Towns of Soria, Spain: San Pedro Manrique

The so-called Sorian Highlands, constitute a fascinating universe to discover. Its history is ancient history, old and in many cases, desperately lost in those unfathomable puddles of a past that, judging by what survived, must have been extremely rich and captivating.

If there are many people in this environment who have given in to this horrible pandemic, which is depopulation and forgetfulness, San Pedro Manrique still proudly wears the metaphorical banners of a 'capitality', whose importance, in the past, can still be felt. in the imposing nobiliary blazons, heirs of the great lords of the Mesta, who from medieval times to relatively modern times, dominated these mountains and gorges with the deafening bleat of their priceless herds.

But it is also San Pedro Manrique, a land of enigmas and tradition, legends and islands -either metaphorically speaking and remembering the dreams of greatness of the simple good-natured Sancho Panza- that they let glimpse, even if the documentation keeps an interested silence, the presence of those mysterious monks-warriors, the Knights Templar, who performed in these parts with their swords the same feats as the Celtiberians with their spears, their double-edged axes and their falcatas, often against an eminently superior enemy .

In effect, say the sampedreños, that the ruins that are seen on a hill, at the exit of the town, dominating a small depression that at the moment receives the sad honor to pick up the rubbish of the municipality, were, back in the XII-XIII centuries, a proud convent of templars, linked to the advocacy figure of San Pedro, I want to think that Ad Vincula, that is, 'chained'; the one to whom the tradition, or the legend-whether this one or not, golden, as Santiago de la Vorágine presented it to us-affirms that he was freed from his captivity by those same angels who, according to some investigators, also used to appear on the shields of the Knights Templar.

But we do not need to go to the outskirts of the town, to be aware of other details, which lead us to suppose that their presence was more certain and constant than what history books would have us believe.

Madoz, in his famous Dictionary, did not speculate with these data, although, it seems that he did collect information on the convent of Templars of San Pedro, which we have just discussed. But it is enough to make a small call for attention to certain elements and nomenclatures of medieval times, which barely survive yet, to speculate with certain guarantees of truthfulness.

In view of this, it could be said that a relevant detail is the name of that street that will lead to one of the doors of the old medieval wall that surrounded the city: La Rochela. Name that, undoubtedly, refers us to Marseille and its homonymous port of La Rochelle, place where during the Second World War (1939-1945) the Germans had an important base of submarines, but that much earlier, during the 12th centuries Early fourteenth century, when the Order was abolished, was one of the main ports from which the Templar fleet - remember those legends and traditions, about the fleet that escaped the arrest and seizure of the assets of the Order and that he fled to some unknown place, carrying in his cellars the supposed treasure of the Temple? - he carried out a good part of his activities.

Suspicious are also the ruins of what once was the church, with Gothic elevation of San Miguel -probably, raised in the fourteenth or fifteenth centuries, coinciding with the end of the Order- which is now part of the municipal cemetery.

It is located between the ruins of the castle, which dominate the city and the remains of the walled enclosure of which we have just spoken, highlighting, if ill-fated, the beauty of its palm-shaped vaults and the rich symbolism added to the medallions of the ribs of what, judging from the exorbitant traces of soot, must have shaped the cilla and the kitchen.

The entrance to the tower, is blinded with earth and debris, for fear of collapse and accidents, and it is said -or was it said at times- that in it there was hidden a formidable treasure.

On the same diagonal, there are barely a hundred or two hundred meters that separate the cemetery from what, perhaps today, is the most important place in San Pedro Manrique, both for its inhabitants and for the foreigners who visit it every year coinciding with the festival of San Juan and the summer solstice: the hermitage of the Virgen de la Peña -Virgin traditionally black- and the Recinto del Fuego.

It is noteworthy, that there is no doubt that this event - the passage of fire - is the main show for which San Pedro Manrique is known, both nationally and internationally, and its development still continues to ignite flowery debates -valga la redundancy - in scientific fields. And it is quite a sight to see the passers -well alone well carrying a pretty girl on the shoulders- barefoot through the embers -and I can assure you that their combustion is very high- and reach the other side without a scratch or a burn .

What is the trick ?, they will ask. Nobody knows: some say that faith; others, that if you apply an ointment on the soles of your feet, whose composition is as secret as the famous formula of Coca-Cola and still others, the most sensible, possibly, affirm that it can be achieved by passing fast and above all, stepping strong. You see: do you dare to try ?. Honestly, I do not.

After the bonfires, there is the Móndidas parade. They are not these, but maidens chosen and dressed traditionally-their headdresses, remember, by their abundance, the ancient rites of fertility that were held in honor of matres associated with fertility and agriculture, as Ceres and Proserpina-that some sources claim come back or compare with the so-called Tribute of the One hundred Maidens, established during the time of the Asturian monarchy, coinciding with the reign of King Mauregato, who is attributed so shameful tribute to the Cordovan Caliphate, in exchange for maintaining their privileges. But everything seems to indicate that it is only a historical falsehood and that History unfairly treated this sovereign, who in fact was one of the most enlightened of the line of succession initiated by Don Pelayo in Covadonga.

In both cases, both the passage of fire and the Móndidas seem to go back to much older ancestral rites.

I hope you liked what you have read and if in the next summer solstice you have an opportunity, do not hesitate, come to San Pedro Manrique and enjoy a show you will never forget.

[Hospital de la Fuenfría, Cercedilla, Madrid, Saturday, August 4, 2018]

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