Villavega facts for kids

Villavega is a small town, also called a municipality, located in the province of Palencia in Castile and León, Spain. It sits where two areas, Tierra de Campos and Vega-Valdavia, meet. This charming village is found on the left side of the Valdavia river.

The village grew up around its main street, Calle Real. This street is an older path that starts in Santa Cruz de Boedo. In recent years, Villavega has expanded. This growth happened because new land became available for building.

What Villavega Does

The main ways people make a living here are through farming and raising animals.

Villavega's Past

A general view of Calle Real in Villavega

Villavega was first mentioned a long time ago, in a document about Castrillo de Villavega. It appeared in the last will of King Alfonso VIII in the year 1204. This was about 300 years after a special building was set up. The king ordered that a castle be given to the Orden Militar de San Juan de Jerusalem. This group, also known as the Orden del Hospital, was in charge of keeping the area safe.

A historian named Gonzalo Martínez Díez believes that during the Middle Ages, Villavega was part of a region called Meryndat de Monçon. However, this information is not found in an important old book called Becerro de las Behetrías de Castilla.

Special Places in Villavega

San Andres Apostol Church

The headstone written when the church was built

This church has a very old history, going back to the Romanesque period. On the front of the church, you can see a stone carving of a head. There are also two small messages carved into the stone. The first and largest one says:

The smaller one below it says:

Even though the outside of the church looks like the Renaissance style, the inside is in the Romanesque style. This style was popular in the 12th and 13th centuries. There used to be two old pictures from the 12th and 13th centuries inside. One picture showed Saint Barbara and the other showed Saint Sebastian. These pictures and some silver items were taken from the church in 1980. Luckily, they were found and brought back some years later.

The 18th-Century Ossuary

The ossuary of the San Andres Apostol church in Villavega

This building is located outside the church. It has three pillars and is decorated with skulls. There are also messages carved into it that talk about how short life is. Between each pillar, there is an opening that lets you see inside the ossuary. Starting from the left side, the messages say:

• "TV QVE ME MIRAS A MI TAN TRISTE MORTAL Y FEO COMO TV TE VES ME VI TE VERAS COMO ME VEO"
• "MIRA CHRISTIANO QVE TV DIOS TE MIRA Y QVE AS DE SER CON RECTITVD JVZGADO SOCORRE A LAS ANIMAS Y SERAS DE DIOS PREMIADO"
• "NO TE ESPANTES DE QVE SOY VNA TRISTE CALAVERA ACVERDATE TE VERAS EN ESTA TAN TRISTE ESFERA"

Image Gallery

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  View of the frontside of the San Andres Apostol church

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  View of the northside of the San Andres Apostol church

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  Example of the renaissance style of the san Andres Apostol church

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  Detailed view of the dome of the San Andres Apostol church

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  Detailed view of the first pillar of the ossuary: "TV QVE ME MIRAS A MI TAN TRISTE MORTAL Y FEO COMO TV TE VES ME VI TE VERAS COMO ME VEO"

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  Detailed view of the second pillar of the ossuary: "MIRA CHRISTIANO QVE TV DIOS TE MIRA Y QVE AS DE SER CON RECTITVD JVZGADO SOCORRE A LAS ANIMAS Y SERAS DE DIOS PREMIADO"

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  Detailed view of the third pillar of the ossuary: "NO TE ESPANTES DE QVE SOY VNA TRISTE CALAVERA ACVERDATE TE VERAS EN ESTA TAN TRISTE ESFERA"

See also

In Spanish: Villavega de Castrillo para niños