OUR PEOPLE WAS NOT ALWAYS KNOWN AS SALVATERRA? 

In fact, the current place name comes from the time of King Ferdinand II of León (12th century) who gave the order to fortify the place and wall it in order to "safeguard the lands from Lusitanian invasions". Until then Salvaterra was known as Lacedorium or its later form Lazoiro, which according to the toponymy expert Gerardo Sacau would come to mean "place of waters or rivers".

SALVATERRA IS KNOWN FOR BEING ONE OF THE OLDEST VILLAS IN THE SOUTH OF GALICIA? 

In fact, the first documents found that attest to its existence are from the 10th century, during the reign of Bermudo II. This monarch wrote a document in 991, in which the territory of Lacedorium (former place name of Salvaterra) appears as part of an allocation of territories to the Compostela church. This link was maintained until relatively recently, since until the 19th century the residents of the town paid the tithe to the church in Santiago. That is the reason why when we talk about Salvaterra we refer to it as “millennial village”.

Yes, between 1643 and 1659 Salvaterra was in Portuguese hands.

In the framework of the Portuguese War of Restoration, border territories such as that of our town were key in the struggles of the Portuguese to secure their independence from the Spain of Felipe II.

A confrontation in which the incursions from the Miño river, in boats loaded with Portuguese infantry, played a decisive role.

Occupied Salvaterra, it would only be released after the occupation by the Spanish of the Portuguese squares of Lapela and Monçao.

DO WE OWE THE PORTUGUESE THE CONFIGURATION OF THE WALLED ENCLOSURE OF OUR VILLA?

Indeed, during the occupation of Salvaterra by the Lusses, they realized the poor state of the old defensive parapets of the town, so they rebuilt them by raising a new walled system. The new wall was designed to prevent an attack from the ground. The progress in the use of gunpowder and mechanical weapons (cannons) forced the transformation of defensive structures and the introduction of new architectural elements such as bastions.

IN THE “A CANUDA” PARK IS THE LARGEST ORCHIDIARY IN GALICIA FOUND? 

Within our large public park, a special site is occupied by the more than 200 species that live throughout the year in an enclosure adapted to their conditions. On the other hand, in the month of September a fair-exhibition is held in the same park of "A Canuda" with more than 2000 species that fans of these plants enjoy.

IN THE PARISH OF CORZANS IS A PORTAL KNOWN AS “PORTALÓN DA INQUISICIÓN” FOUND? 

In the place "da Inquisicion" we can visit the beautifully emblazoned and recently restored entrance of a house commanded to be erected by the Inquisitor of the Holy Office, Don Bartolomé Barbeito y Padrón, in the year 1688. This house, of which only part of the original structure was ordered to be erected by the inquisitor as a resting place for the clerics of his family and for the formation of new ecclesiastics in their absence.

DO WE HAVE ONE OF THE MOST INTERACTIVE WINE MUSEUMS IN SPAIN IN SALVATERRA? 

Inside one of the most important historical enclaves in southern Galicia, the Castillo de Doña Urraca, today a series of contents related to the world of wine and our most renowned wines are exposed in the most interactive and didactic way. like albariño or Condado wines. The visitor, through a series of touch screens and games, will be able to learn how our wines are made, what work is carried out in the vineyard or what diseases affect our plantations.

INSIDE THE CASTEL OF DOÑA URRACA IS A UNIQUE EXAMPLE OF A DOUBLE RAMP SNAIL STAIRCASE AND A SINGLE AXIS FOUND? 

As we say, this is a unique example of an architectural solution that helps to communicate the three levels of the castle. Starting from a single axis, two spiral staircases rise without communication between them, each leading to a different door in each room. For the visitor it is curious to see how the ceiling of one of the stairs is the floor of the other.

DOES THE LEGEND HAVE A SECRET TUNNEL CROSSING THE MIÑO RIVER TO PORTUGAL WITHIN THE CASTLE? 

According to the oral tradition of the area, the well on the lower floor of the Castillo de Doña Urraca was the starting point of a tunnel that Queen Urraca used to cross into Portugal below the Miño river.

ONE OF THE MOST APPRECIATED DELIQUES BY THE SALVATERRENSES AND OUR VISITORS IS A FISH THAT HAS EVOLVED LITTLE SINCE THE TIME OF THE DINOSAURS? 

We are talking about the lamprey, an inhabitant of our rivers whose strange appearance equally surprises and fascinates. With a gelatinous, cylindrical body, without scales and very slippery, it is perhaps its mouth that causes more curiosity and is that it does not have jaws since it parasitizes other animals in the water. In Salvaterra two are the rivers where it is captured, the Miño where since ancient times it has been fished in stone structures known as pesqueiras and in the Tea where each year hundreds of fishermen armed with a “fisga” perch each night in a wooden structure and iron (staked) over the river to capture them. The great variety of dishes made with lamprey make this product one of the most versatile in our local cuisine. In empanada, Bordalesa, stuffed or roasted, the lamprey is sure to delight lovers of good food.

IN SALVATERRA DO WE HAVE THE LARGEST PUBLIC THERMAL BATHS IN GALICIA? 

This thermal area located in the parish of Oleiros, next to the Miño river, takes advantage of the Teáns spring. Its sulphurous waters have already been recognized for their interest for public use, as highlighted by the doctor and scholar Nicolás Taboada Leal in his work Historical Topographical Description of the city of Vigo, its estuary and surroundings from 1877. The complex consists of 4 pools for the bathroom, three large and one smaller. The water was declared mineral-medicinal and thermal, after a favorable report from the Geological and Mining Institute of Spain, by the Xunta de Galicia.

BETWEEN SALVATERRA AND NORTHERN PORTUGAL WAS THERE AN INTENSE SMUGGLING OF CLANDESTINE IN THE DECADES OF 1950-1960? 

The Miño river that here in Salvaterra also serves as a natural border with Portugal was during these decades the nerve center of a frenzied clandestine activity, the estraperlo. Both in Spain and Portugal the central decades of the 20th century were times of great famine caused by the harsh living conditions imposed by the dictatorial regimes of Franco and Salazar. In Spain, the cruel economic crisis resulting from the Civil War caused the shortage of certain products that were clandestinely supplied to the markets by the inhabitants of Salvaterra who were engaged in the "business" of the estraperlo. Coffee, copper, sheet metal or sugar were the most appreciated products by women and men who crossed the Miño on foot or by boat to increase their income and thus improve their quality of life and that of their families.