∣joying in the right of his wife, was till then but an Earledome) and Por∣tugall. Sanctius being not content with this division which his father made, thrust his brother Alphonsus out of his Kingdome, and slew Garcia his other brother. Now when Sanctius had ruled about sixe yeares, and was at last beheaded by Vellidus through trecherie, Alphonsus who lived as a banisht man with the King of the Moores at Toledo, did not onely recover the Kingdome of Legio, which his father gave him by Will, but also got the Kingdome of Castile, Gallicia, and Portugall. Alphonsus had three children lawfully begot on three wives, by Isabell Queen of France hee had Sanctia, who was married to the Earle Rodoricke, who brought new Colonies into the Citie which is commonly called Ciudad-Rodri∣go; by Zaida a Moore, daughter to the King of Sevill, he had Sanctius, who was slaine in a battell against the Saracens; and lastly, by Constantia he had Vrraca, who out living Sanctius and Sanctia (who dyed without issue) af∣ter shee had beene wife to Raimundus Berengarius Earle of Tolosa, marri∣ed Alphonsus King of Aragon, and had an heire by him who was after∣ward Alphonsus the seventh, the most powerfull King of all his predeces∣sours, and one that deserved to be called Emperour of Spaine. From that time Gallicia, Castile, and Legio have alwaies but one King. Neare to Legio, & bounding thereon on the North is Asturia, on the West Gallicia, and on the South and East old Castile. It taketh its name from the seventh German Legion, which was seated and placed here under the command of the Emperour Nerva, as some suppose. The Metropolis hereof is that famous Citie which taketh its name from the Countrie, and is called by Ptolemie Legio septima Germanica; Antoninus calleth it Legio Gemina; but it is now commonly called Leon, which name I cannot see why Franciscus Tarapha should rather derive from Leonigildus King of the Gothes, than from the Legion it selfe. Moralis doth deliver also that it was heretofore called Sublantia, and writeth that some evidences of that name are ex∣tant in a place but a little distant from Legio, called Sollanco. L. Marinaeus Siculus writeth thus concerning the Church of Legio, in his third Booke of Spaine. Although the Church which the Citie of Hispalis hath built in our age, doth exceed all the rest for greatnesse, although the Church of Toledo surpasse the rest for treasure, ornaments, and glasse windowes, and the Church of Compostella for strong building, for the miracles of Saint Iames, & other things: yet the Church of Legio (in my judgement) is to be preferred before them all for admirable structure and building, which hath a Chappell joyning to it, in which lye buried seven and thirtie Kings, and one Emperour of Spaine. It is worthy of memorie that this Citie was the first from which about the yeare 716. the recoverie of Spaine, (which formerly the Moores and Saracens almost wholly pos∣sessed) was begun. For (as also Rodericus Toletanus in his sixt Booke of Spanish matters for many Chapters together, and Roderick Sanctius in the first part of his Spanish Historie cap. 11. do relate) Pelagius the sonne of Fafila Duke of Cantabria, and descended of the royall blood of the Gothes, being made King by the remainder of the Christians who fled into the mountaines, made a great slaughter on the Moores; and being scarcely entred into his Kingdome tooke Legio from the enemies. This man afterwards making it the Seate of his Principalitie, built a new Ca∣stle there as a Fort and defence against the violence of their incursions.* 1.5 And laying aside the armes of the Kings of the Gothes, gave the Lion Rampant Gules, in a field, Argent; which the Kings of Legio do use at this day. Fafila the sonne of Pelagius succeeded him in the Kingdome, and (he dying issuelesse) there succeeded him Alphonsus Catholicus, the sonne of Peter Duke of Cantabria, being descended from the stocke of Ricaredus Catholick King of the Gothes, who married Ormisenda the onely sister and heire of Fafila. The government of Legion remained in the hands of Al∣phonsus his familie, even to Veremundus the 24 King of Legio, who dying in the yeare 1020. without a Successour, his sister Sanctia married Fer∣dinando of Navarre, King of Castile, and brought the Kingdome of Legio to be joyned and united to his kingdome. Asturia hath on the North the Ocean, on the East Biscay, on the South old Castile, and on the West Gal∣licia. It produceth and bringeth forth gold, & divers sorts of colours, o∣therwise it is but little tilled, and thinly inhabited, except it be in those places which are next to the Sea. Here was the Seat of the ancient Astu∣res, who were so called (as Isidore writeth lib. 9. Etymolog. cap. 2.) from the River Asturia, (whereof Florus maketh mention in the fourth Book of his Roman Histories, and others) From whom Ptolemie calls the Coun∣trie it selfe 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, and the Latines Asturia, as also Astyria, as is evident by what I have read in ancient marbles. At Rome in the pavement of the Chappell which is in the Temple of Saint Gregorie in the mountaine Caelius, there is a broken marble-table engraved with these words,

AcontitL. Ranio. Optato. V. C. CosCuratori. Reip. MediolanensiumCurat. Reip. Nolanorum. Procos. ProvinciaNarbonensium. Legato. Aug. Et IuridicoAstyriae. Et. Galaecia. Curatori. ViaeSalariae, &c.

Moreover I see it called Asturica in a marble-Table, which is at Rome beyond Tiber in a private Roman-citizens house. (I will set downe the words in the Description of Italie, where I shall speake of the Alpes joy∣ning to the Sea) And it is called at this day Asturias. Pliny (lib. 3. cap. 3.) doth divide the Astures into the Augustini and Transmontani. The one being on the hither side of the mountaines toward the South, and the other beyond the mountaines Northward neare the Ocean. Concerning the Astures, Silius the Italian Poet writeth thus (lib. 1.)

—Astur avarusVisceribus lacerae Telluris mergitur imis,Et redit infelix effosso concolor Auro. The covetous Asturian will goeInto the bowels of the earth below,Whence he returnes in colour like gold OareWhich hee unhappily digg'd up before.

The Metropolis of the Province is a 1.6 Oviedo, of which Rodericus Toletanus writeth much (lib. 4. de rebus Hisp. cap. 14.) where among other things he giveth the reason, wherefore it was called the Bishops Citie. Here is al∣so Astorga, called anciently Asturica Augusta, and some other small Townes.